A homegirl from Detroit who we all just love, the Emmy winning reporter, and Dove ‘Real Beauty’ winner has a true passion for giving back and her cause of choice helping girls! BCG had the opportunity to interview Ms. Robison on her cause and inspiration, we hope you enjoy!
Jasmine Crowe of BCG: Tell me more about “One Girl Voice”? How did it get started? What drives your passion behind your charity?
Shaun Robinson: I started the One Girl, One Voice Movement after I wrote my book, Exactly As I Am, on girls and self-esteem. One of the chapters in the book is about Giving Back and how the quickest way to feeling good about yourself, is to take the attention AWAY from yourself and put it on someone less fortunate. So, I created the movement to empower girls. To encourage them to change the world for the better by helping other people. I find that girls are very proud to talk about how they have enriched the lives of others through VOLUNTEERING their time.
BCG: That’s phenomenal, I really believe when our youth gets involved in serving others, that experience is priceless. What annual events “One Girl Voice” host to bring awareness/fund raise?
Shaun Robinson: The One Girl, One Voice Movement is pretty new but, I would love for it to develop into something much bigger! That is why we are looking for ONE MILLION girls to share their stories of VOLUNTEERING and helping others. I can imagine a One Girl, One Voice Award Show that honors ALL of the girls who have joined the movement!
BCG: Is there a target age group/demographic that the “One Girl Voice”supports?
Shaun Robinson: The One Girl, One Voice Movement is targeting towards TEEN girls but there have been so many women who are in their 20’s, 30’s, 40’s and 50’s who have loved the movement so much, that they submitted stories of VOLUNTEERING also!
BCG: How can others get involved with your cause within their local communities?
Shaun Robinson: If you know of a TEEN girl who VOLUNTEERS, have her submit her story to the OneGirlOneVoice.org website! We are looking for all kinds of wonderful stories about giving back. No act of kindness is too small – you could be helping an elderly neighbor with groceries, cleaning up a park, or working in an animal shelter. There are so many ways to give back!
BCG: Shaun you have certainly accomplished a lot from a young girl from the “D.” What are your some of your major accomplishments and awards that mean the most to you?
Shaun Robinson: I am an Emmy award winning journalist among other awards that I have received. I was also honored with the DOVE Real Beauty Award which was definitely special!
BCG: What final words of wisdom would you’d like to share with our readers?
Shaun Robinson: Empowering our girls to believe in themselves and DREAM BIG is a passion of mine. It is so important for our girls to feel that their value comes from INSIDE – not what you look like, how much money you have or how popular you are. As Oprah Winfrey said in my book, Exactly As I Am, “you are valuable because you were born”! I’m encouraging all girls to help us build a movement of ONE MILLION girls! Go to OneGirlOneVoice.org and share your story of VOLUNTEERING!
