"Imagine the coldest day you can remember, the biting wind chilling you to your core... Now imagine spending each day wandering through the city, with no home, no bed, no place to get warm."
This is reality for over 20,000 Detroiters. 1 in
every 42 people in the city are homeless. Because of this, shelters are
often too overwhelmed and under-supported to help every individual in
need. Too often people in need of basic necessities have to fend for
themselves on the streets, and in the harsh cold of Michigan winters the
difficulty to survive is only exacerbated.
Homeless people become trapped in a cycle. Often it begins when a person loses his or her job, then their home, and eventually ends up on the streets for anywhere from a few months to upwards of 20 years. What started as a class project for a young student at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, transpired into an agent for change and empowerment within her community. The class project was based upon creating a product that would fill a need rather than something faddish. And in Detroit, this young student said, "taking on homelessness made sense." Her name is Veronika Scott, now 23, CEO/founder of The Empowerment Plan,
A Young Remarkable Women; explains her inspiration . . .
"Where else in the world, but Detroit?… It’s the Wild West of Creativity. If our job that we want isn’t here, and isn’t being offered, we make it here for ourselves…It is really is, I think just because of Detroit, and the timing…we can really change drastically our environment and the community around ourselves. And here, we’re doing that all the time."--- TED X Detroit speaker Veronika Scott.
The Empowerment Plan aims to help build a better life for those that have become trapped in the cycle of homelessness. They give homeless women jobs while in the shelter so that they can earn money, find a place to live, and gain back their independence for themselves and for their families.
The Empowerment Plan is a humanitarian organization based in the city of Detroit. The plan centers around construction of a coat that transforms into a sleeping bag at night, and a bag when not in use. The coat is made by a group of homeless women who have been paid to learn and to produce the coats for those living on the streets.
"Everybody told me that my business was going to fail -- not because of who I was giving my product to but because of who I was hiring," Scott said. "They said that these homeless women will never make more than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich -- you cannot rely on them for anything. And I know my ladies enjoy proving everybody wrong."--- Veronika Scott:
Wins JFK New Frontier Award!
"Once you start talking to people, no matter what you're doing, whether you're in the public schools or you're on the streets, you are constantly faced with the homeless epidemic."---
It took one of the people whom Veronika Scott was trying to help to show her a unique way to Make A Difference.
"The focus is to create jobs for those who desire them, and to provide coats at no cost for those who need them. "--- The Empowerment Plan!
The REVIEW Accommodates Many VOICES! Thanks for Reading!!!
This is reality for over 20,000 Detroiters. 1 in
every 42 people in the city are homeless. Because of this, shelters are
often too overwhelmed and under-supported to help every individual in
need. Too often people in need of basic necessities have to fend for
themselves on the streets, and in the harsh cold of Michigan winters the
difficulty to survive is only exacerbated.Homeless people become trapped in a cycle. Often it begins when a person loses his or her job, then their home, and eventually ends up on the streets for anywhere from a few months to upwards of 20 years. What started as a class project for a young student at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, transpired into an agent for change and empowerment within her community. The class project was based upon creating a product that would fill a need rather than something faddish. And in Detroit, this young student said, "taking on homelessness made sense." Her name is Veronika Scott, now 23, CEO/founder of The Empowerment Plan,
A Young Remarkable Women; explains her inspiration . . .
"Where else in the world, but Detroit?… It’s the Wild West of Creativity. If our job that we want isn’t here, and isn’t being offered, we make it here for ourselves…It is really is, I think just because of Detroit, and the timing…we can really change drastically our environment and the community around ourselves. And here, we’re doing that all the time."--- TED X Detroit speaker Veronika Scott.
The Empowerment Plan aims to help build a better life for those that have become trapped in the cycle of homelessness. They give homeless women jobs while in the shelter so that they can earn money, find a place to live, and gain back their independence for themselves and for their families.
The Empowerment Plan is a humanitarian organization based in the city of Detroit. The plan centers around construction of a coat that transforms into a sleeping bag at night, and a bag when not in use. The coat is made by a group of homeless women who have been paid to learn and to produce the coats for those living on the streets.
"Everybody told me that my business was going to fail -- not because of who I was giving my product to but because of who I was hiring," Scott said. "They said that these homeless women will never make more than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich -- you cannot rely on them for anything. And I know my ladies enjoy proving everybody wrong."--- Veronika Scott:
Wins JFK New Frontier Award!
"Once you start talking to people, no matter what you're doing, whether you're in the public schools or you're on the streets, you are constantly faced with the homeless epidemic."---
It took one of the people whom Veronika Scott was trying to help to show her a unique way to Make A Difference.
"The focus is to create jobs for those who desire them, and to provide coats at no cost for those who need them. "--- The Empowerment Plan!
The REVIEW Accommodates Many VOICES! Thanks for Reading!!!
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