When You Believe Foundation, Inc.
When You Believe: Change, Equality, and Advancement are accomplished!
News
Get exclusive information and news about When You Believe Foundation, Inc. in this section. This portion of the website is to enlighten, enrich and inform everyone about the endeavors and activities of When You Believe Foundation, Inc. Feedbacks and suggestions are welcome.
[November 2012] BELIEVHER
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Happy Election Day
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Be an Informed Voter.
October 2012 is Awareness Month
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Body Confident, Beautiful Me: A Love Your Body Campaign
Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
[August 2012] BELIEVHER
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Healthy Lifestyle For Her 2012
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Healthy Lifestyle For Her 2012.
Hosted by Amina L. Gilyard, Miss Black DC USA.
June 2012: News from When You Believe Foundation
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Hello everyone,
Hope you and yours are doing well. Over the past month, When You Believe Foundation, Inc. has advocated for several mission-oriented initiatives via Facebook, Twitter, and Blog.
I will like to congratulate Vanessa Williams on her graduation from Virginia Tech. Vanessa is the awesome Media Coordinator of WYBF. She's hardworking, intelligent, and an overall beautiful person. Congratulations to the Class of 2012 graduates, I wish you all the best in your future endeavors.
Body Confident, Beautiful Me: A Love Your Body Campaign is still active on the blog. BCBM Tour continues, so tell us if you will like team WYBF to speak with your group in the near future. Remember to take our survey about body image and beauty ideals. Become a fan of BCBM on facebook and LIKE the page.
Stay tuned for our next issue of BELIEVHER as we highlight the adventures of When You Believe Foundation, share a personal story about body image, reflections from me, and many more!
As always, I wish you peace, courage, and many blessings. Never hesitate to contact me if you need assistance or have further questions, my e-mail is RubyBJohnson@gmail.com
With lots of love,
Ruby B. Johnson
Founder and CEO, When You Believe Foundation, Inc.
Read more here
Women, be in partnership with your body!
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Loving Your Lady Parts as a Path to Success, Power & Global Change!
[March 2012] BELIEVHER
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Eve Ensler: Embrace your inner girl
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[January 2012] BELIEVHER
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Goals of WYBF
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As the year (2011) comes to a close, we here at When You Believe Foundation, Inc. will like to reflect on our goals initially set and evaluate where we are and plan to go. Listed below are the goals of this organization:
Create workshops and camps to empower girls and women
•Topics include education, body images, beauty ideals, relationships, self-esteem, confidence, fashion, spirituality, Bible studies, sexuality, friendship, violence, music, healthy living, etc.
Offer assistance to students and people in the general public
•Mentoring
•Tutoring
•Counseling
•Rehabilitation
Build shelters for people in less-fortunate communities
•Art schools
•Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) schools
•Vocational schools
•Academic schools
Promote recycling and living an environment conscious life
•Create programs in local communities about recycling
•Distributing recycle bins in the community
Volunteer
•Homeless shelters
•People with disability
•Soup kitchens
•Immunization clinics
•Women's clinics
•Resource centers
WYBF: 1 Year Later
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Hello everyone,
This is Ruby, and I hope you all are doing well. To be honest with you all, I can barely contain myself right now writing this post because today marks the first anniversary of When You Believe Foundation, Inc. (Est. Nov. 22, 2010). I find it a bit difficult to believe that it has already been a year, but I am so grateful to the Almighty for this entire year. With the help of God, Team WYBF, volunteers, my family, and friends, I can truly say that this is my testimony that dreams really do come true, and anything is possible when you believe.
I am so happy with the level of outreach that When You Believe Foundation, Inc. has reached over the past year, and would not ask for anything more or less. Our mission is to serve the community (emphasis on girls and women) in any way possible with intent of empowerment, providing assistance, promoting self-sufficiency, and this year we have rightfully done that. Thanksgiving is two days away, and I will proudly tell you that I am grateful for this organization, its members (the oh so hardworking and amazing Team WYBF), supporters, partnered organizations, and everyone that has contributed to the mission of this organization.
Over the past year in our events and activities, we have taken notes on what worked superb, poorly, and also may need improvement. We are cognizant that the world, especially the status of girls and women, cannot be changed in a twinkle of an eye, but we know that as we continue to work towards it and impacting one community at a time, that positive change is definitely underway. My passion for issues related to girls and women continues to burn and I will never let anyone or anything blow out that fire, by God's grace.
