PeaceKeeper Cause-Metics and our founder, Jody Weiss, are featured in this month’s edition of Teen Vogue!
You can see the article online as well as Jody’s top four beauty pics.
Just visit Teen Vogue at http://www.teenvogue.com/beauty/beautywork/2007/11/jodyweiss_20071119 to see the whole article (and all its glory).

To share the joy, because sharing IS caring, we are offering a special on one of the top 4 beauty pics, our Nail Renewal Oil. All orders of Nail Renewal Oil all of the month of March will save 25%.

We encourage you to also make a donation to our Fund at the same time which will give a  woman an education and help her attain a sustainable trade. Learn more about the   program at http://www.iamapeacekeeper.com/helpfundtheseprograms.htm . You can   make a donation while in the checkout process or add it to the cart like any other item.   All 100% of your donation goes to the fund.

Below is the full text of the article. Let us know what you think!

Peace,
Jen

Jody Weiss: founder of PeaceKeeper Cause-metics

by Maura Lynch

Jody Weiss

If you think that lipgloss and nail polish are frivolous possessions, try telling that to Jody Weiss. In fact, it was her humanitarian spirit that led her into the cosmetics industry in the first place. “I was reading Time magazine and saw a photo of a little girl who was a victim of female genital mutilation and I burst into tears,” remembers Weiss. “I knew it happened, but this photo really made an impression on me.” Touched and inspired, Jody left her career as a sports agent in order to devote her time fully to raising awareness and funds for women’s issues: “I started a line because I wanted an easy and active way for women to help other women simply by choosing a beauty product.”

The result was PeaceKeeper Cause–metics, an all–natural cosmetics line founded in 2002 that donates 100 percent of its profits after taxes to women’s health and human rights advocacy organizations. This mission has taken Weiss around the globe and back, but her trips to Southeast Asia were particularly important. PeaceKeeper’s ongoing Million Kisses Campaign, which raises money to fund education for women and girls who are victims of human slavery, launched in response to a visit to Cambodia and Thailand. “That trip taught me about the important role that education plays in helping women who have left the sex trade to succeed,” notes Weiss.

While in Thailand, Jody also took note of the large population of homeless children. In response, PeaceKeeper donated a full year of funding to Ja and the Street Children, a program that supports orphans by providing them with food, education, clothing, and medicine. “It felt incredible knowing that the proceeds we raised helped support 30 children for a year. I had a chance to meet the children our funding has helped and it was an incredible experience,” states Weiss.

When it comes to choosing your career path, Weiss advises that passion should play an important role. “Look for the ‘awe’ moment in your experience,” she encourages. “When I was a female sports agent in my early career I never had a real ‘ah–ha’ moment, no real sensation that I was in awe of the experience. However, the minute I became an activist for women in need I find that I am on fire about my work. My passion around this work enables me to make a difference in women and girls’ lives and that is all that matters to me.” For more information about the brand and how you can help, go to Iamapeacekeeper.com.

Yesterday, Sunday November 11th, was Veterans Day. A few days earlier a story ran in the New York Times that shows that we need to do more for our veterans than have a day that honors them. “Surge Seen in Number of Homeless Veterans” highlighted not only how veterans of past make up a disproportionate amount of homeless people but veterans from the current war are becoming homeless faster than years past.

For men, much of the homelessness is due to spiraling-out-of-control behavior through substance abuse. Women are facing many of the same problems that male vets are yet there is another factor that affects women at a higher rate than men; sexual abuse in the military. The New York Times states that nearly 40% of the homeless female veterans report sexual assault at the hands of other service members.

No matter what your political affiliation or stance on the war is there are I know that you will agree that this must be addressed.

Here are some things that we can all do to bring attention to this issue.

-Volunteering your time or make donations to homeless shelters, sexual assault/domestic violence shelters and veterans organizations that are targeting these problems is a great place to start.
-Becoming familiar with the issues that service members face is another.
-Building a peaceful world where people are not sexually abused and do not need to turn to substances to numb them is a long term goal that we all can put some work into achieving.

There are veterans who need our help everyday, not just on November 11th.

And, as PeaceKeepers, we need to offer our help…!

Read the NYT article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/08/us/08vets.html

Peace,

Jen

Former SGT, US ARNG 2000-2005