The Power of A PURSE is Powerful Indeed!

Do you have any idea what I've been up to?  I'll tell you.  Along with the other members of the Greater Raleigh/Durham chapter of Mothers & More, I've been collecting purses.  This time the collection has nothing to do with my personal penchant for the little darlings.  And we've been collecting items to put in those purses.  I'm sure you'll want to know why and believe me, I'm happy to oblige.

Mothers & More started a national Mothers Day campaign a few years ago as an Advocacy & Outreach project for the local chapters throughout the country to do something especially meaningful for mothers in need in our communities; frequently for women in shelters, but not always.  I wish I knew the full back story - and I will make it a point to find out if anyone is interested, but the important part is that this annual campaign has been very well received throughout the country and the donations have been outstanding.  I believe I heard that last year alone 10,000 purses were collected and donated.  That's right TEN THOUSAND purses - mostly filled with items you might find in your own purse (minus the wadded up tissues and gas station receipts).

Why purses?  Because a purse represents a woman's economic power.  Can you imagine not having your own purse?  I'm not sure about you, but I basically carry the necessities of my everyday life in my handbag and go nowhere without it.  Here's a little sneak peek at the handbags we've collected in just a couple of weeks... believe it or not, there are over 50 handbags there.

Here in the Greater Raleigh/Durham area we're collecting for the women being served by InterAct of Wake County, North Carolina - a non-profit agency that provides safety, support and awareness to victims and survivors of domestic violence and rape/sexual assault.  We aren't stopping with purses though.  We are also asking local businesses to donate food items for a fantabulous Mother's Day Brunch for the women being served by InterAct.  You couldn't ask for a more generous bunch of business owners  - and that's one of the reasons I love living in this area - folks really want to reach out and help other, local folks....especially women....especially if it means empowering women.  But we're not stopping there either!  This year Mothers & More expanded the Power of a Purse program to include The Empowered Purse.  I know, you're waiting with baited breath to hear what that is, right?  Well, I'm getting to it...hold on...


The Empowered Purse is a multi-part program, offered through participating chapters, that allows us, as women, to re-evaluate our financial goals (and believe me, LOTS of chapters are participating around the country)!  A few members in our local chapter learned a surprising thing or two about themselves during Part I of the three part series; we're looking forward to Part II.


More information on Mothers & More, The Power of a Purse and The Empowered Purse can be found at www.mothersandmore.org .  Go on, have a look.  Every mother deserves a little MORE in her own life, don't you think?