by GBP | Dec 1, 2015 | Cause, Connect, Givebackpackers, Shop, Travel
I do not believe in Black Friday and I do not believe in Cyber Monday. Today is #GivingTuesday but I believe every day should be a Giving Day. Givebackpackers was not started to sell the world more stuff. It was started on the idea of connecting purpose driven travelers and good causes to the resources they need to do more good in the world. We first introduced the concept of selling handmade goods from around the world after I had some success selling Mexican artisan accessories on Krissy’s etsy shop to raise money for Door of Faith Orphanage in Baja. On our trip around the world last year we collected the most amazing handmade things along the way and began selling them online and at markets and events. It was a lot of work to keep that much inventory organized and to physically manage all of it. I quickly realized the idea of selling stuff did not align with my values and my mission to create meaningful experiences that made an impact. Earlier this summer Krissy and I parted ways as business partners. She kept the stuff and started a new company, Twin Peaks Apparel and the Givebackpackers got back to what we do best, travel! We have made two different trips to Nicaragua, where we are funding a clean water well in a rural village and sponsoring a school with supplies, security, playground equipment and seriously needed upgrades to the school. Each trip had about 5 volunteers from all backgrounds, with the shared goal of traveling with a purpose. (We made plenty of time for fun adventures like...
by GBP | May 4, 2015 | Cause, Givebackpackers, Shop
In Wake of the Quake – Giving back 100% of Nepal Shawl Purchases to Disaster Relief Over 6,000 people have died since the Nepal earthquake on April 25th 2015 — among the lost lives was a friend and fellow crusader of compassion, Dan Fredinburg –who was trekking Mount Everest at the time. My heart aches for the aftermath of the Nepal Quake. There are 3 million people in need of food aid. 130,000 homes have been destroyed 415 million needed for humanitarian relief We could wake up tomorrow and be faced with the same kind of nightmare. Your home, your neighborhood, your community, your life, your loves….just a pile of debris. Your prayers would in a second become the same as the victims of Nepal. No place is immune from natural disasters. We have teamed up with Givebackpacker, Derek Smith in efforts to make a difference in the lives and communities that are struggling from this recent earthquake. While Derek was traveling around Nepal this April the Neupane Family whom reside in the tiny village of Karmidanda in Rasuwa district of Nepal opened their home and hearts to him. The quake has crumbled the life they have worked so hard to build. Derek purchased an array of handmade colorful shawls from his journey through India and has now donated the beautiful shawls to our givebackpackers global online marketplace to help raise funding for this emergency. Each shawl is delicate and has either an OM, a Ganesh or a Buddha design on them. They can be worn around the head, around the neck as a scarf, shoulders as a shawl or...
by GBP | Apr 26, 2015 | Givebackpackers
November 2014 A year of release. I began this year letting go of a man I loved and simultaneously losing my health. Facing these challenges, my mind and body ached for control of a life that had almost overnight spiraled out of my grasp. Now here I stood in a field near a whispering stream, 11 months later, lighting the wick of my lantern. It had been a dream of mine to be present in Chiang Mai for their annual Lantern Ceremony. Thousands of souls gathering to Thailand from around the world to float their intentions into the heavens. Holding tightly to the base I feel my lantern billow and ever so slightly pull as it slowly fills up with air–begging to be released into the twinkling night. For me it was a glowing vessel, ready to carry away my deepest emotions across a sea like sky. I breathe in the warm Thai paradise surrounding me while my mind quietly shuffles through the difficult year that lays behind me like broken glass. Why is it so hard to just let go? Maybe if we didn’t hold on we’d never have to let go. The lantern’s tug increases and I begin to feel that it is almost time to open my palms and let it rise to the stars. What if I fearlessly lived my life with open hands & an open heart? Letting every experience and person drift in & out of my life like a wave. To be free of expectations. To just be. A year of release. A year of growth. A year of gain. I do believe everything...
by GBP | Mar 25, 2015 | Cause, Givebackpackers
“I really believe that people can tackle far more than they think they can” – Scott Every day the rising sun brings new beginnings, an opportunity to redefine yourself. I get jazzed up at the mere thought of it. Envisioning all the possibilities, the ways we can grow and create. The ways we can change our colors like karma karma karma chameleons. Our ability to adapt & flow is monumental in our success & evolution. A stunning example of this is the Superwoman of Sleeping-Bags and my Woman Crush Wednesday, Veronika Scott. Veronika Scott founded, The Empowerment Plan, which is a Detroit based Non-profit that employs and supports the homeless community of 20,000 people. Scott creates sustainable solutions to help break the cycle of poverty along with renewing hope by hiring, training and providing work for women struggling on the streets to make her amazing Sleeping Bag Coat. Talk about Feel Good Fashion!!! Scott’s goal is to, “give them the power to take control of the life they want to lead”. I am so inspired by her unwavering perseverance and her ability to stay positive in the face of discouraging words that were yelled at her by one woman in the homeless community. “Your coats don’t matter, jobs matter. We need jobs, not coats”, instead of letting it get her down, Veronika realized the woman was right and this sparked her idea to hire homeless woman to make the Sleeping Bag Coats. Brilliant! Lindsay and I resonated strongly with what Scott is building in the world and the adversity that she has faced growing up as a child of...
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