Sneak Peek!

It has been a long week, but nothing inspires us more than these girls working hard in their new uniforms!  This is one of our most recent projects in Haiti and we can't wait to share all of the details and tons more pictures on the blog next week.  Until then, Happy Weekend!

xo, Megan and Jess

Michael is starstruck!

after meeting Auggie from Covert Affairs!

Giving Tuesday

xo, Megan and Jess

Grateful.

By now Jess and I are both with the people we love the most.  It has been a wild year and today we are both feeling very grateful.

Grateful for the gift of our education, for we now know how truly precious a gift it is.
Grateful for an organization that has come further than either of us imagined, in less than a year.
Grateful for our generous donors who have helped us get more children to school.

Grateful for Dave (Jess for a lot more reasons) because he is the brains and the calculator behind TFE.
Grateful for our interns Jackson and Griffin, they are the perfect reminders of how important is is to help children succeed!

Grateful for our families who support us, and on some days put up with us.  

Grateful for our friends who have encouraged us, helped us raise awareness and made us laugh.
Grateful to live in a country where women can follow their dreams and do most anything they dream of

Grateful for our health and the health of those closest to us. 

Grateful for job that challenges us and allows us to surround ourselves with someone the kindest and brightest people. 

  

Grateful for each other.   Our friendship and ability to be business partners, as we attempt to make the world just a little bit better.

Wishing you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!
xo, Megan and Jess

How to wear your Michael scarf…..

on Thanksgiving!  The Michael scarf is the perfect accessory to keep you warm and stylish on Thanksgiving Day.  Here are two outfit options featuring some of our favorite brands & partners!

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9

Dominican Republic Project: Completed!

We partnered with a small private school for improvised children in Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic, Los Ninos de Leonardo y Meredith.  We absolutely love this project because while its small, they are doing BIG things when it comes to educating their students.  The school started with 20 children and recently added 10 more.  Additionally, they have had 17 students graduate and move on to one of the best high schools in the area!  We were thrilled to provide uniforms for 26 children and even more excited to see their smiling faces in their new uniforms!  We look forward to working with Los Ninos for many years to come.

Meet Altruette…...

xo, Megan and Jess

Thank You!

A big thank you to Alturette for helping us raise awareness with the creation of the Tailored for Education charm!  We are so honored to be in such great company with the other amazing organizations in Altruette's new girls line!  The bracelet with the Tailored for Education dress charm is the perfect holiday gift for the girls in your life, teaching them about the importance of education and the barriers children face all over the world.

xo, Megan and Jess

Week in Review

It seems like I was just writing last week's - this week has FLOWN by and we are heading into one of the busiest times of year so brace yourselves!  Here is a mix of fun and factual - some you can just smile through and others will make you put your thinking caps on. Not what you always want to do on a Friday afternoon, but these are worth it.  Here we go!

Altruette has just launched their girls line --- check out the dress, top line!! Not tooooo shabby!

We love to learn about other organizations trying to do good and Connect to Learn and Raising Malawi are doing just that! 12 year old Mervis Chatha hits the nail on the head:
            "It is important for girls to go to school because when you teach a girl child, you teach the whole world," she says. When women are education, they are more likely than men to pass knowledge on to their children and insist on schooling.  In addition, educated women can earn incomes independently from their husbands, and are more likely to spend money on essential medicines,  food and other basic needs for their family.

This article article sheds light upon the fact that big businesses and governments are unable to address the problems in our environment, economy and education.

         "One of the most interesting stories in social change today is how much creative 

         problem-solving is emerging from citizens scattered far and wide who are taking it 

         upon themselves to fix things and who, in many cases, are outperforming traditional 

         organizations or making systems work better."

Next time you are scraping the bottom of the barrel for an excuse of why you can’t make it to the gym, think about THIS guy who is biking 2,600 miles to raise funds and awareness for a variety of humanitarian efforts in Haiti.  My behind hurts after 20 minutes on the stationary bike!

This article is close to home for TFE because of our ongoing project with the Dignitas Project in the Mathare Valley.  While Kenya has made HUGE strides in the past decade, they still have a long way to go. 

“The consequences of such low levels of education are grim for the young people... Many youth will be consigned to poorly paid, insecure and often risky work, and their countries will be deprived of the kind of skills that can drive economic growth,” says the report.

Along the same topic.....

Empowering Kenya's New Generation: if you have 3 minutes to spare, check out this uplifting video

Lastly, THANK YOU to all of you who purchased Michael scarves during our Red Cross for Sandy campaign. We were very pleased with the results and are sending our check to the Red Cross today! 

