BoGo Sneak Peak!

Happy Monday!

First off for those who want sneak peaks into BoGo discounts, products, and offers sign up at this link. I promise you won't want to miss anything! 

Just a refresher, at BoGo Bras for every bra that is purchased a bra is donated to a woman who is coming out of sex trafficking. This can be a little confusing so below is the FAQ page from our soon to be public website. Please comment below if you have any questions, I would love to answer them for you. In the mean time read up and prepare yourself for our product launch that is COMING IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS! Remember, it's never too early to start your holiday shopping... 

Why BoGo?

Many developing countries have a ban on the sale of second hand clothing due to health concerns. BoGo Bras will be donating brand new bras for women coming out of sex trafficking to sell. A large inventory of new bras will allow women to start their own business of selling bras in many new countries where they otherwise wouldn’t have that opportunity.

How does selling bras help stop human trafficking?

When women are rescued from sex trafficking they rarely have a job waiting for them. Many women and girls were trafficked from a young age and did not receive an education and don’t have a skill set to offer to an employer. This lack of opportunity combined with fear, wondering if they will be able to provide for themselves, pushes the women back into doing what they know. Giving women the opportunity to start their own business selling bras encourages them to believe in themselves, be financially independent, and have hope for a better future.

Why do you call the women entrepreneurs?

The women selling bras are gaining basic business skills. They are responsible for managing their money to buy more inventory, managing their profits to provide for themselves and their families, and working on dealing with people. They ultimately run their own business.

How do the bras get to the women?

BoGo currently partners with Free The Girls, an organization  that collects new and gently used bras, to ship to the rescued women. Free the Girls works with aftercare organizations who distribute the bras and train the women on how to start their own businesses selling the bras.

Does every shipment of donated bras go to the same women?

When rescued women choose to participate in the Free The Girls program, only their first box of bras is a donation. The women must manage their money and save enough to buy another box of inventory if they would like to continue selling bras. By giving the women the opportunity to  empower themselves as entrepreneurs, they can gain confidence in their own skills and take full responsibility for their journey to freedom.

Have any more questions? Comment below! The bra is coming soon so get your wallet ready :)

Go Big or Go Home

Back to Brandon & the Big 3

In my last blog post I mentioned three things Brandon Stanton (the founder of Humans of New York) said that stood out to me. Hearing someone like Brandon talk about how happy they are doing what they love everyday inspires me. It teaches me not to settle for the easy option. Brandon Stanton spoke about his initial dream and how different it was than what HONY ended up being. Simply starting a journey is the hardest part and once you start, it will work out and develop into what you need to be. He also spoke about not waiting to receive affirmation from everyone around you. A direct quote from him was:

"Do you know how many people thought it was a good idea to pack up, move to New York, and take pictures of people? None."  

If you know what you want to do just go for it! Pursue your dreams without a safety net. Brandon Stanton is the example of what if looks like to go after what you want with all that you have. If you don't have a backup plan you are forced to give 110% to make your dream happen.

Drumroll please…

I’m sure you all have been on the edge of your seats wondering what Emily Wilhoit wants to do post-graduation. For those of you who know me, you know that ending human trafficking is a cause that is very near and dear to my heart. During the past few months I have been working closely with the nonprofit, Free The Girls, both nationally and here at UGA. FTG works to provide jobs to women who have been rescued from sex trafficking by collecting donated bras and providing them to rescued women as inventory to sell in their communities. So what if we took this idea one step further, what if by buying a bra you could support these women; and thus comes the idea of:

BoGo Bras stands for, "buy one give one" bras, with every bra that is bought one will be donated towards inventory for rescued women to sell.

Put me in coach

The BoGo Bras website is in the final stages and will be launching soon. I have already gotten incredible feedback and support for the idea of BoGo Bras and would like to extend an invitation for anyone to jump on board! We are in the process of creating an ambassador program of sorts that will be call the, "BoGoGetters". You will help get the word out about BoGo Bras, get special offers, and be a part of the initial BoGo team as we work to get this idea off the ground. If you are passionate about helping women and want to make a difference, click this link and give me your email! If you would still like to follow the journey but not be a BoGoGetter we would love to have your information as well.

Vote for BoGo!

So friends, family, strangers who are nice enough to follow my journey, wish me luck as I pursue my dream! I have decided this is my post-grad plan, my answer to the dreaded question. Stay tuned for updates and if you're already interested, follow BoGo Bras on instagram @bogobras! Feel free to share with your network of friends if you want to help a girl out :)

Already have questions? I would love to answer them, leave them in the comments section below!

