Ten days after the 2010 Haiti earthquake, she was alone, no safety plan, no contacts and no evacuation plan. Julie Colombino Billingham had quit her job, sold her Florida home and landed in Port-au-Prince with only $7,000 in her pocket. Many days, she only ate an avocado and drank a single coca-cola.

THE PIVOT POINT: It came when a woman grabbed her arm: "I don't want your water, I need a job." As a trained disaster responder, she experienced the brutal truth: handing out free aid destroys local economies by undercutting local businesses and local job.

JOB CREATION: That moment shifted Julie’s focus from temporary aid to job creation and ultimately building an off-grid factory making beautiful handbags and accessories by hand. I’ve already bought one. Loved it so much, another is on its way.

JULIE’S IMPACT: Her stories are absolutely heart wrenching at the same time inspiring. A few of my favorite moments:

• The Mindset: Her co-founder Jolina, after losing everything: "We're going to take back everything that the earthquake stole."
• Operational Grit: After four stolen generators, Julie converted the entire facility to solar power to survive total infrastructure collapse.
• The Scale: Today, a native executive team is tackling a 79% regional unemployment rate and selling products in Nordstrom.

From Loss to Legacy is Julie’s new book. Please take a look!

Deux Mains: https://deuxmains.com

REBUILD Globally: https://rebuildglobally.org

Julie's book, "From Loss to Legacy": https://www.amazon.com/Loss-Legacy-Fashion-Business-Haitis-ebook/dp/B0FYBJ3WRN