Most of you reading this probably already know me, but if you don't welcome! My name is Lindsey Brown and I have been a member of the Junior League of Louisville (JLL) for the last three years. I am currently serving as an Engagement Advisor in the league but previously served as the chair of our Guide Educate Mentor (G.E.M.) committee which worked monthly with the kids living at Boys & Girls Haven. 

This year I am participating in the Little Black Dress Initiative (LBDI). This week long campaign aims at highlighting challenges some of our local youth are facing and how the JLL is working on projects and pairing with community partners to combat some of these challenges. These challenges include the impact of poverty on education, the effects on children of being displaced from their homes, and the urgency for basic needs to be met for these children.

We want to stimulate discussion within the community while also raising funds to continue our meaningful work. The funds raised make possible the work and mission of the Junior League of Louisville, which includes voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. All donations are fully tax deductible. A few of the ways the JLL is using unrestricted donor gifts include: providing supplies for mentoring and celebration events for local displaced youth including a Life Skills Fair this spring, purchasing workbooks for Lemonade Day participants, hosting Dolly Parton's Imagination Library registration events, providing meaningful volunteer and leadership training services for our members, purchasing books for filling our Free Little Libraries, and so much more.

Wearing the same black dress this week is obviously just a tiny representation of the limited choices people in poverty face but I hope that this campaign raises awareness of the challenges some of our youth are facing regularly. I hope you will consider donating to a cause that is so important to me! Thank you!