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“When I was introduced to Dress for Success, I was living in a domestic violence shelter, and an application for Foot in the Door was slid under my door. I immediately knew that this program could give me structure and a chance to learn new skills, get a job, and get my life back. Once I joined, I knew I had landed in exactly the right place.”

This quote is from Janet—a valuable member of the Dress for Success Western Massachusetts team. She began her journey as part of the 10^th cohort of Foot in the Door, a unique workforce readiness program that helps women build on their skills to advance their professional growth and achieve economic empowerment.

Foot in the Door is an important part of our slate of programs—which also includes suiting services, the Margaret Fitzgerald Mentoring Program, digital literacy coaching, and our Professional Women’s Group.

Janet continues, “My cohort recently celebrated our one-year anniversary. We stay in touch, and we’ve maintained a sisterhood that I've never experienced before. These women mean the world to me. We laugh, commiserate, solve problems, and laugh some more. Most precious to me is that I have always felt supported, heard, and encouraged. In the process, I have found me and the work I was born to do.”

Thanks to our community of supporters like you, the impact of these programs has grown tremendously over the past several years. Now, hundreds of women who began with a suiting, or by participating in Foot in the Door, are now employed and pursuing their goals. And some of these women have also joined the Dress for Success team, supporting the work of the organization in meaningful ways.

Janet went on to participate in the Mentoring Program and the Professional Women’s Goup. She shared more of her story at our Common Threads event earlier this year, where she also addressed the room to ask for financial support—which is not an easy job!

Now, DFSWM has hired Janet as a consultant, and she is leading a project centered on expansion and outreach in Berkshire County. She is also a member of our Development & Marketing Committee, where she contributes her energy, creativity, leadership skills, and perspective as a program participant. As we prepared to write this letter, she gladly jumped in to interview the other women in her cohort about their experiences. Here is some of the feedback she received:

“Dress for Success changed my life for the better. When I joined the cohort, I was shut off to the world. I just did my work and stayed to myself. I wanted to change jobs, but was afraid of the interview process, which held me back. Now, I am no longer nervous about interviewing, and I am open to having friends again. I am so grateful.”

“I probably never would have stepped foot on a college campus if it wasn’t for the Foot in the Door program. It gave me the confidence to do that. Now, I am the first in my family to graduate with an Associate Degree.”

We depend on financial contributions from donors like you to provide our programs in the community. By donating, you become an important part of these networks of support for the hundreds of women we serve each year.