I have had the distinct honor of being surrounded by strong, intelligent, world-changing women my whole life. Women who ran the show. Women who taught me how to be a different kind of man. Thankfully, Sierra Sage is no different. While there are three women (two sisters and their mom) at the helm of the organization, this company is a cup running over with exceptional females. I think the ratio is pretty close to two to one. Without their vision and drive, our company wouldn’t be what it is. Without their compassion and joy, I wouldn’t want to work here. Without their wisdom, agility, and willingness to break anything in order to rebuild it, better than it was before, we could not grow as fast as we are right now. Without their pragmatism and attention to detail, we would have failed a long time ago.
I’m a pretty lucky guy. They hired me to write their words; to be their voice. Its an honor I don’t take lightly. I fret over it. I cuss quite a bit. I cry more than I thought I might. This thing we are doing together means something. We’re not just making a thing we don’t care about to sell to a faceless mass we’ll never see. We’re expanding our family. We’re spreading goodness. We’re using plants with a purpose. We’re intent on changing the world.
This is how it begins…with small groups who care; small groups who work to make a difference every single day. Maybe body care, and by extension self-care, has never felt like a revolution to you, but to us, nothing outside of family could be more essential. We’ve got to stop putting junk on our bodies. It’s making us sick. That’s not OK. Not when there are plants and the knowledge of how to use them readily available. Not when we can do better by one another.
So, we started small. Making salves for our family and friends. Then we started going to farmer’s markets and our family grew along with the business. We could have quit at any time, but we had a problem – the products worked and our family needed them. Then we found out, that in places all around the world, our salves were helping doulas, aid workers, and soldiers. They were healing children’s cuts, giving eczema sufferers relief, and soothing climber’s sore muscles and wind burned skin. Suddenly we had a mission, not just an enterprise. Suddenly, our family was bigger than we ever could have dreamed.
And so it is today. We follow the hearts of two sisters and their mom, but also the leadership of over a dozen revolutionaries who also just happen to be female. It is with this history in mind that we stand with countless other icons and iconoclasts in celebration of International Women’s Day. Thank you each and all for inspiring us, for paving the way, for fighting for our rights, for never taking no for an answer, for walking lock-step with us as we imagine a future where we are safe, where our contributions are lauded and compensated equally, where we all sit at the table and have a voice that is heard and respected.
We make you this promise. We will keep making a difference in small ways and in big ones. We’ll keep making products that are as safe, gentle, and effective as we can, so that you can take care of you while you make a difference too. Together we will make it better and eventually we’ll make it right. We love you. We are proud to call all of you outstanding women our family. Happy International Women’s Day.
Originally published March 8, 2020