The Sseko Brave Collective

Last summer, a friend of mine showed me the cutest pair of sandals that she’d just bought at a local boutique. I instantly fell in love. Y’all know, I’m all about shoes. Then she told me the story:

Sskeo Designs is a fashion brand, based in Uganda, that makes handbags, accessories, and leather sandals with beautiful interchangeable fabric straps that can be styled many different ways. The women who create these beautiful items use the profits to attend university and better their lives as well as the lives of their families.

Beauty with a purpose? I was all over it. The following weekend I went to the store and bought a pair of Sseko Designs sandals, you can see them here. Those sandals became my go-to shoes for the summer. I even stepped out of my comfort zone and bought the metallic gold straps! Which you can see here.

So when I was invited to become a member of the Sseko Brave Collective, I was beyond thrilled. I’m truly passionate about empowering women to do more and be more through education. And as a mother of five, I know how important it is to get an education and to be an example to my children.

In the picture, I’m holding a copy of the Sseko Brave Manifesto: a collection of empowering phrases that help encourage the women who are involved with Sseko Designs. Each of those phrases appeals to me for various reasons but I think the one that resonates most with me is:

Every Great Journey Begins With A Small Step

I’ve always tried to live my life fearlessly. Well, that is until I became a mom, but even that requires a delicate balance of bravery and vulnerability. Since childhood, I’ve dreamed of big adventures: I wanted to travel the world as a journalist {for a minute, I even wanted to be a spy}. Instead I traveled the world as a military family member and then as a soldier. I traveled by bus in a country where I didn’t speak the language and made friends with people I’d never see again. I went to college and earned two Master’s Degrees while raising four children under the age of five and battling cancer. And I’ve walked hand~in~hand with The Hubs through the various phases of our lives.

Each great journey in my life began with one small {brave} step forward…