It’s Giving Tuesday.  What better day to introduce you to a remarkable woman who’s helping other women shine their stars.

You already know that I donate one dollar for each ten I make selling my books to help America’s hungry and the homeless. Recently two things converged to help me learn more about Veronika Scott.  My cover designer, Chad Green told me about the Empowerment Plan, and I met Bobby.

Bobby is a homeless man I pass every day as I walk the block and a half between the Metra Station and the “L” train.  He’s young, maybe in his late-twenties or early-thirties.  He’s small, size 9 1/2 shoes.  He has a tiny shamrock tattoo near his right eye. Bobby always greets me a smile and a “have a good day.” At first, I just nodded and passed him by.  Before too long, I gave him a sandwich or an apple or orange. I started to pack double.  One for me and one for Bobby.  It’s getting cold in Chicago, and Bobby didn’t have a warm coat or a blanket.  He usually sleeps by the library or under the bridge by the Metra Station.

That’s when I remembered Empowerment Plan and Veronika Scott.  Hailey McInnis, 26, Empowerment Plan’s Operations Manager was kind enough to sit down and talk to me about the Non-profit company and Veronika.

Veronika is 28 years old.  She experienced periods of homelessness as she grew up near Detroit, MI. Veronika’s mother suffered with different addictions, so Veronica bounced around a lot, sometimes living with her mother in their car, but most of the time with grandparents.

Veronika graduated from College for Creative Studies. Her final project was to create something to fill an actual need. She went from shelter to shelter to find out what people needed. One of the  things she discovered was that women did not like to come into the shelters. Veronika designed a coat that can convert to a sleeping bag. It took Veronika