The Newsletter of the Deeds Not Words Community

July 15th, 2016 | Deeds Digest No. 8
My fellow #ChangeMakers,
 
Once again, we close a week in which violence has roiled our world, with the actions of a terrorist who claimed the lives of 84 people and left many more critically wounded in Nice, France.  We also begin the work of healing after the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile and the five police officers (Lorne Ahrens, Michael Krol, Michael J. Smith, Brent Thompson and Patrick Zamarripa) who were killed in Dallas while protecting protestors who were peacefully marching against racially motivated police violence.   Many who commented on these tragic deaths on social media and elsewhere asked us to “pick sides” between valuing the work of police officers and supporting the legitimate grievances of the Black Lives Matter movement, as though it was somehow irreconcilable to adhere to both views simultaneously.
 
I am sure that you feel as overwhelmed by all of this as I do.  But let’s not give in to the temptation to decide that the work ahead is too hard or too futile for us to play our role in participating in it.  As President Obama so eloquently said at the Dallas memorial this week, “… I’m here to reject such despair.  I’m here to insist that we are not as divided as we seem … I see what’s possible when we recognize that we are one American family, all deserving of equal treatment, all deserving of equal respect, all children of God.  That’s the America I know.”
 
This invitation for us to see the best in who we are, to recognize our capacity to come together and overcome against even the most impossible of odds – that is what I hold onto.  That is what I believe in with all my heart.  It is who I am and who each of you are.  And that’s why and how we will overcome the challenges we face today and live the values of justice and equality on which this country was based.  Stay engaged, changemakers.  We need you.
 
xo,
-wendy
This week's #ChangeMaker Heather Whaling launched her PR agency Geben Communication (Geben means “to give” in German) from her Central Ohio dining room with the goal of doing good. Her commitment to the community is a core value interwoven into how the firm operates. Whether it’s her volunteer work with Kiva Columbus helping small business owners get financing, or Gladden Community House, which serves the at-risk community of Columbus, Heather has created a culture of giving back which she models for her employees.

She recently joined our #ThankYouThursday partners, the National Partnership for Women and Families, to speak about the importance of paid family leave. As a small business owner, Heather practices what she preaches - creating a family leave policy that allows 10 weeks maternity/paternity leave for all of her employees.  She caught our attention because she wanted to model a way for (even small) companies to adopt workplace policies that support working families. Brava for that, Heather!  It’s no surprise then that Heather was selected as one of Columbus Business First’s “Forty Under 40” and named one of Columbus’s top 10 entrepreneurs. She also serves on the boards of The Women’s Fund of Central Ohio and the Columbus chapter of the American Marketing Association.
#ICYMI
Heidi Seltz sent one of the most impactful letters to the editor of the Minneapolis Star Tribune I have ever read – and she only needed three sentences to make her point! Huffington Post
I was really moved by the courage of Sgt. Elizabeth Marks who joined the Army at age 17 and is the first soldier in the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program to become a Paralympic swimmer. U.S. Army
More than 40 years after Roe v Wade, the fight continues. Here is one of the Whole Women’s Health lawyers take on our ongoing battle for reproductive rights. Refinery 29
Bravo to Marvel comic book writer Brian Michael Bendis who has Tony Stark stepping out of the Iron Man suit to be replaced by a new female character, Riri Williams! TIME
Most women report that workplace pregnancy discrimination is still a huge problem. Wake up corporate America! We have our first female major party presidential candidate. It is (past) time for employers and politicians to recognize that pregnancy, birth, and postpartum are hard, messy, and require time for recovery. Fortune
A former hedge fund trader, now father to a daughter, shares insight into how the Old Boys Club on Wall Street keeps women from rising up through the ranks through conversational objectification. After all, how could one promote or work for a woman in a culture that casually tears women apart? The New York Times
Can you imagine a female president? What about a female president surrounded by a cabinet of all women? Check out Slate’s recommendations for an all-female leadership team. Slate
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