I will like to give a special thanks to the WYBF Advisory and Executive Board members, and volunteers. These phenomenal people are truly living by the mission of this organization, and I am very grateful for them. I am very proud of events such as Knowledge Is Her Power, Healthy Lifestyle For Her, etc. and also with Campaigns such as Body Confident, Beautiful Me: A Love Your Body Campaign. We got/getting great feedbacks, and that lets us know that we are making our mark in society and living by the mission. With the help of God, perseverance, and courage, I know that the best is yet to come for WYBF and I am very excited to see what the future holds for us.
I want to thank the Almighty for giving me the courage to continue persevering and never giving up on my dreams and the mission of When You Believe Foundation, Inc. Without the Lord's help and inclusion, I know this would have never been possible. As the motto of the WYBF goes, when you believe: change, equality, advancement are accomplished. Therefore, I highly emphasize that you all must start and/or continue pursuing your dreams and goals and never give up. We were all born with greatness and destiny to be power forces in life, do not let that die because you are more than a conqueror. Know that one is never too young or old to make a positive change in their life and/or community, all you need is courage and be active; don't just talk about it, be about it and take action. Also, when you dream, you better dream big because the sky is your limit.
As always, please take great care of yourselves. Continue making your dreams a reality, be empowered and see the beauty in yourself. Do not let the words of others affect you and be mindful with words you express to others. You are beautiful, strong, and remain empowered. Never hesitate to contact me if needed, and my personal e-mail is rubybjohnson@gmail.com. Remain blessed, and I wish you all peace, courage, and many blessings. Once again, thanks to you all and I truly appreciate each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart. Cheers to When You Believe Foundation, Inc. and our mission for the betterment of girls and women's status in all communities.
With lots of love,
Ruby.
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Presentation with Jimmie Briggs
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Hello everyone,
This is Ruby, and I hope you all are doing well. In this entry I plan to talk about an event I attended this evening hosted by STAND, the student-led division of the Genocide Intervention Network (Virginia Tech Chapter) featuring Jimmie Briggs. Jimmie Briggs is the Founder of the Man Up Campaign, this global initiative works with youth in activing working towards the prevention and end to violence against girls and women. Jimmie has traveled to many countries and visited many communities over the past years as a journalist and now activist; his been to countries such as Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire), Uganda, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Columbia, Guatemala, Haiti, Darfu, etc.
In his presentation, Jimmie mentioned that he started off as a journalist working for many magazines and media publications. At the beginning of his presentation, he showed a video of images from his 15 years of journalism which he referred to as his "visual journey as a journalist;" in these images, he looked into how war affects childhood and children in conflict/war zones. The slides included images of child soldiers, women being tortured, snapshots of rap videos, young boys playing with toy guns and other armunitions, etc. He mentioned that the reason why images of children playing with toy guns was included is to show how in certain communities there are many fantasies about war with the presence of video games, literature, etc.; however, war and conflict is a reality for other communities in which children and youth are forced into.
In order to explain his reason for starting his organization, he spoke of his life experiences and how many of his journeys led him towards his present path. He mentioned that after a while of being a journalist and traveling to war-torn countries/communities, he came to realize that the stories that were predominantly covered were the men combatting in war fields but there were minor discussions about the girls and women; he said that "women and girls were oppressed in many ways," a realization he came to make while in Rwanda. From then on, he decided to start focusing on sexual violence and conflict. He discussed how women were gang raped in the DRC, and this something that occured multiple times to a woman in just one day. He shared a story about a Congolese woman he met that shared her story of being gang raped in front of her father, husband, and children; her children were later killed right in front of her. He mentioned that while listening to her story, he felt uncomfortable as a man upon hearing what she went through with the men (rapists). Upon feeling that way, he wanted to leave but she requested he stayed so she can tell her full story. He said that she wanted him to stay because she wanted her story to be told in the United States, she wanted Jimmie to represent her and felt that her story being heard can be able to prevent other women from going through the same.
