A new year, a new chance to be good to each other!

Happy New Year! I sincerely hope everyone's holidays were bullying-free.  It's now 2016 and our foundation is working on scheduling events and workshops. If you're in Missouri and would like us to hold an event at your school, workplace, church, etc... drop us an email andrea@bellaoriginal.com

Did you know that bullying is not limited to children? While we all hear the horrors of childhood bullying, bullying happens with adults as well.  How many of you have worked with a bully? Most adults that are bullies do so verbally rather than physically (though there are some who abuse with physical violence). Look for our next blog post coming soon. It will contain a lot of information about workplace bullying.

We're holding our first fundraiser of 2016 - a benefit auction. It's being held over on Facebook on the Sales, Auctions & Giveaways page. It ends on 1/10 so plenty of time to get your bids in. All proceeds go right to our non-profit organization! Please share as fundraisers and donations are our only source of funds. We do not have any paid employees so all funds go to our programs (a teeny amount goes to insurance and web maintenance) 

We'll be back soon and until then,

Be Unique, Be Funky, Be Yourself and always Be a BellaOriginal

Cyber-Bullying ... Is it better or worse?

Cyber-Bullying... Is it better or worse?

While watching the local news here in Mid-Missouri (ABC 17 News), I saw that they are doing a "special" tonight on their late news about cyber-bullying and Megan Meier. If you're not familiar with the case, Megan was bullied on Social Media and she ultimately committed suicide. Megan was only 13 at the time of her death. Her mother started the Megan Meier Foundation in her honor.

It's been six years since Megan's death. Do you think cyber-bullying is better or worse than it was in 2006? Are the laws "caught up" to today's world of instant access to people around the world?

What happened to Megan is tragic and never should have happened. One adult made a poor choice to create a fake MySpace account and lure Megan into thinking it was a 16 year old boy. The day of her suicide, the messages posted were horrible.  Megan's mother did everything right - she had the password (Megan didn't even have it!) and would log Megan on, she monitored what Megan posted and who she was friends with. This goes to show that even the most vigilant parents can't protect their children from cyber-bullying.

The Be a #BellaOriginal Foundation Inc. is committed to help educate our youth about cyber-bullying, bullying in general and the harm that both cause to the victims and perpetrators.  Let us know your opinions and whether you think things are better or worse.

Bullying Prevention is up to everyone!

October is National Bullying Prevention Month

Bullying is not only a National issue, but a world-wide issue! The best defense against bullying is Communication and Awareness. Every school should have a bullying prevention program in place (if your school does not, please contact us and we'll be happy to try and get one set up there!)

Talking to your children, your schools and your community is vital.  Research shows that when people speak out and stand up, bullying is drastically reduced. Silence = Acceptance. When you see bullying and do nothing it's the same as if you were the one doing the bullying.

Words DO Hurt

The majority of bullying does not involved hitting or other physical contact. BUT almost 40% of bullying does involve some physical contact. Start at an early age educating you children regarding hitting and the consequences of bullying. Parents are the first defense in this epidemic.

#UnityDay2015 is October 21. Be sure to wear orange! Check your school and community to see if anything is planned.



Bullying Prevention/Awareness Resources:

Be a #BellaOriginal Foundation
National Bullying Prevention Center
Stop Bullying

Be good to each other!

Welcome to the new Be a #BellaOriginal Blog!

Welcome to the first post in the brand new Be a #BellaOriginal Blog! We decided to fully separate our blog posts from our retail business blog. This one is going to be a short and sweet post. Take a moment and visit our website listed to the left. You can read about our mission and vision there as well as other great information.

We're holding an Online Benefit auction on our Facebook page this weekend. It ends tomorrow night at 8 pm Central Time. These are a few of the great items that were donated to the auction:

Look for weekly posts coming soon with Bullying facts, tips for preventing bullying, a calendar of our live events/podcasts/q&a sessions and more!

Until then remember that YOU are perfect just the way you are!