YOU GET A JOB! YOU GET A JOB! YOU GET A JOB!

Let’s Talk Vacation Days and PTO

As a senior in college,  I’ve already been asked the dreaded, "So you're graduating in May? What do you think you're going to do?", question at least 2-3 times a week. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE dreaming of the future. Being the idealist I am, I usually think of the future as a world of opportunities just waiting for me to pick a dream and say, "I think I'll go and achieve that". However, lately it’s been getting more difficult to maintain this mindset. Many of my friends received job offers from their summer internships, others have a constant stream of interviews lined up, and the rest have plans to pursue a master's or law degree. Meanwhile, I’m cringing thinking about sitting in an office from 9-5 and living for weekends, vacation days, and PTO.

Dreams vs. Reality

My international affairs major has allowed me to spend the last four years learning about topics that actually interest me and gave me a new perspective on the world and how it works. It did not, however, prepare me for a job outside D.C. or for a job where a master's degree isn't necessary. I feel the pressure to join the ranks of corporate America by  getting a “good” job and put all my dreams on hold. Some people may say this is me just coming to terms with the reality that we can't always do whatever we want and that is part of growing up. But I don't believe that.

Thank you HONY

A few weeks ago Brandon Stanton spoke at UGA about his experience starting his blog, Humans of New York. HONY has gained traction all around the world and has MILLIONS of followers and supporters. He has traveled to over 20 countries and given a voice to Syrian refugees, US prison inmates, pediatric patients in the Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and of course, humans in New York City.

During his speech he said three things that I have not stopped thinking about:

1) You can't wait until something is perfect to start it.

2) Don't wait for everyone to tell you it's a good idea before doing it.

3) Chase your dreams without a safety net.

So what exactly is my grand plan? My vision starts with BoGo Bras. Stay tuned for more updates!

Who is "Emily" and why does she want my bras?

It all started one Sunday afternoon when I was casually searching on the google, "organizations providing jobs saving those in sex trafficking". Human trafficking is something that has plagued my heart ever since I found out about it my senior year of high school. All my friends were walking around with a big X on their hands with shirts to match it (thank you Passion & End It movement) and I remember being floored by the idea that women and GIRLS had their innocence ripped from them and their bodies sold against their will. Add 4 years and a few clicks later and I found myself on the web page for the organization, "Free The Girls".

Reciting my elevator speech about Free The Girls has become a little too natural for me lately. "Free The Girls is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping women who have been rescued from slavery get a job to support their families while they get back on their feet. They have 3 locations in Mozambique, Uganda, and El Salvador. The women take the donated bras and sell them in their local communities, learning basic entrepreneurial skills and literary skills when available. If you don't have a bra, there is a donation page available where you can give a contribution that will help cover the cost of shipping!".  Sharing this resulted in many different reactions from people. The best is when you share this event with a friend who then tries to spread the word and will shout to their nearby friend, "hey! Have you met Emily? You should donate bras, she organized a drive next week!". And then the friend looks at me like I have 3 heads because she thinks I am trying to collect old bras for myself. Another fun question I've gotten is, "So, you donate bras..... and then the women wear them?". Lastly there is the inevitable misconception the name, "Free The Girls", brings. I am sorry friend that's a boy, that is not promoting a day women go bra-less.  

My favorite thing about Free The Girls is its unique opportunity to make a difference in the lives of these women without really going out of your way. Here in the great US of A women buy bras like they buy shoes. You pay a decent amount of money for a good pair, but also if you find a cute cheap pair you'll buy them in three colors. Human trafficking is an easy issue to overlook. Women are mostly seen as prostitutes and then judged for what they do and not how they got there. If someone told you since the age of 11 that your worth came in your body and you weren't good at anything else, or allowed to leave for that matter, and 6 years later you had the opportunity to run you might hesitate too. Where would you go? You probably feel embarrassed and ashamed. What would you do? You don't have an education or a general skill set. Who do you turn to? These questions lead women to go back to doing what they know and what they're good at. Without the opportunity to an alternative lifestyle, it's hard to break free from the destructive cycle of sex trafficking and prostitution. This is a global AND local problem that won't stop if people don't keep talking about it. 

