By: Jennifer Saarbach
One year ago, I was going about my daily routine for what I didn’t know would be the last time in a year.
The second Monday in March of 2020, I dropped my kids off at school. I grabbed my laptop, drove to an Eastover coffee shop and met up with a few friends from the Junior League. We drank coffee, chatted for a bit and fastened large buttons on our black dresses that read: “Ask me about my dress!”. We were excited to launch our Little Black Dress Initiative (LBDI) fundraising campaign. We were hugging and pressing our faces together for photos. We typed furiously on our phones, crafting social media posts aimed at raising awareness about issues impacting those living in poverty. “Did you know that one in seven Charlotte residents live below the poverty line? One in five children?”
We were motivated by the challenges we saw in our community. And we were totally clueless about the changes to come.
That day was the first day of the annual Little Black Dress Initiative, but it was also the last day that I would take that daily routine for granted. The next day, our school shut down and we entered into the early stages of quarantine. Our buttons, our fundraising campaign, our focus on raising awareness…all suddenly took a backseat to the fear and uncertainty that upended our daily lives.
I’ve had a full year now to reflect on the changes that have come about as a result of COVID-19. I’ve had to personally adjust to the stripping away of privileges that I took for granted on a daily basis. But I have also been incredibly fortunate to do so with access to resources, financial and otherwise. There are tens of thousands of our fellow community members in Charlotte who have faced these challenges while living in poverty.
Poverty in Charlotte is a significant issue that has only worsened as a result of the pandemic. Charlotte residents experiencing homelessness, those without access to healthcare and those living in food insecurity — these populations have all seen an increase in number over the past year. As we hopefully move towards a reopening, we cannot lose sight of the difficult lessons we’ve learned.
This year’s LBDI week is more critical than ever. We are advocating on behalf of those living in poverty to raise awareness, to understand the challenges they face and to affect a positive change in the community on their behalf. We wear a black dress every day this week to spark the conversation, and hope you will join us in our commitment.
Join us for LBDI March 8-12 by signing up here.
