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Millburn High School (MHS) ARK Club's Wildly Successful Fall 2010 Fund Raising Initiative
When we first announced to the club that we were going to have a bracelet sale, everyone seemed to be excited. After a year of ordinary bake sales, we were finally going to do something fun and a little more original. Showing the club the designs of the bracelets only got them more hyped up because out of the three different types, at least one could appeal to anybody. Not only was the idea of a bracelet sale great, but so was the cause. When Ayesha told me that $13 in American currency could feed a child in the Philippines for one year, I was stunned, and immediately told everyone else in the club. The idea that buying one bracelet would feed a child for a year was overwhelming; it's hard for me to put into words how crazy the notion is. In the area in which I live, $20 is thrown around for clothes, accessories, and food. Just think: you could give up buying one shirt and instead buy a bracelet that would feed a child for a year. Also, if everyone in the club bought a bracelet, it would already support about 20 kids... my head kept turning, trying to wrap itself around the fact that we could really make a difference in the lives of students on the other side of the world.
Everyone in the club worked hard to meet demands. At our first bracelet-related meeting, Camille taught everyone how to make the bracelets. At the second, we prepared all the materials (i.e. cutting string, sorting charms, etc.) that would be necessary to make the bracelets so that when we received the orders, it wouldn't take long to complete them. Also at this meeting, we took pictures of ourselves with the bracelets on. I thought it would be a good idea to make these our profile pictures on Facebook to help spread awareness. At the final meeting, club members stayed late after school to put all the bracelets together. Despite the small cuts on everyone's fingers from attaching charms and the blisters from hot glue guns, we all persevered. The project was truly a team effort, and I can't even begin to express how pleased I am with the amount of work people contributed.
When the amount of money we raised was calculated, I literally started jumping up and down. Everyone stopped working for a minute as the number was written on the board, and I could see how happy they all were with the result too. Seeing the number on the board reminded everyone what we were all working for. Because of our hard work and those who contributed by buying bracelets, more children in the Philippines would be able to eat good food for a year. It's absolutely amazing.
Alexandra Gray, MHS-ARK Club President
November 23, 2010
For over two decades, Analisa Balares has been committed to women’s leadership development, entrepreneurship, innovation, sustainable development, and education. She has produced, directed, and co-produced over 100 conferences, summits, events, and media on these themes, with 12 of these conferences and forums through Womensphere.
In the summer of 2007, Analisa founded Womensphere, a unique global leadership community and independent media company that inspires, empowers, connects, and unites women leaders, innovators, entrepreneurs, policymakers, scientists, artists, explorers, and women who are creating development and pioneering new trails across all fields and disciplines. In the last three years, as the US and global economies went through crises and upheaval, Analisa and the leadership of the Womensphere Team brought together a community of over 11,000 women leaders, building one of the most powerful new platforms for emerging women leaders, and for women leaders across all fields.
Prior to Womensphere, Analisa launched her career in the Goldman Sachs High Technology Investment Banking group, where she helped execute over $1.5 billion in IPOs, corporate financings, and mergers and acquisitions for companies like open source software leader Red Hat and communications leader Nokia. Her professional experience includes working for Milestone Capital Management, Morgan Stanley’s Energy Investment Banking Group, the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, and the Japan External Trade Organization.
Analisa holds an MBA from Harvard Business School; a BA in Economics & Mathematics cum laude from Mount Holyoke College; and an International Baccalaureate Diploma from Lester Pearson United World College of the Pacific in Canada. While at Harvard Business School, Analisa founded and co-led the non-profit Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN), and served as a President of the HBS Entrepreneurship Club, and Debate Coach/Team Co-Captain of the HBS Debate Team.
Following business school, Analisa joined Microsoft as Global Marketing Manager for Microsoft’s blogging and social networking service, where she managed the global marketing launch of Windows Live Spaces in over 30 countries, and led the strategy and execution of Spaces projects around branding, partnerships, events, and online community development. She managed Spaces’ internal partnerships with MSN Entertainment and XBox, and external partnerships with NGOs (Global Fund for Women, Earth Day Network), media companies (ABC, Sundance Channel), and independent music/film/TV festivals (SXSW, MethodFest Film Festival, New York TV Festival).
A global citizen, Analisa’s lifework and inspiration to have impact emerged early: In her teens, she led a team of students pioneering innovative work on wastewater pollution treatment, recycling, and alternative energy production, efforts which won recognition and the Philippine Shell Petroleum Company‘s Outstanding Junior Scientist Award for three consecutive years. She was elected Senate President of the 1st Philippine Youth Environment Congress, where she led drafting the Philippine Youth Environment and Sustainable Development Policy Proposal for the UN Earth Summit in Brazil. That year, she was elected Youth Mayor of Manila City, where she led the passing of 18 Executive Orders into laws to improve the community, education, and environment of Manila. As a Canadian Government scholar to the Lester Pearson United World College in British Columbia, she gave voice to the importance of children’s rights while on the Steering Committee of Canada’s First International Conference on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child held in Vancouver.
In 1999, Analisa founded The Lyons Network, a leadership and career mentoring organization for young women, and for a decade, Analisa co-led the organization of regional conferences on leadership, innovation, and entrepreneurship for young women in New England, reaching several thousand young women in the last decade.
Analisa was recently selected as Fearless Woman of the Year 2010 by The Fearless Factor in New York City. Analisa was chosen by the New Leaders Council as one of its 40 Under 40 New Leaders in the United States, and recognized as one of the 100 Most Influential Filipinas in America by the US Filipina Women’s Network. Analisa was also recognized by CBS Radio/1010Wins as its Tomorrow’s Newsmaker Award Winner for Business.