Already people have donated over 200 bras and together we have raised $175! Human trafficking is a sobering topic but imagine the difference we could make if everyone donated a bra, wrote a single Facebook post, or made a one time $5 donation. These small acts come together to raise awareness and keeps the fight AGAINST human trafficking alive! I once read a quote that said, "Be fearless in pursuit of what sets your soul on fire". Being an advocate for these women sets my soul on fire. Knowing that what we do today can positively affect someone across the world is incredible. These reasons are what pushed me to to get this bra drive together. Hearing no definitely sucks, but it only takes one yes to make it worthwhile. Since then, my 2 friends, Josh and Brittany, have joined the team and are helping me bring Free The Girls to UGA! 

If you made it to the end of this blog post HEY!! and thank you! I got so many questions about where this organization came from and how I got involved, I wanted to share my story with the people I have been harassing in person and on social media. Please consider donating to the fundraising page and sharing the Facebook event. Do your part in ending modern day slavery and helping Free The Girls! 

thx!

Emily Wilhoit 

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/974662839238267/ 

Free The Girls: http://freethegirls.org/about/our-story/ 

Donations Page: https://donate.freethegirls.org/fundraise?fcid=623574



*** UPDATE! Over 1,200 bras were collected during this bra drive and over $300!!! 

Guess who's back, back again

We finally made it to Austria!! The home of shnitzel and musical hills. I've basically been awake for two days now so I'm just going to dive in...

This plane ride to Europe was much better than that last one I was on. (Remember the broken window and 3 hour delay?) The food was sub par but let be honest, when you see those ladies handing out food trays it's the highlight of the flight. 9 hours later (8:15 our time 3:15 ATL time) we all got off the plane regretting the strange, German, egg sandwhich we had so eagerly gobbled up about 30 minutes ago. We had a quick team prayer and went over a few details before heading on to customs and baggage claim. 

We decided to stop at a kiosk to double check that the tickets Wolfgang had pre-purchased for us were ok. This turned out to be a great idea since the tickets were invalid without Wolgang's credit card with us. We ended up having to buy 4 more tickets for a train that left about 2 hours before the one Wolfgang had originally purchased. It was only going to be Aaron, Sara, Ryan, and myself traveling on the train. The kids were flying solo. I imagined this train, the one that took us from Munich to Salzburg, to be like the bullet we took to get to London. Maybe something roomy with a table in the middle where I could take a long nap. Instead, we get on something more like Marta where no one checks our tickets and we sit in the handicap seats that fold out from the wall. Meanwhile, we can't read the stop on our ticket or find it on a map. This did not going over well with Sara, Ryan, and Aaron, who all needed a good Xanax by this point in the trip. I missed my optimistic and go with the flow travel buddies Liba, Janae, and Katie. I think not speaking the native language, staring far too long at train maps, and shamelessly asking people questions is all part of the experience. Traveling wouldn't be fun if you were comfortable all the time. 

To Ryan and Sara's surprise, I got us successfully off the German "Marta" and onto the second train that would take us into Salzburg on time. We only had 9 minutes to switch trains while carrying all of our luggage but we did it and even made a friend along the way. Everyone on the train was packed like sardines; people and luggage, wall to wall. Being the problem solver that I am, (ok impatient and sleep deprived may be more accurate adjectives at this point in the day) I politely offered to shuffle some suitcases around so we could once again sit on the pull-down handicap seats. I just love really hard and angular seats, they're great. This suggestion made Ryan explode a little (lot) on the inside but I was not about to stand and just look at empty seats for two hours. It all worked out fine and we befriended the elderly couple whom's luggage we shifted. They told us all about their travels, kids, jobs, and asked us lots of questions as well. They made the train ride really fun! 

By the time we got to the final train station, we had no where to go and 4 giant duffle bags of stuff with us. We stopped at a Starbucks for some wifi but about 20 minutes later we piled in the back of a taxi and headed toward our hotel. When we got there, she told us we needed Wolfgang's signature since he booked the hotel. Again Ryan: turmoil, Emily: problem solver. I tossed out a casual, "oh he's coming I'll just sign now!", and she was like, "ok! Here are three room keys" That would never fly in America but I sure am happy it worked here! We settled in our rooms and passed the heck out for four hours. It was now 7:30 am America time and the first time we had real sleep. 

