Our Blog

One year ago, we brought home our rescue dog, Stevie. She was around five and had spent her life as a breeding dog. She had never been inside a home. She had lived locked in a kennel with twelve other dogs, fed from piles of food scattered on the ground. When she arrived, she was terrified, often frozen in fear, overweight, and unsure of the world around her. She didn’t know how to walk on a leash or play with a toy. She didn’t understand couches or soft beds. She held hersel

Hello Empower & Shine family, Our Uganda trip is almost here — we arrive  February 26th  and will be on the ground for nearly a week, with a full, joy-filled schedule ahead. One of the biggest highlights: we’ll be  distributing 2,000 of our brand-new Children’s Journals  to students at  12 different schools , including  Shalom Junior TRUST School . And yes… we’re finally going to see the progress on a dream in the making —  the Field of Dreams  at Shalom. We are so excited to

Some needs are so basic we forget how powerful they are—until we picture a child walking miles without protection, comfort, or a reliable pair of shoes. Our friends Nikki & Bill are providing shoes and socks for 150 students at Shalom Junior Trust School in Uganda, and it’s the kind of gift that meets a real, everyday need in a deeply meaningful way. In many Ugandan communities, families are responsible for school fees and many school-related costs. When budgets are tight, ev

At Empower and Shine, everything we create begins with one simple belief: every person deserves to feel seen, loved, and empowered . We are honored to introduce our newest journals, thoughtfully designed for children and families. These journals were created as gentle companions for growing hearts, offering space for reflection, expression, and healing without fear, shame, or pressure. At the center of these journals are two tools we are lovingly calling our Sunshine Wheels .

Choosing beauty where it isn't always obvious is almost completely what takes up my artist brain. In every setting I enter, in every story I hear, finding the beauty and turning it into art consumes me. When a couple of us with Empower and Shine first learned about Lilias Trotter, it felt like we were learning about ourselves in a past life, in a past century. Some stories stay with us not because they are loud or dramatic, but because they are quietly brave. Lilias Trotter’s

A new year often arrives with all the pressure to change, to improve, to become something “better.” But at Empower and Shine, we shifted and decided to believe January can be an invitation to begin gently. Before goals, before plans, and before productivity, there is now self-love. Self-love is about listening to yourself, honoring your needs, and choosing kindness in the small, everyday moments, not about perfection or constant positivity or productivity. It’s learning to re

Here at Empower and Shine, our team is primarily comprised of women. Because of this, we often write from our own personal experiences and perspectives, sharing from our realities. However, we want to ensure that we are balancing that with love and attention to men as well. We are all surrounded by strong, empowered men, and they have shared some valuable insight into how self-care may look different for men than it does for women. I spoke to some men in my own life and we ha