Tiffany Pate, a local blogger living in Mt. Pleasant, recently learned about a new
organization that is bringing tangible hope to women in Africa who have been
rescued out of slavery. This tangible
hope is offered by way of gently worn bras.
Mrs. Pate’s sister introduced her to Free the Girls during a impassioned
phone call. She asked for help collecting used bras to push her class to
victory in a bra drive held by the Aveda Institute in Charlotte . Mrs. Pate made a facebook plea to her “church
friends.” A week and a half and sixty-eight bras later, her sister’s class won.
Mrs. Pate could have
stopped there, but something had ignited inside her. She had to do more. Free the Girls is an
organization that has discovered a way to help women rescued out of slavery
start a business. They collect used bras
and distribute them to women who have been set free. Once these ladies sell the bras, they use the
money to feed their families, go to school and re-invest in more inventory.
This model allows the new entrepreneur to run a self supporting business. Please visit www.freethegirls.com to learn
more.
Mrs. Pate is a stay at home mom of two boys, but instead of
thinking she couldn’t do anything right now with children underfoot, she found
away to make a difference.
“I realized that the little part of internet that I call mine
could be used to make a difference,” Tiffany Pate explains. “My blog can be more than just stories about
my kids, it can inspire something bigger.
When people unite, you can change the world, even if it is just by a
blog.”
Mrs. Pate harnessed this power and is in the middle of a
nationwide bra drive. She organized Mrs.
Pate’s Blogger Bra Drive and used her blog, Mrs. Pate Writes to get the word
out and the buzz going. “I wanted to not
only get the word out about Free The Girls, but get bloggers all over to
interact with each other more, build community, and do something for a great
cause. Two voices are louder than one.”
Abbie Unger, who blogs at The Envelope Keeper, was so inspired
by Mrs. Pate’s heart for this cause, she knew she had to help. “When Tiffany told me about all the good
that could be done, I knew I wanted to use my blog to make a difference, too.
And when I saw there was a prize for the most creative bra drive, I called my
brother, Chad Sumner. He owns Holy City
Events an innovative event planning company that is always on the cutting edge
of the Charleston social scene. He is a
great idea man and he had a great idea.”
Ladies Night Bra Drive at Midtown Bar & Grill was
born. July 25 Midtown’s weekly ladies
night will look a little different. They
will still have drink specials and music, but between 4 and 7 pm there will be
bras everywhere. Abbie explains, “We
will be giving away door prizes throughout the event and the first fifty ladies
with bra donations will take home a thank you goodie bag. Local businesses have been generous so
far. We really appreciate Midtown
opening their doors to us.”
If you or your company would like to participate, please send
an email to abbie.unger@gmail.com.
This is a great opportunity to clean out your drawers and have
fun for a good cause. If you have a blog
join the fun at www.mrstmpate.com.
what an awesome idea.... I'm not certain I could make the event on the 25th but I have inventory (LOL) I could give to the cause.... I'm in Ladson SC, work on Daniel Island, or I can postal mail the bras to you....
ReplyDeleteyou can email me at musclegoddess65@gmail.com