When we woke up, everyone was a lot happier (ok I was a lot happier) and we quickly got ready to head out to town. We stopped by an overlook and took really cool pictures overlooking the city and castle. Salzburg is like most European towns, with cobblestone and colorful buildings lining the streets. It's also very touristy but I can see why so many people want to visit! We ate at a delicious Italian restaurant where everyone loved and devoured their plates. We finished the night by getting gelato and walking around the backstreets of Salzburg. My mom keeps talking about seeing churches and museums tomorrow but I don't know if I can take that again after the three non-stop weeks I had. I might go with my dad to the national park... I guess we will see! 

You can never have too much margarita pizza 

XOXO 

-emily 

Home Sweet Home

I made it! 8 and a half hours later I landed in the great US of A. Looking back on my trip it seems impossible that we were able to pack so many experiences into just 20 days. Edinburgh, Florence, and Paris were definitely my favorite cities and I'm already plotting when I will return. A few days later, this is how I have characterized each city in my head:

Italy: Since the economy is not doing too hot, there a lot of desperate people trying to earn some money. This results in bombarding tourist to buy your selfie sticks on every single street corner. In Italy (especially Rome) it was more of a walk-quickly-through-the-streets-with-my-bag-and-not-look-at-anyone mindset. The people in general were nice, but that was only if you were brave enough to sit around and try and strike up a conversation. Rome as a destination is a must because of all the incredible history and sites to see, but Florence was so much more enjoyable to walk around. I think only three people tried to sell me selfie sticks and overall the city was just much cleaner and easier on the eyes. Also, Florence was small enough to where you could walk the whole city and not have to worry about trains or the "sketchy side". I will never forget the pizza and pasta that I had in Italy <3 or the memories, those are pretty good too. 

France: Ohhh France. I think this fun fact sums up the French quite nicely; in the French language, there is no word for you are welcome. (At least not a common phrase that I have learned)  Now I'm basing everything that I say off of two days spent in Paris, so if any of your friends are French I'm sure they're lovely and please don't show them this. From my experiences, everyone in France just blows you off. It's not even that they're rude, they just couldn't care less if you exist or not. While shopping no one asks to help you, if you are lost no one gives good directions, and at resturaunts they give you zero reason to provide a tip and ignore you except when dealing with the check or bringing you food. Even though the people may not be the most welcoming, their city is beautiful enough to make up for the people and I can't wait to go back and explore more! Paddling through the canals of Versailles, hiking up the Arc De Triomphe, and having a picnic dinner while watching the sunset over the Eiffel Tower is hands down the best day of my life.   

England: This is the home of Harry Potter so I don't have too many bad things to say about it. The people in England are friendlier than the French in the sense that at least they'll talk to you. Now, once they get going it's debatable whether you are glad they're talking to you, but hey A for effort! In Britain people are very crude. They drop F word on the reg and don't think twice about cursing in front of children. As a sweet southern bell from the good ole Bible Belt, this was very strange and I never quite got used to it. We didn't get to spend much time in London since we spent our free day on the Harry Potter set but let us not forget getting rejected from "the clubs" because our footwear was not stilettos... Not cool London. Not cool. One more time though, Harry Potter was awesome, the people were awesome, the set was awesome, I should have gone to Hogwarts. 

Scotland: Edinburgh, the southern gentleman of Europe. What a great place! I have nothing but great things to say about Edinburgh. The people were so friendly, the town is not too big not too small, and the history of the town is hilarious. I remember when we walked into this old mans candy store and he was throwing candy at us, asking us to try all of it telling us how he made it in the back. He was trying to help my friend find the perfect candy for her dad, so sweet! The people who served us during dinner were always asking if we needed anything and joked around with us all night. Even the people in Starbucks were nice! I bought a mug and accidentally dropped it while I walked away from the register and they let me pick a new one no charge! I wish we had spent more time there, but good thing I'm going back! (Eventually)  

Ireland: The Irish are a spirited bunch I'll give them that! Refer back to my ferry post to refresh your memory on how rambunctious the Irish were on the ride back from their football game. The Irish are a mix of the English and Scottish. They are just as crude as the English, but they're definitely nicer. I had a great conversation with our cab driver on the way to the airport. He was very well-read and knowledgable, I actually learned a lot from him! Dublin is such a touristy area most of the people we interacted with weren't even Irish, but our waiters were always very nice and helpful. In one pub where we were enjoying some nice live music the singer started asking us where we were from. When we said Georgia he smiled real big and said, "now yall come back now ya hear!", along with a big strum on his guitar. Thank you mr Irish singer, thank you for that. 