With all the experiences, he then decided to start an initiative. He got the idea of starting "a youth-led organization using Hip Hop, Sports, and Technology comprised of men and women" from his observation of the positive views of these three sectors in the countries he's visited. He contacted some people about it, and he said that Gloria Steinem (active feminist, journalist, and women's rights activist) was one of the people who first gave positive feedback on his idea; she was in full support of the initiative and said that "we need men in the struggle." Some other reasons why he decided to start the Man Up Campaign were to send a message to boys and men that violence against women is not a woman's issue but a human right issue, men need to start doing something and not find it okay to objectify women. He said that there were many men that consider themselves good guys because they do not abuse women, but that is not enough, they must take a stand and speak out about the issue as a whole even when they are not the abusers. He firmly stated that "manhood is doing something and taking action, and that we all have inherent power to change." The empowerment of girls and women is something he spoke of importance, but that men need to be empowered as well to be better individuals and train them to be fathers. He stressed on how girls and women need to be independent and not succumb to society's demands.
Overall, it was a great presentation and I am very happy to have attended. By God's grace, I hope there'll be a When You Believe Foundation, Inc. and Man Up Campaign collaboration in the near future. As always, please take great care of yourselves. Continue making your dreams a reality, be empowered and see the beauty in yourself. Do not let the words of others affect you and be mindful with words you express to others. You are beautiful, strong, and remain empowered. Never hesitate to contact me if needed, and my personal e-mail is rubybjohnson@gmail.com. Remain blessed, and I wish you all peace, courage, and many blessings.
With lots of love,
Ruby.
October 2011
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Love Your Body Campaign
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Love Your Body Day is October 19, 2011. On September 25, 1998, National Organization for Women (NOW) Foundation celebrated the First Annual Love Your Body Day. Love Your Body Day is "a day of action to speak out against ads and images of women that are offensive, dangerous and disrespectful."
When You Believe Foundation, Inc. is actively raising awareness towards and after this day about beauty ideals, body images, self-esteem, etc. WYBF is currently conducting a survey in order to help us get better assessment of personal and public opinions.
GIRLS and WOMEN, tell us in the COMMENT section below on this event page about what you LOVE about YOUR BODY, and CELEBRATE your girlhood/womanhood.
View the many faces of this Campaign in our Photos section.
Join the Campaign on Facebook
Take the Survey:
UPDATES: August and September 2011
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Hello everyone,
It's been a couple of months since I last wrote updates about When You Believe Foundation, Inc. (WYBF), and this is because the organization has been working hard in serving the community through several outlets with events and showcases. First, I will like to annouce that the organization was incorporated by the state of Maryland a few months ago, and working hard towards getting Non-profit status. As promised, WYBF wanted to do a lot of community outreach programs over the summer, and by God's grace we were able to do so and much more. In each event, WYBF made sure it was mission-critical and although some of them were not directly focused on WYBF's mission, they still embodied the goals of the organization. Below is the list of events that have taken place over the past couple of months.
African Eleganza Thursday
On August 11th, WYBF collaborated with The Voice of DC, La Belle Collection, and Troy-Massa Studios and Missions to host a mini-fundraising event at Slaviya Lounge in Washington, D.C. featuring MontRose and Photography by Omar Rafik. This event showcased designs by the African clothing line, MontRose; pictures from this event can be seen in the Photos section. The reason why WYBF decided to co-host this event is to raise money for Afrique Fundraiser For Change, which is further discussed below.
Knowledge Is Her Power
On August 18th, WYBF hosted this back-to-school event for girls and women. I (Ruby) chaired this event and discussed several problems that students tackle in academics, and also tips on how to be a successful student. This event was a success because there was a variety in the age of the students, and the level of education ranged from elementary school to college. Topics that surfaced a lot in this event were lack of help and friendship conflicts; most of the students talked about their difficulty in getting help from their teachers/professors and also fear of intimidation and looking stupid. Also, the topic of prioritizing time with regards to friends and being surrounded by ambitious and positive friends. Other topics that were covered are hygiene, time management, social life, and many more. At the end of the event, students were given notebooks, pens, pencils, etc.; these stationery were donated by Ms. Adja Koite. WYBF will like to say a special thank you to Ms. Dorcas Olawuni for the provision of the event's location; your generosity and support is highly appreciated. More pictures from the event can be seen in our Photos section.
