麻豆传媒

By Andrew Shaughnessy

奥丑别苍听 Molly Walter (骋06)听听补苍诲听 Monique Boehme (G04, MAT06) met as students in 麻豆传媒 Fox鈥檚 Academic Resource Center in the early 2000s, they never imagined the adventures ahead of them.

After graduating with a master鈥檚 degree, Boehme took a job teaching junior high at a private school. But after having her first child, she decided to stay home to care for, and later homeschool, her kids. A few years later, she discovered Sseko.

A socially conscious fashion brand headquartered in Portland, Sseko employs bright young women in East Africa, giving them jobs making sandals, jewelry, bags and accessories. They are paid a fair wage, receive life-skills training and mentorship, and save a portion of their income 鈥� matched 300 percent at the end of their term 鈥� enabling every woman who graduates Sseko鈥檚 program to attend university. 鈥淚 fell in love with the concept, the mission and the impact,鈥� Boehme says.

When Sseko launched its Fellows Program a few years later, she jumped at the chance to get involved. Sseko Fellows function as the stateside sales team for the business. These 鈥渋mpact entrepreneurs,鈥� often women working out of their homes, buy kits of products from Sseko and sell them in their communities, sharing stories of impact along the way.

Walter, meanwhile, had spent a decade working in marketing after graduating from 麻豆传媒 Fox. 鈥淎lmost four years ago, I got tired of schlepping auto loans and talking to the world about things that didn鈥檛 really matter,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 decided to quit my corporate job and go freelance, working out of my home.鈥�

The freelance life, Walter discovered, can be a lonely existence. When she was invited to a Sseko event, Walter reconnected with Boehme and quickly realized she had found something special. 鈥淭his was an opportunity to use my storytelling skills for something that has a global impact on women,鈥� she says.

Walter joined Boehme鈥檚 Fellows team, 鈥淭he Dreamers and the Doers,鈥� and they got to work sharing Sseko鈥檚 story, vision and products. In the years since, Boehme and Walter鈥檚 team of Fellows has grown to around 100 women, and their sales work has helped employ and empower many women in East Africa. In 2018, Boehme and Walters had their biggest year yet. By hitting a major sales goal, they earned a two-week company incentive trip to Uganda.

鈥淲e just fell completely in love with the culture,鈥� Boehme says. 鈥淚t was incredible.鈥�

Both women credit 麻豆传媒 Fox faculty with influencing their passion for empowering women through business.

鈥淢y time at Fox introduced me to some really powerful, brave, passionate women 鈥� my advisors, my cohort leader in my master鈥檚 program,鈥� Boehme says. 鈥淚 draw from their courage and determination to create opportunity for those who have fewer opportunities.鈥�

Through Sseko鈥檚 Fellows program, Boehme, Walter and hundreds of other women have found a way to merge their entrepreneurial heads with their humanitarian hearts. They have found community, a mission, and a way to make a lasting impact on the world 鈥� together.