Have a great weekend!

xoxo,

Megan & Jess

Victor, Age 14

A nice thank you drawing from Victor, one of our students in El Salvador :-)

Whenever we are stressing about not being big enough, not having enough Facebook likes, not getting certain publicity, or not having emails returned, we just have to look at one of our student's drawings and we're brought back to the basics: we are getting children into school.  We are providing children with the opportunity to receive an education.  The opportunity to change their lives, their family's lives, change their villages, and change their countries.  And you know where I'm going with this .... we couldn't do this without your support.  Thank you too :-)

xoxo,
Megan & Jess

Celeb-ri-TFE spotlight on Sarah Derby!

Celeb-ri-TFE
(n) 1. someone who has gone out of their way to help Tailored for Education raise money or awareness

This week the Celeb-ri-TFE spot light is on SARAH DERBY!  Over the past month Sarah has done amazing things to help us spread the word to a very important group, high school students!  As a high school math teacher Sarah has taken time out to educate her students on Tailored for Education and discuss the barriers to education children in other parts of the world face.  The result has been a new audience of inspired students ready to help us grow our organization!  She also sports her Michael scarf regularly in class!
 

SARAH, thank you so much for helping us and supporting TFE! We can't thank you enough for helping us spread the word to your fabulous students! 

xo, Megan and Jess

Happiest

Birthday wishes go out to Miss Megan Kelly!

 

Rewind back to March 2008. We were looking to hire a new person for our group at work.  I wasn't paying much attention, they said they would bring me in for the final interview when they found a candidate. Eventually, that day came.... 

The pressure and enormity of the impending decision had begun to set in.  While this person would work with everyone in our group, they would work mostly with me.  I would be responsible for training them and after that we'd end up working closely together, hopefully for a long time. I had to not only be able to tolerate this person for 45 hours a week, but actually LIKE them.... 

So I walked into the conference room and sat down at the table across from Megan. I had thought a lot about what I was going to say, the questions I would ask her.  So I wasted no time and started:

"do you like country music?" And that was it, four and a half years later, here we are!

I wish I had known Megan back when these pictures were taken.  Using current day as a base, I can only imagine how ridiculously fun a childhood together would have been.  Even though I didn't know the Megan above or below, I do often turn around at my desk to see this exact facial expression looking back at me!

Megan, HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY birthday! I feel so fortunate to have met you. You have changed my life for the better and every day I feel so lucky to work side by side with you not just at one job, but TWO!

To my juicer, confidant, coworker, twin, technically boss, fashion consultant, old classmate (#whatwerewethinking??), business partner, son's godmother, interior designer, and most importantly, FRIEND .... happy birthday!

xoxo,
Jess

P.S. - is that Paddington Bear wrapping paper in picture #3?!

HEFTY week in review, not just for TFE but for our whole country....

The campaigns are finally over- No more late night calls from Elizabeth Warren and our commercials can return to normal! In case you have been living under a rock, Obama has been re-elected...

Some people are JUST getting their power back after Superstorm Sandy swept through....

and sadly some of those same states are now shoveling their cars out from this most recent nor'easter.  

Some thoughts to end this week:

After a successful Michael Scarf/American Red Cross effort, we are extending this opportunity through the weekend.

Through Sunday, you have the chance to do good TWICE, as 15% of Michael scarf net proceeds will go directly to the American Red Cross to aid Sandy victims.  Buy yours HERE. It's never too soon to start your holiday shopping!

Outside our immediate sphere:

Malawi is working toward increasing the legal marriage age to 21, up from 16.  Teenage marriage prevents girls from finishing their education and often results in teen pregnancies, which accounts for a quarter of the country's maternal deaths.  

Read this great article about Djessi Diarra and the Saving for Change group that she is part of:

     For women like Djessi, the opportunity to save and learn in a supportive community of women

is a unique opportunity for social empowerment and financial inclusion. More importantly, 

though, participation in a Saving for Change group can mean the difference between 

poverty and financial security, life-threatening illness and health.

We love reading about kids helping kids.  Read about Caitlan Carney, a high school senior who organized a equipment drive and is sending soccer uniforms and other equipment to youths in Leogane, Haiti.

Lastly, if you know me well, you'll understand why I chuckled when I read this article about a Cambodian crepe and juice bar.  Proceeds from two of my favorite foods are reinvested into the school that is currently supporting 91 local children.  If it weren't so far away they could count on me as a regular.

Happy almost weekend!

xoxo,

Megan & Jess

As you can see, every Michael scarf purchase through Thursday will do good not once, but TWICE. We will be donating 15% of net proceeds to the American Red Cross. We continue to be in awe over the devastation Sandy left in her wake and wanted to find a way for us and our supporters to help the victims.  Purchasing our scarf will allow you to LOOK good, FEEL good and DO good, TWICE. 

Please paste our blog link, or if you are a subscriber, forward the daily email, to your friends, family and colleagues so they too can do good TWICE.

Sandy victims, you continue to be in our thoughts and prayers.

xo,
Megan & Jess