My mom and Ryan greeted me at the gate (they weren't even late!) and helped me gather my many goodies to head to the car. I should probably mention that I didn't sleep at all the last night in Dublin because I wanted to savor the last night with friends. Also, I could totally catch up on sleep on the plane. Turns out, we were chasing the sun all 8.5 hours and I got zero sleep on the plane. It's also about 10 pm Europe time and 4:00 pm America time by the time we are heading out of the airport. So exhausted Emily and crew heads to the parking lot. While I'm mindless talking we are walking around the parking lot and my mom and Ryan start talking about how they can't find the car. I'm more concerned with the fact that I'm in yoga pants and its 85 degrees outside. My mom asks me to pick a car any car that I want to drive home - brain still off I immediately say (and point) "that white rav 4". Because duh who wouldn't want that.  My mom then clicks the keys and it unlocks. At this point I'm thinking "oh isn't this nice lets play tricks on the sleep deprived Emily that's been gone all month ooo hoo hoo!"  Not cool guys. It must be a rental car because my moms is broken and this was the car they picked to drive around. You can't fool this girl, nice try though. I jokingly ask Ryan if my mom bought me a car, LOL like that would ever happen. I'm already indebted to my parents more money than I have because of my trip there's no way they like me enough to get me a car... After some stammering and lots of very incoherent sentences with grammar that would make lit teachers/Kelly cringe everywhere it was somehow relayed that yes this is my car, no it's not a rental, no this is not a midlife crisis, no there is no catch, yes Sam crashed your car. So while there is a small loophole being my brother crashed my car while I was gone, he's ok and I am not upset about it! Meet Ronald the rav 4 everyone!!! 

I would like to thank my mom and dad at this time for being so supportive through my whole trip!!! I would like to thank Wendy, for knowing the perfect car to get. I would like to thank Ryan, for recording the whole thing even when I told you, "Ryan put the camera away this is a serious matter, is this really my car?". I would like to thank my mom again for not listening to my dad when he told her to trick me and tell me it's Sara's car, and then say just kidding it's Sam's. Also thank you dad for making me write these blog posts and always saying nice things about them! And getting me a car! May has been a pretty amazing month! 😊

Goodbye everyone, I'm sure you'll hear from me again in Austria! 

~emily 

Where's my 4 leaf clover?

Now that it's finally time to go home, I'm beginning to be jealous of Janae for getting to stay an extra week. I can honestly say the only negative thing I could think to say about my past three weeks would be about school; and since it's school I don't even feel bad about saying that. I'm going to be extremely sad to say goodbye to what my dad has been referring to as my "luxurious European vacation". Little did he know if was half school/boot camp.

This morning was no different than the others ones. We got an extremely above average breakfast and hopped on a bus. For breakfast I had a croissant with chocolate inside (they actually call this pan and chocolate or some variation of that depending on where you are), eggs, rice crispies, and a nice apple for the road. In Rome and France they didn't drink cold milk so now whenever it's chilled/about room temperature we think we're living large. The first garden we went to it was very cloudy and started to rain a little; it was styled to look like a French garden. The second garden was styled after an Italian garden which I have decided are my favorites. Italian gardens have stairs, changes in elevation, water, and evergreens (my teacher would be so proud right now). These gardens always have really pretty views and that's why I like them! I'll have to keep this in mind when I buy a mansion and need to design my garden. 

I must say Dublin has not blown me away like I thought it would. Everywhere in town is always so crowded and extremely over priced. Today we met some nicer people than yesterday though and that did improve my feelings about Ireland. I feel like the cities outside of Dublin would be amazing, next time I'm in Ireland I'll be sure to adventure out more! After we got back to the hotel, we packed up our bags and went to go explore. The cab cost everyone 5€ to take us from the hotel, to the city, which is pretty pricy. Some of my pizzas in Italy cost less! We walked around the town trying to help our friend Katie find her O'Connell family crest.  All the stores were tourist traps but they didn't even have cute stuff, #disappointing. We ate our final meal of overpriced chicken fingers and French, listened to some live music for a while, and then headed home. I didn't think I would be this tired but everyone was pretty sleepy too and ready to call it a night by 10:30. It is officially time to pack up all the goodies I have collected and head on home! My alarm is set for 5:45 and taxis are coming at 7:30. I am now riding solo since the teachers are not on our flight home, but I'm riding solo with about 29 other students so it shouldn't be too scary. 

Queso here I come!!

~emily