Emerge Featured in Edwards Angell Palmer and Dodge's Spring Soiree

Posted by Alia on Thursday, May 28, 2009

Emerge Global with part of our dedicated legal team

From right to left: Alia Whitney-Johnson, Katie Galbraith, Akiyo Fujii, Betsy Munnell, and April Wachtel

It's not every day that a non-profit of our size secures a dedicated team of probono lawyers to help navigate the legal landscape surrounding international non-profits. And, it's certainly not every day that a group of powerhouse attorneys organizes a women's networking event! A little over a year ago, Emerge Global was extremely fortunate to develop a relationship with Edwards Angell Palmer and Dodge. This May, the Women's Initiative of EAPD hosted a Spring Soiree for a dynamic group of women in the Boston area. We were lucky to be one of their featured 5 probono clients. Other featured probono clients included: Raising the Blues, Ltd., Adopt-A-Pig, America SCORES New England, and Transcultural Exchange.

More than 100 women gathered to mingle, indulge in wonderful appetizers, and learn about the work of the five featured non-profits. I'm proud to say that the girl's jewelry was definitely a huge hit. We sold more than $1000 in just over two hours. And, these women proved that Emerge jewelry can look great dressed up or down. They found pieces for their suits, dresses, and casuals. It was great to have April back from Sri Lanka to tell our story, share her experiences, and help with the non-stop buzz around our booth.


So, what could a huge law firm like Edwards Angell Palmer and Dodge do for a small organization like Emerge Global, you might ask. Well, they have helped us with everything from filing our 1023 so that we could become our own non-profit (woohoo! Thank you EAPD!), to helping us set up a sister entity in Sri Lanka, to trademarking our logo, to developing volunteer waivers and non-disclosure agreements. (And yes, that's just part of all they have done). It's been a long year of paperwork but, thanks to EAPD, we are building the infrastructure to have long-term global impact. A huge thank you to all the members on our legal team- David Mason, Akiyo Fujii, Katie Galbraith, Patrick Concannon, Mary De la Rosa, Betsy Munnell, and the rest of the EAPD crew- for helping us to get to where we are today!

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US Emerge Volunteer Positions

Posted by Alia on Monday, May 25, 2009

What if a necklace could mean a lifetime of freedom and hope for a girl in Sri Lanka?
With your help, it can...

Emerge Global is currently recruiting highly motivated, creative, and passionate individuals to fill positions on our team in the US! As a young organization, this is a great opportunity to shape our evolving work.

Emerge Global is currently recruiting highly motivated, creative, and passionate individuals to fill positions on our team in the US and in Sri Lanka! As a young organization, this is a great opportunity to shape our evolving work.

If interested, please send a cover letter, resume and letter of recommendation to Alia Whitney-Johnson (alia@emergeglobal.org)

Current open positions include:

Development Officer
Sales and Marketing Officer
Outreach Officer
Design Officer
Public Relations Officer
Web and Information Technology Officer
Financial Officer Read more »

Emerge Presentations at Harrison High School

Posted by Ellen on Monday, May 18, 2009

I don't know how teachers do it. Last week I spoke in six different classes at my alma mater Harrison High School about Emerge Global and my time in Sri Lanka. And it was exhausting. The kids were great, don't get me wrong, but it was a physically draining process and by the end of the day I had déjà vu every time I began my talk.

One of the highlights was reconnecting with old teachers, coaches, mentors, and in the case of Coach Janssen (pictured below) all of the above.


The first class I spoke in was Mrs. Nimmer's Creative Writing class (which I also spoke in last December when I was back in the USA and wrote about here). As they did last time, the students were encouraged to pick a piece of jewelry and write a poem about it. I've reproduced a couple of them at the bottom of this blog post.

The best part about speaking at Harrison was the enthusiasm that it generated. I had students coming up to me afterward asking how they could help and where they could purchase the jewelry. The student President of the Sunshine Society emailed me about a possible joint Emerge Global-Sunshine activity or event, and one of the classes that I spoke in (Fashion Design) wants to donate 20 of the bags they've sewn to the girls, filling them with toiletries, stickers, hair accessories, and other things that young girls like. In general being able to share Emerge's story is one of my favorite parts of the job, both for the excitement it generates in me, and the outpouring of support that it produces.

-----

Make Me

And with all she's been through, now I know
The demons, darkness, and evil to show
She wraps me around, to numb her pain
hands so tight, I feel her strain
The ribbons pink, a color so weak,
from when she lost her voice, forgot to speak
So she spins me tighter, squeezes to fit
breaking, crying, rising from hit
She's so friendly, such a simple girl
The browns and silvers all mix with a whirl
And with her story, it makes her strong
But in the place, that's where she belongs
I've made a necklace, such a simple toy
I've set her free, from that forceful boy
Remember her story, it's what you should do
Because right now here I am, wrapped around you

By: Kristen White

-----

Beads

the blue shows my tears,
the sadness brought on by
by what you did to me.
I've been sent away like
I was in the wrong but
no, it was you.

the green shows my jealousy,
because I want to go home.
I'm jealous of all the girls
who are at home because
you didn't ruin their lives,
so they still have family.

the gold shows my distrust,
I used to be so trusting but
you took that away as you
took a piece of my life,
you took some of my soul
and a piece of my heart.

the black shows my rebellious side
because you can't keep me down.
I refuse to let you ruin me
and I will rise from the ashes
of my life and make
something of myself.

the brown shows my stability,
you left me wobbly and unsure
but now I know how to stand
and I'll stand tall and live
live my life so I can
be free from you.