Afrique Fundraiser For Change
On September 17, WYBF collaborated with three other organizations in commemorating African Heritage Month (September). The mission of WYBF's involvement in this event was to raise funds for a Project that we are launching in December 2011 for African girls and women in the diaspora and back home. Most of the plans are currently preliminary, but more details about it will soon be published on the website for you all to know. This event was a success with several guest speakers such as Ms. Pepita Coulibaly Kragbe of La Main Tendue - The Reach Out Hand, Dr. John Sandy of Sierra Leone Arc of Hope, Mr. Malik Rashid of Brac, etc. There were musical performances by Reggae Artist, JayArr; revolutionary artist, Shakama; gospel artist, Giileh; spoken-word artist, J. Lynden Collingwood, and many more. Clothing and jewelry showcases by Carmen Eliam, Cote Minou, etc. The premise of this event was 4 Missions, 3 countries, 1 GOAL. To know more about this event and the missions, visit the website. More pictures from this event can be seen in the Photos section.
Upcoming events/activities
Love Your Body Day/Campaign
October is...
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Diversity Awareness Month
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As always, please take great care of yourselves. Continue making your dreams a reality, be empowered and see the beauty in yourself. Do not let the words of others affect you and be mindful with words you express to others. You are beautiful, strong, and remain empowered. Never hesitate to contact me if needed, and my personal e-mail is rubybjohnson@gmail.com. Remain blessed, and I wish you all peace, courage, and many blessings.
With lots of love,
Ruby.
Model of Maturity
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This is an excerpt from an article that needed to be shared. Please read it because it conveys important messages for girls and women in all communities.
DEAR AMY: My 13-year-old daughter is 5 feet 9 inches tall and has had interviews with two well-known modeling agencies, both of which were interested in representing her.
Since the interview process, my daughter has gained some weight and is no longer interested in modeling. She said she does not want the stress of always worrying about what she eats.
I respect her for this. She is by no means overweight by normal standards, but would be for the modeling world.
I would never push her to pursue something she is uncomfortable with, but I am afraid that someday she will regret not taking advantage of this unique opportunity.
Should I press the issue in some way or just leave it be? -- Model Mom
DEAR MODEL: In my family, we have a little saying when one of our daughters swims against the tide, stands up for herself and makes a brilliant choice: "Give that kid a Buick!"
I intuit that you are the one with second thoughts and regrets about your daughter's decision.
Please be careful not to project your own aspirations onto your daughter. She is 13 and has made a good and healthy choice. If a healthy-weight adolescent is too overweight for the "modeling world," then the modeling world is not a world she should live in.
Modeling is not a "unique opportunity." If your daughter chooses this path at some point, she can pursue it.
For now, she gets the Buick!
Article:
WYBF featured on MTV Act
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"At just 20 years old, Ruby is the founder of the When You Believe Foundation (WYBF), which helps women and girls become self-sufficient, shine with confidence and reach their fullest potential. WYBF is based in the U.S. but raises funds to empower females in communities all over the world."
Read the full article here.
UPDATES: June 2011
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Hello everyone,
I hope everyone is doing well in all their present endeavors. In this update, I will be discussing the activities and events of When You Believe Foundation in June 2011 and also future programs.
On June 18th, WYBF co-sponsored an event with Domestic Violence Wears Many Tags called "Fashion Raises Awareness on the many tags of domestic violence." This event was a success filled with lots of fashion, music, entertainment, and powerful messages transpired. As I mentioned in the previous update, DVWMT is an organization that is dear to WYBF, and we fully support their mission and activities in the community. The event served as a fundraiser, launching of DVWMT, and also an interactive event for the general public to get to know Afi Gaston, and the entire DVWMT team. There was also an informational video shown during the event that showed some of the clients who are women, men, teens, and children giving testimonies about how DVWMT has impacted their lives and also the importance of creating that dialogue and awareness about domestic violence and sexual assault.
On June 24th, WYBF co-sponsored a symposium with International Community College Town Center Systems - Sierra Leone (ICCTCS-SL) and Save Sierra Leone Foundation. This symposium discussed the mission of this program which is to build four (4) community colleges in the rural areas of Sierra Leone; the rural districts are Pujehun, Lunsar, Makeni, and Kono. The national symposium addressed the well-being of children and adults in the Allied Health and Early Childhood Education Programs at ICCTC-SL, West Africa. The reason why WYBF has decided to partner up with this program is because its mission is to do outreach and empower the community with education and health, and this program will be very beneficial to girls and women that will serve as students and professionals, also, these girls and women are mothers, daughters, and sisters who are affected by the health system in the country of Sierra Leone.
