Nonprofit by Nigerian woman celebrates a year of empowering women

It is often said that if you want something done well, you do it yourself. After all, only you know what it feels like to walk a mile in the shoes that pinch.

It is this attitude, mixed with her own personal tale of abuse and triumph over abuse, that led Amanda Bedzrah to start the organisation Empower A Woman – a non-profit organisation that starts work from the moment a woman decides to leave a dangerous or difficult situation.

Last Mother’s Day, Smile Gifts gave beautiful presents to the mums we work with. As many of them are single parents of young children, these were often the only gifts they received and they really blessed them, and helped them to feel special. And yes, as the pictures show, the gifts definitely made them smile! Thank you Amanda and the team for all your hard work.” Emma Tanner, CEO, The Princess Project.

A lack of options, resources and finance often contribute to a woman’s decision to stay in an unhealthy environment, so Empower A Woman is working to remove that feeling of helplessness and give the ladies the conviction to strike out on their own.

A year after the birth of this powerful concept, a small gathering of unique ladies who have supported the cause were invited to an anniversary party, and as befitting a programme for and by ladies, a dainty tea-party was called to mark the event.

A sugary feast of the most decadent cakes and scones provided a much needed sweetness to balance the tales of abuse that were shared on Sunday afternoon, but more importantly, the tales of success over the abuse.

There are several factions to Empower A Woman, and you too can help! Below is a list of the strands that make up the cause and links to for how you can help:

1. Shine Women (A self-development training course that focuses on helping women discover their Worth, Strength and Purpose. This course really focuses on bringing change into the lives of vulnerable women. The organisation will soon be launching Shine Girls in their bid to equip teenagers with the right tools to make more informed choice. This is a preventative measure to ensure that these young women grow up confident in who they are)
2. Smile Gifts – A free gift giving services to marginalised women on special occasions. To date they have given over 150 free gifts and are set to give out up to 500 gifts this year. A majority of these gifts would be going to women in prison for Christmas. They are currently raising funds to support this, please kindly donate through https://www.gofundme.com/smilegifts
3. Smile Bank – This is very much like a food bank, but does not supply food items, instead the smile bank is a collection of basic essentials of Toiletries and Household Cleaning products. This was launched in September 2015 to meet the needs of marginalised women and families
4. Sponsorship – They will also sponsor a woman to start a small business to support herself and /or her family. So far, they have sponsored over 15 women into small businesses and have recently partnered with Hope For All Trust with a commitment to sponsor 100 women in business in 2016. To sponsor a woman costs £20 per woman and you can support the organisations by making donations).

The organisation has now grown out of Amanda’s home into a serviced office, donated to the organisation through Centric Project. For more information visit www.empowerawoman.org or connect with them on social media via Facebook.com/empowerawoman you can also contact them via Hello@empowerawoman.org