Empowerment Tribe is an inspiring group of women who came together to help feed members of our community. We're excited to be working with them by donating meals to feed families in need throughout September. We recently caught up with Hope Douglas to find out a little bit more about them and what they're up to.
Hi Hope, thanks for taking some time out to catch up with us!
A few months ago one of our supporters and friend of Pwrmeals, Romina, suggested we take a look at what the Empowerment Tribe were doing. We were super impressed – you've built something really inspiring here. How long has the Empowerment Tribe been around for and what inspired you to start it in the first place?
We are a group of friends (9 women) - we consider ourselves a tribe of women that empower one another.
About 4 weeks ago, we came together with our time and resources to try to help feed families that we knew were in need; particularly in Sydney's Western Suburbs.
It started out small - just the 9 of us gathering food to feed families in need, but we decided to take to social media to see if anyone wanted to donate, and also to reach out to find more families that are struggling under the present situation.
As soon as we posted our intentions on IG, we received loads of donations and support, and also had many people reaching out to us, telling us their stories and asking for help.
What does a normal week look like for you?
We've been busy - we delivered groceries to over 80 families within our first two weeks, and we have been working consistently to gather food and donations and to deliver groceries to doors.
What are the biggest challenges the Empowerment Tribe faces?
The community has been amazing - we have been receiving donations and have been able to put food on the table for many families.
Restrictions have been challenging for us at times as they do limit the amount of personal deliveries that we can make. A great donation option to navigate this has been online vouchers so that we can order groceries and have them delivered directly to families that are too far for us to personally deliver to.
How has COVID affected you and the people you work with?
Government restrictions have greatly affected us all. I have personally been out of work since the start of this lockdown, which is obviously very difficult financially and in other ways too.
I know several of the women in the Empowerment tribe have also lost work or had their partners lose jobs too. It's a very difficult time.
However, we do have resources enough in this country to feed the community. With a little effort and networking, we can still ensure that everyone eats, regardless of their financial situation.
We're excited to be working with you in September. How will our involvement help the people you work with?
Your involvement will greatly help our initiative - you've put food on the table for 3 families for an entire month! You have also organised delivery directly to their door, which is amazingly helpful for us as well!
We are so grateful for your help, as I know are the families receiving your meals!
Thanks Hope. If people want to get in touch with the Empowerment Tribe, how can they find out more?
To stay up to date with what we're up to you can check out our IG page: @empowermenttribe_
We've also got a Linktree with info on how to get involved or request assistance: https://linktr.ee/grocerydrivesydney
And you can always reach us at our email: grocerydrivesydney@outlook.com