Today we’d like to introduce you to Candy Pearson.
Candy, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Seven years ago, I went to a volunteer meeting for a non-profit that puts on retreats for adoptive and foster care moms. As I was looking through the list of different volunteer positions, a friend of mine said that she really thought I’d be good at the Stage Design and Merchandise roles. I took her advice and took a chance and after my first stage design, I was hooked. I absolutely loved helping to create a beautiful setting in a place where women could meet, relax, learn and be renewed. Fast forward five years and I had done stage design for ten retreats and had had the honor of serving almost 5,000 women at those retreats when it was announced that the retreats would be ending. I always tell people that I never knew I was creative until someone who saw that spark in me, pointed it out and encouraged it. Once I found out the non-profit was shutting down, I knew it was time to move on to the next thing but had no idea what that next thing was.
Around the same time, my family (Husband and three kids) and I had decided to move from Atlanta to Clarkston, GA, the most diverse square mile in the US. We absolutely fell head over heels in love with the people and the community we found in Clarkston. Late one night over Christmas break last year, an idea that had been brewing in my heart started to take shape and at that point, I knew that I wanted to do something to bring together women in this community that I love so much along with women from surrounding communities. That night, I came up with a name (MADE) and a logo and most importantly, purpose. Of course, I didn’t tell anyone for a month!
When I finally decided to tell a group of women who also wanted to bring women together in our community, the idea was welcomed with excitement and open arms. All of a sudden, I had a team and knew that there was no way of getting out of doing this, so we met and dreamed and planned and had our very first gathering in the Spring of 2018 at Refuge Coffee Co, in Clarkston, GA. The beloved Amena Brown hosted and over 200 women showed up to hear a panel of four unique women share their personal stories and journeys.
After that night, it was obvious that women need a safe space to share, to be vulnerable, to be encouraged, to hear that they are not alone. We need to know that while we all are unique, we are all also very similar and we have more in common than we think. The key to that is our stories and how willing we are to let our stories heal ourselves and others.
So, we are passionate about creating that safe space for those stories. Stories of women discovering who they were MADE to be, what they were MADE to do, what they are MADE for and what they are MADE of regardless of age, religion, race, socioeconomic status, sexual preference, and political affiliations.
Made Gatherings are held once every season (Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer). We are busy planning for our Winter Gathering happening on January 27th, 2019. We are excited to explore what life looks like when you’ve become Un-MADE or have had to become Re-MADE with four new and unique panelists and we can’t think of a better way to start the new year!!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
There have definitely been struggles along the way. I have always struggled with feelings of self-worth and I have found that when I am working towards something with purpose, those feelings shout at me the loudest. I struggle with these lies about myself and some days I believe them. But the great thing about struggle is that it gives us a chance to look in the mirror and ask ourselves “what is true?”. I have been on quite a journey of self-reflection, sometimes looking in the mirror and loving what I see, sometimes looking and hating what I see. Sometimes, looking and not even recognizing what I see (good and bad) and other times wanting to throw the mirror out completely. I know that all of these feelings are okay. I have learned that I just cannot get stuck in negative feelings. It’s important for me to learn as much about myself and what I’m MADE to be and to surround myself with a community of people who can hold that mirror up for me and LOVE me for me, no matter what is reflected in it.
This quote from Marianne Williamson has been such an encouragement to me:
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our Light, not our Darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you NOT to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people won’t feel unsure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. As we let our own Light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
We’d love to hear more about your work.
“Sharing your story isn’t easy. But it is powerful. It has the power to change perceptions, encourage understanding, and provide hope to others.” ~Laura Greenstein
Our vision for Made is to create an authentic environment to connect the diverse stories of uniquely MADE women.
So, how do we do that? We provide a safe space for women (regardless of age, background, race, religion or place in life) to gather. To gather and to hear stories from other women. Women who have said yes to being vulnerable and answering questions about how we’re MADE and even questions about how sometimes we are UNMADE and then maybe even REMADE and all the beauty and sometimes chaos in between.
What we love so much about hearing the diverse stories of uniquely made women is realizing that we are all unique but we are not necessarily different. There is power in our stories. A power that lets those who hear, say “I’ve been through something similar.” or “I know what that feels like.” or “I’m not alone.” It’s a power that gives the person sharing a chance to be fully known, to be heard. It’s realizing that your story can help others.
We believe in that power. We believe in women. And we believe in community.
Our dream for Made is for you to leave one of our events with new perceptions, more understanding and most of all, hope. ❤️
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was very shy. I didn’t want any attention. I had a twin sister that happily got most of the attention and I was glad for that. I was often called “sweet” or “accepting.” I struggled with making decisions and was usually happy to just go along with others most of the time. I had no trouble telling people that things were fine, even if they weren’t.
I always had a strong desire to connect with people in a personal way. I tried to avoid conflicts as much as possible and I tried to always be understanding of others’ points of view. Of course, I couldn’t have put words to these things when I was a kid and it’s taken many years for me to figure all of this out about myself.
I was mostly just interested in getting through the social awkwardness of school. I loved art and music. I loved learning about how the brain works in my Psychology classes and also loved learning the basics of cars in my auto mechanics class.
Pricing:
- Made Gathering Admission: $12
Contact Info:
- Website: www.madegathering.com
- Phone: 678-313-6027
- Email: candy@madegathering.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/madegathering
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/madegatheringforwomen/
- Other: http://madegathering.eventbrite.com
Processed with VSCO with f2 preset
Image Credit:
Diana Uribe, Lauren Harrison, Candy Pearson, Chad Pearson
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