I come from a long line of strong women. My mom Diane was a single parent of four kids after my dad left her when I was three. My little sister was one, my older sister five and my brother was seven. She was 28 yrs old, and determined to not only survive but to thrive. At times she had 3 jobs, my brother did a lot of cooking macaroni and cheese in those days, or beanies and weenies. By the time I was 14 my mom signed a work permit and I worked at McDonalds full time until I turned 16 and could get my dream job at the mall, I loved working at the mall. First job was at the Shoe Gallery, partners and next door to Accessory Accents, it was 1985. The glory years of the mall. I met a girl Named Liz who went to a different high school than I did, we could talk when it was slow or walk clients back and forth. She was the most elegant, beautiful person I had ever met. She always looked flawless in that effortless, easy kind of way that I knew nothing about but she seemed to just naturally possess. One day she asked me if I wanted to go shopping on our next day off together. So I borrowed my sister's car and met her at Loehmanns, a place I had never heard of let alone been too. I was surprised this elegant girl wanted to shop in a discount store, she just laughed and tossed her hair over her shoulder and puckered her perfectly red lips at me and said "trust me, one designer crisp white blouse will change how you dress forever". And she was right. After I got over the shock of one huge dressing room full of women all changing in the open, and realizing your bra and underwear do matter, I started trying on things she picked out, and settled on one white blouse. In the discount store it still cost more than any item of clothing I had ever purchased. Next stop, Goodwill, for boys chinos that we proceeded to cut off not far above our knees. Then the fabric store for inch and a half wide striped ribbons in various colors to use as belts. Paired with Tretorn sneakers or strappy sandals we got on sale at work, and we were ready for our first trip to UGA for a football game weekend. I can't tell you how I felt. This girl that always felt awkward, was always aware of the hand me downs from my sister and cousins that never seemed quite to fit my body or personality. I felt free. I felt like I now had the secret to being absolutely anything or anyone I wanted to be. And I was free to change that at anytime. One crisp white blouse gave me the life I have now. I truly believe that. I learned that day to save and buy something nice and be creative, show who you are on the inside on the outside. My mom had always said that being poor was not an excuse to be dirty. She made us always wear clean clothes and be presentable, but this was different, this was taking the time to iron your clothes. curling the ends of my hair even if I was in a rush. Planning outfits for the week so I could reware the things I had in new ways so it wasn't obvious I didn't own much. 

When I opened my first clothing store 20 yrs later, I called Liz, even though it had been a year or two since we last spoke ( this was the beginning ages of Facebook and cell phones) I was so excited to tell her that she was the reason. She made me fall in love with fashion and the freedom it gives us to be who we want. I wanted to thank her, not just for that, but for being light and lovely and smiling and puckering her lips and standing on her tippy toes while leaning into the mirror to put mascara on. How did I not ever tell her that she was the first person who really saw me, who let me see me, and see her. When I couldn't reach her, I reached out to one of her twin younger brothers, and my heart broke. I was too late. Liz, the girl who always sparkled was gone. Drank herself to death in her early 30s while taking care of her homebound mother after a stroke. I hadn't been there for the person who gave me everything. I promised then that I would be a better friend to people who needed to just not feel alone. I promised I would do better, be better, and I hope I have. None of us are supposed to do this life alone. It's too hard, too heavy. But, if we all just help carry a tiny bit of it, it makes not only us stronger by helping to do the carrying, but it lets the other person know they aren't alone and hopefully be able to keep going. My granny used to say "it's an honor and a privilege to help carry the hard parts" "For Goodness Sake Julie, you aren't supposed to do this alone."

So I say to all of you, For Goodness Sake, let's do this together. Let's all carry the parts we can, give what we can, share what we can. Fashion is fun, it's powerful, it's freeing. But it can also give back, it can feed a family, shelter an animal, rescue a child, find a cure. And it might be sitting in your closet right now, waiting to be donated, waiting to be purchased by someone who will use it and love it, and when you donate it, you get to decide which charity the proceeds of the sale goes toward. It's up cycling at its highest form. Luxury goods that you aren't using anymore that can be used to promote something close to your heart.

As for me, I'm donating my entire store, Blue Ruby Boutique in Denver, CO. All of the merchandise, the computers and shipping and packaging materials. The racks and hangers, the furniture and everything related to the store. This is letting For Goodness Sake start off with zero upfront costs. Making every item donated, whether its clothing, jewelry, shoes, accessories, give even more to the charity designated by the donor. As the buyer, you can feel good about supporting up cycling and sustainability as well as the purchase price going to a cause. It's buying luxury items and making a difference all at once. So, For Goodness Sake, what's stopping you.

Julie