Each Friday, the another jennifer blog shares stories of those who incorporate philanthropy into their everyday lives – personally and professionally – in a creative and unique way. If you have a story you’d like to share, please contact Jennifer. You can view past posts from the series here.
This following article is a guest post from Bev Feldman.
Volunteering and giving back to the community have always been important to me. So when I made the switch from working in the human services to focusing on my jewelry business full-time, I knew somehow I wanted to incorporate an element of giving into it.
It started with donating portions of sales to a local nonprofit with which I am involved. For the month of February I donated 20% of sales of my heart jewelry to Friends of the Center for Families, a nonprofit that holds a very special place in my heart.
I knew for the month of April I wanted to give to the One Fund Boston, since the Boston Marathon is held the third Monday of April. I live in Cambridge, right across the river from Boston, and have lived in the area for 10 years. I have watched the Boston Marathon from the sidelines many times, cheering on the runners from my husband’s former apartment on Beacon Street, just a few miles before the end of the course. I have watched in awe as the runners, so close to the end, powered on. Regardless of the weather, spirits were always high, and a feeling of camaraderie permeated the race that brings together people from all over the world.
Like everyone else, I was shocked by the events of last year’s marathon. You truly never expect something like this to happen so close to home. I was saddened that something like this could happen in my area by people from the community, and even more so that lives of innocent people who were there to celebrate what should have been a joyous day were so horribly changed. Thankfully no one I knew was hurt, but unfortunately there were too many people who cannot say the same thing about their friends or loved ones.
In the wake of such a tragedy, though, came forth once again the spirit of camaraderie as the community came together to help one another. I want to celebrate and honor those whose lives were forever changed by that day, using my business as a tool to give back to them. When a friend suggested I make a line of fitness jewelry after seeing a picture of a custom bracelet I posted on Instagram, I knew exactly what I wanted to do.
Between now and Monday, April 21 (the date of this year’s Boston Marathon), I will be donating 20% of sales from my limited-edition runner fitness bracelets to the One Fund Boston. That means, for the sale of every bracelet, I will be donating $49.00. I am already 10% of the way toward reaching my goal of $500—will you help me reach my goal?
(You can read the full story behind the design of this bracelet here.)
Bev Feldman is a jewelry designer, blogger, and newly minted mom. You can read about her adventures in balancing being a stay-at-home mom while running a creative business and check out her jewelry at Linkouture.
