Sister Table Talk

“We must act now!” are four words that have gained great momentum to bail out financial institutions (green giants) on the verge of bankruptcy or closure. These words have radically shaken the corporate giants and current administration from a deep sleep because they no longer see green, but red. The words, “We must act now” did not gain its popularity from the failing financial institutions. These words have been quite popular among advocates that have been working to restore the vitality of our debilitating communities due to spiritual, economical, and social woes. For example, We must act now to provide affordable childcare and health care to low-income wage earners We must act now to raise minimum wage to livable earnings to stimulate the economy We must act now to provide paid maternal leave beyond three-months We must act now to provide equal-pay for women and men to create healthy families and communities We must act now to provide protection for victims of domesti

"Many women are poor because no one wants to help poor black women" was the comment from an attendee of Virtuous Enterprises, Inc. (VEINC), first Sister Table Talk Tour held in Hillcrest Heights, Maryland. Should the plight of poverty among low-income, women heads-of-households in the Washington region be associated with people refusing to help? If this is true, why do people turn their backs on the down-trodden ? If it isn't true, why is poverty a growing trend among women in the Washington region? During the Sister Table Talk forum held at the Spaulding Branch Library in Forestville, Maryland, the attendees concurred that poverty is a combination of mind and being - 'in order to change what one lacks tangibly, one must first change their mind.' The topic reminds me of the story of a lame man who was carried and laid daily at the gate of the temple called Beautiful to ask for alms (i.e., money). When the lame man saw Peter and John (disciples that went to

What if a homeless woman could receive ‘free' employment and technology skills training to secure a livable wage career to purchase a home to gain safety and security every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online created pathways to economic independence for low-income, women-headed families that are acutely vulnerable to the cycle of poverty through entrepreneurship training and development? GoodSearch.com - a new Yahoo-powered search engine donates half its advertising revenue (about a penny per search) to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up! In addition, GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 37 percent of each purchase to a nonprofit cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, eBay, Macy's and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop, and every

There's a saying, "Life is where you find it, and what you make of it." At 3:00 pm, a local "smoking" gas attendant said, "I sure need a beer" while her work area smelled like a smoke factory. Someone told her, "she was paying for her death as a smoker" and she replied, "I'm going to die from something anyway, so I'm going to die happy!" This is not the first time this statement has been heard, and it's amazing to know the percentage of women that believe adding poison to their bodies is a pathway to happiness. Since many women believe that death is inevitable, many also believe that it's pointless to live a healthy lifestyle. The services and programs of Virtuous Enterprises, Inc. (VEINC) are designed to make positive, long-term impacts in the lives of underserved women and girls to enrich their quality of life. One strategy is "cause-and-effect" - an approach to help clients discover the 'root cause&

Do you have the spirit? Yeah! Yeah! Do you have the spirit? Yeah! Yeah! Well let me see it in your walk... One of my favorite cheers in high school was, Do You Have The Spirit . The cheerleaders really knew how to get the crowd excited and engaged in our school's sporting events, and it seemed like the crowd ignited a new fire in the players to strive harder to win if they were trailing behind. It appears that the Spirit of Giving is more prevalent during the Holiday Season (i.e., Thanksgiving and Christmas) and many nonprofits do a great job raising money during this special time of year. What are their secrets or strategies? Who are their cheerleaders? And, what cheers do they chant to engage donors to give to support their cause(s)? According to the Making Connections: The Nonprofit Sector in Prince George's County report conducted by the Maryland Association of Nonprofits , "80% of the nonprofit sectors with revenue below $25,000 are in Prince George's Count

The economic instability of low-income families seems to weigh more heavily on the shoulders of women than men in today’s society. And, poverty seems to be the growing trend among low-income, women-headed families due to inequitable access to affordable housing, child and health care, education, and low-wage earnings. Today, a mother of two making $31,000 per year cannot afford to rent an apartment, pay utilities, pay childcare and aftercare, a car note or car insurance. According to the Portrait's Project - a ground breaking report published by the Washington Area Women's Foundation, Prince George's County, Maryland has the highest concentration of low-income women-headed families in the Washington region, and this concentration is rapidly growing. The mother described in the first paragraph is a program participant of Virtuous Enterprises, Inc. METT (Mobile Employment Technology Training Program) - a program that teaches homeless women how to achieve economic independenc