By: Becca Miller

Read more »

Emerge featured on shefinds.com

Posted by Ellen on Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Today Emerge Global jewelry was featured at shefinds.com under the article title "Three Ways to Make Your Jewelry Help More Than Just Your Wardrobe." Check out a link to the article here. This is great publicity for us, and I hope that the shefinds community has a blast on our esty site! And also check out the article for other examples of jewelry producers who are trying to make the world a better place.

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Excitement in West Lafayette

Posted by Ellen on Saturday, May 09, 2009

I'm from West Lafayette, Indiana, and have returned back home for the month of May to do outreach, sales, and fundraising events for Emerge Global in my hometown. So far, things have been going amazingly well! The following events have already taken place:

Thursday Helen Magazine event: $911 in jewelry sold, $2 in donations (photo of Sharon and Susan of Helen Magazine and myself)

Friday sale at West Side Jr/Sr High School: $777 in jewelry sold (and check out all that Emerge jewelry on my high school basketball coach Jane Schott and I below)

and the following events coming up:

Sunday sale at West Lafayette UU Church
Wednesday sale at Harrison High School

In addition, at the Helen Magazine event on Thursday I met a wonderful woman named Kier who is trying to help facilitate two more events - one at a Rotary Club, and another at an event called "Mosey Down Main Street" which takes place today! I'm beginning to worry that I didn't bring enough jewelry back to West Lafayette. What a good problem to have! Read more »

Emerge SPRING Time News + May Jewelry Sales

Posted by Alia on Monday, May 04, 2009

Spring 2009 has been packed with excitement for Emerge. Our biggest news here in Boston is that we are opening an office at 515 Beacon Street and, thanks to the long-time Emerge supporters Kim and Dave, we have now moved an entire car full of Emerge materials out from underneath my overly-lofted bed and into its new home. Thank you both for helping us move!



Another thank you to Jenifer Apazidis, who runs a Boston bead store called "Sweet Beads" and is responsible for us receiving 5000 beautiful new signature Emerge beads, which will be incorporated into our future jewelry. Don't let their small size fool you though. That small bag of 5000 beads must weigh more than 50 pounds! (Thanks Jen, for adding to the serious moving we did yesterday... As I carried that bag of Emerge charms, I couldn't help but think what would happen if I dropped the bag in the street. Emerge flowers would be everywhere!).

I'm also excited to say that after 6 months in Sri Lanka, and probably many more beads than she had ever imagined, April, our Program Development Officer, just landed back in the US. Ellen will be arriving later this week for a month-long trip back to the States. It will be great to have the three of us in one place again for some serious brainstorming. And, we'd love for you to take part in this brainstorming as well -- We are currently building our team in both the US and in Sri Lanka. If you are interested in applying for a position or learning more, please see the details below.

Most importantly, I want to take this time to recognize all the mothers out there, as Mother's Day is around the corner. Every day that I work with the girls of Emerge, I realize more and more how remarkable all mothers are. For those of you who are still looking for gifts for Mother's Day, there's no better gift than some glittering jewels made by the girls of Emerge. For individuals in the Boston area, I hope you will stop by our MIT booth this week (Mon, Tues, and Fri)! (See more details below) We will also be having sales in Lafayette, Indiana and New York City. For those of you outside of these areas, support our girls by purchasing some of their one-of-a-kind jewelry through our online jewelry boutique.

Out our Upcoming Events

BOSTON
Annual Mother's Day Jewelry Sale
Monday, May 4 @ 10am-4pm- MIT Lobby 10
Tuesday, May 5 @ 10am-4pm- MIT Stata Center
Friday, May 8 @ 10am-4pm- MIT Lobby 10


GREATER LAFAYETTE AREA, INDIANA

Reception and Jewelry Sale
(sponsored by Helen Magazine!)
Thursday, May 7 @ 5:30-7pm

323 Columbia St. Lafayette, IN

See attached flyer
http://www.helenmagazine.com/

Mother's Day Jewelry Sale
Sunday, May 10 @ 11:30 am-1pm
333 Meridian St. West Lafayette, IN


NEW YORK CITY
Reception and Jewelry Sale
Thursday, May 14 @ 6:30-8pm
21 West St, Apt. 11D
RSVP here

All my best,
Alia

Read more »

Get Involved by Joining the Emerge Team!

Posted by Alia on Saturday, May 02, 2009

What if a necklace could mean a lifetime of freedom and hope for a girl in Sri Lanka?
With your help, it can...

Emerge Global is currently recruiting highly motivated, creative, and passionate individuals to fill positions on our team in the US and in Sri Lanka! As a young organization, this is a great opportunity to shape our evolving work.

Emerge Global is currently recruiting highly motivated, creative, and passionate individuals to fill positions on our team in the US and in Sri Lanka! As a young organization, this is a great opportunity to shape our evolving work.

If interested, please send a cover letter, resume and letter of recommendation to Alia Whitney-Johnson (alia@emergeglobal.org)

SRI LANKA POSITIONS:
Sri Lanka Country Director
Sri Lanka Program Development Officer

UNITED STATES POSITIONS:
Development Officer
Sales and Marketing Officer
Design Officer
Public Relations Officer
Web and Information Technology Officer Read more »