On June 25th, WYBF hosted "Healthy Lifestyle For Her" with Troy-Massa Studios and Missions. This event addressed several health topics that contribute to the welfare of girls and women in our community such as heart disease, self-esteem, sexual health, mental health, physical health, etc. It was hosted by me (Ruby B. Johnson) and Troy-Massa (founder of Troy-Massa Studios and Missions). The speakers of this event were Ms. Doris Tawiah, Ms. Jalannia Sutton and Dr. Noahleen Betts. Ms. Tawiah is currently a nursing student, and spoke on heart disease and how one can prevent it in their lives. Ms Sutton is a motivational speaker and beauty consultant who works at a national women's center; she spoke on girls and women's sexual health and self-esteem. Dr. Betts is a podiatrist and philanthropist; she spoke on girls and women's overall well-being and health and the several steps to be taken in order to achieve wellness. WYBF is very proud of the success of this event, and I was very happy to hear the remarks of the attendees of how they were positively impacted by the event and felt empowered walking out of there.
As of now, WYBF has no definite plans for public events in the moths of July and August. However, we are working on the production of the online show that was spoken of a couple of months ago. Updates about that will soon be posted, and the show will be premiered before the end of the month. Although information is currently tentative, WYBF is working on a big event for the month of September, more information will soon be posted. As for ongoing programs, remember to sign-up for BELIEVHER and also register for Womentorship Program and publicize it to other girls and women that you know. Also, remember to fill out the Volunteer application form, and get involved with WYBF in any way possible. In addition, WYBF will continue making food donations throughout this month, and will keep you updated about it. Remember to follow WYBF on Twitter, "Like" our page on Facebook, and subscribe to our Youtube channel.
As always, please take great care of yourselves. Continue making your dreams a reality, be empowered and see the beauty in yourself. Do not let the words of others affect you and be mindful with words you express to others. You are beautiful, strong, and remain empowered. Never hesitate to contact me if needed, and my personal e-mail is rubybjohnson@gmail.com. Remain blessed, and I wish you all peace and many blessings.
For more information about the organizations listed above, visit their websites:
Domestic Violence Wears Many Tags
Troy-Massa Studios and Missions
With lots of love,
Ruby.
UPDATES: May 2011
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Hello everyone,
I just wanted to give you all a quick summary of what has been happening so far in the month of May for When You Believe Foundation. The cans that were collected last month in our canned food drive have been packaged and have already started to be delivered; so far, delivery has been made to the New River Valley Women's Resource Center in Radford, Virginia. As delivery continues, When You Believe Foundation plans to keep you updated about where the donations are going to. In addition, we will be having a health workshop on June 25th called "Healthy Lifestyle For Her." As time draws near, we will inform you more about it.
Also, I want to say thank you to those that support When You Believe Foundation and also volunteer for our events and spread the word. Also, I encourage those that are not involved to please get involved and do something. We appreciate efforts that come in all forms, and without public assistance, the success and vision of this organization will not come true. Once again, thank you!
Today, I was blessed to attend an event hosted by Domestic Violence Wears Many Tags to represent When You Believe Foundation. The setting of the event was having a Sista Circle with girls and women of varying ages to share their stories, and just have a nice support group. DVWMT was founded by a wonderful lady called Afi Gaston, also known as Queen Afi. She is absolutely amazing and I admire and support her work in the Washington, D.C. and other local areas with domestic violence, sexual assault, self-esteem, and many more issues in people's lives.
I had a great time being part of this event because it opened my eyes to many things, shared thoughts with people, and also heard the stories of many girls and women. There were several important messages shared at this event, and I think many people in society need to have productive, cordial, and tight social units like this. The Sista Circle event happens every three months, and I promise to announce the next session on this website in order to give others an opportunity to know about it and possibly attend. When You Believe Foundation plans to collaborate with Domestic Violence Wears Many Tags in future events.
Although I cannot share all the stories that were told by the attendees, I will share that being part of this evening's event reinforced the message that words are powerful and we must all share our stories, whether we have too much or too less to say. Do not stay silent about things that do not feel right, and discuss things that you feel uncomfortable about. Get involved with people that bring positivity in your life and do not indulge negative and destructive influences in your life. Get help when you need it and do not let the words and actions of others bring you down or discourage you. Be aware that words hurt others, and verbal abuse can be very destructive in someone's life. Lastly, I want you to remember that you are beautiful, powerful, strong and you must remain empowered no matter what situation you may be in.
With lots of love,
Ruby.
To know more about Domestic Violence Wears Many Tags, visit their website.
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