By: Ashmar Mandou

They say leadership takes on many dimensions and encompasses many definitions; leadership is meant to inspire, motivate, and aspire to achieve a common goal. And while we may face the call to step into that role, few of us answer. Maria Castro, regional external affairs manager for Comcast, answered her call when a longtime friend approached her about the struggle to help the women at A Safe Haven in Chicago. “It was the beginning of COVID when my friend shared with me how she felt overwhelmed by the amount of women and families entering her doors due to the pandemic, women who experienced physical abuse, emotional and mental abuse, women who lost their jobs,” said Castro. “These women needed tremendous help. They needed shelter. They needed a friend.” While the world hunkered down during the pandemic, Castro rolled up her sleeves and got to work collecting essential supplies for the women at Save Haven. She collected toiletries, spread the word to her fellow colleagues, built a network of women ready to donate, and eventually turned her act of altruism into a legitimate project, called #LovePurse, an organization designed to collect and donate an array of purses filled with important toiletries, notepads, and most notably inspirational notes letting the women at Safe Haven know they are not alone.

“As women we carry everything in our purse, our lives. It holds our identification cards, it holds our money, and it holds personal items that we like to keep close. These women, who escaped from domestic violence left everything behind; their purse, their sense of self,” said Castro. “I didn’t want to collect these items and just hand them over in a plastic bag, I wanted this to be more personable; I wanted these purses to restore their identity, their sense of freedom in a way. So I scoured the Amazon website to buy all the purses I could find. I also wanted to incorporate a special element to the bag, I wanted to leave letters to these women so they could feel inspired. So they could feel that there is someone in their corner rooting for them to succeed. The letters are written by all the women who have donated a purse, women from all over the country.

“My parents are from Texas, they worked hard and we didn’t exactly grow up with a lot of money, but we definitely had privilege. I went to great schools, I had a wonderful child, and most importantly there was a lot of love in my family. I was constantly told that I could succeed, that I was loved, my parents always lifted me up so it breaks my heart to see these women never hearing the words, “I love you,” or hearing that they matter,” Castro said. “These women are truly the inspirational ones because they escaped a dangerous situation to start a new life.” To date, Castro has collected over 800 purses and is now working with several non-for-profit organizations designed to help women experiencing homelessness and domestic violence. Castro has worked with Mutual Ground in Aurora, Community Crisis Center in Elgin, La Casa Norte, and currently collecting purses for the Chicago Latina Expo at Macy’s in October and Runway LatinX. “I am in sheer amazement just how many women in my life and men too that have answered the call to action and donated. Words cannot express how grateful and thankful I am to be able to grow this project and hopefully help the women from these organizations and beyond.” If you would like to learn more about #LovePurse or if you would like to donate, visit www.lovepurse.org.