“It makes me feel really empowered,” said Sky, one of our students in the business program at Phoenix School. I was so glad he threw that one out there on camera during his KPIC interview.

Empowerment is a great feeling. Our kids are super excited by the amount of attention that they’re getting through the program. I’ll write it out in reverse order – starting from a few months back.

We’ve had dozens of entrepreneurs and professionals in our class over the past few months. The kids have connected with all sorts of people from various walks of life who share a consistent set of messages – work hard, keep at it, and live with passion. Care about your community. Demonstrate your values through your actions. Success will come, and freedom.

That’s empowerment through entrepreneurship.

Outside of class, we’ve been working hard to get the store ready to go. There’s a team of very dedicated people (special thanks to Karry Johnson for putting her heart and soul into this store) who have volunteered their time and energy to make this store possible. Thanks to our sponsors – Phoenix School, United Way, Umpqua Bank, Hawks & Co Realty, Dutch Bros, Lief Photography – we were able to put together a great event in a very short time.

At this last Friday’s grand opening, we had close to 300 people come through our tiny shop! Our kids see that level of interest, and they realize that they are a part of a supportive community. That’s empowerment.

It’s the feeling of connection – real relationship building – that results from these interactions that creates the feeling of empowerment. You can’t fake it – these kids are glowing from the experiences they’re having.

Before the KPIC interview on Thursday, Patti LaFreniere (head of the Partnership for a Drug-Free Umpqua) and I took three of our kids (Sky, Enrique and Cordell) shopping for new clothes at Sunrise Enterprise’s thrift store. We showed the kids how to feel like a million bucks on a $10 budget, and we had a lot of fun.

Empowerment doesn’t happen all at once. It’s a gradual process, a ladder to be climbed – or perhaps a series of chutes and ladders, depending on how far the analogy is taken.

Empowerment comes from entrepreneurship because starting a business can be a pathway to freedom and opportunity. We’ve created pathways for these kids to connect with real people in their community who have taken the bull by the horns and carved out a life for themselves.

When you’re shopping in our store, you’re helping to create empowerment for people.

It’s a good feeling – enjoy it.

“When people talk about the “bottom of the pyramid,” they are usually thinking of the poor as potential consumers. Impact sourcing shifts the perspective. “We think the way out of poverty is to view the poor as producers,” says Janah.

“And the Internet is probably the most efficient tool we have for tapping this capacity. Because you don’t need roads. You don’t need customs officials who are friendly. You don’t need to manage shipping and delivery schedules. You don’t have to worry about tariffs. The production happens instantaneously and the good ― the knowledge output ― gets shipped instantaneously. This is the first time in human history we can do that.”

From NY Times