Small Business Making a Difference
Purely Maid
Allison Van Boening and Tosha Benes
Bennet/Ceresco, Nebraska
Allison Van Boening and Tosha Benes, owners of Purely Maid, a housecleaning company that uses natural cleaning products, are no strangers to giving back to their community. Their connection to the quote, "No one has ever become poor by giving," by Anne Frank, is evident in their charity work with local programs and organizations. This year they extended their goodwill to Lent. Instead of giving up something, Allison and Tosha collected feminine care items for women in need for the forty day period. With the support and generosity of their incredible clients, friends, and family, they were able to collect an astounding donation for their Tower of Tampons. They might have launched Purely Maid unexpectedly ten years ago, but one thing is for sure, each is not "just a cleaning lady," both are badass single moms of two beautiful kids, and together they are a successful eco-friendly
women-owned business making a difference.
women-owned business making a difference.
Photo: Gwyneth Roberts of the Journal Star
Allison and Tosha in their own words...
1. Purely Maid is a business any community would be proud to have. For Lent, you decided to give back to the community by collecting feminine products. Why?
When we thought about giving something up, as a challenge to each other (For example: wine....not happening, duh), we knew these 40 days could be better spent helping others with a tiny buzz.
2. Together, you make a difference. You have held clothing drives and collected socks and hats for local programs. How was the Tower of Tampons experience different?
We really felt passionately about helping the women in our community, being a women-owned business. As taboo as it may be to speak about such products, we just put it out there and people just ran with it! Our Facebook statuses were shared so many times, people we didn't even know were sending money and/or leaving donations.
When we thought about giving something up, as a challenge to each other (For example: wine....not happening, duh), we knew these 40 days could be better spent helping others with a tiny buzz.
2. Together, you make a difference. You have held clothing drives and collected socks and hats for local programs. How was the Tower of Tampons experience different?
We really felt passionately about helping the women in our community, being a women-owned business. As taboo as it may be to speak about such products, we just put it out there and people just ran with it! Our Facebook statuses were shared so many times, people we didn't even know were sending money and/or leaving donations.
Keep the celebration of everyday women ALIVE!
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3. Purely Maid clients seriously rock! They donated money and left boxes of feminine items on tables for you. What does it feel like knowing your clients support you, your business, and your community efforts?
Our clients are always freaking unbelievable. No matter what crazy idea we have, they jump on board. The same goes for our family and friends. The real success came from others, we just had a simple idea! Hey, even the men walked down that dreaded isle at Target to be part of this amazing project!!
4. What an incredible accomplishment! How many feminine products did you collect? Where will they be donated?
We collected (drum roll)...
5,283 tampons
6,715 pads
Other: 3 bottles of pain reliever, 1,440 cleansing wipes, 24 bottles of hand sanitizer, 5 deodorants, 8 bars of soap
We would like to focus on a few different groups for donation purposes. Adolescent girls that have no access when home from school on the weekends, domestic violence victims that leave their home abruptly, and refugees.
"When people trust and respect you as business owners, they are more than willing to be a part of something that is pretty simple, yet has a lot of impact on the community.
It is not hard at all to make a difference."
5. What did the Tower of Tampons teach you as small business owners?
The Tower of Tampons has taught us that people are good!!!!!! So, so good!! When people trust and respect you as business owners, they are more than willing to be a part of something that is pretty simple, yet has a lot of impact on the community. It is not hard at all to make a difference.
6. Purely Maid is a housecleaning company that uses natural cleaning products. Why is it important that you provide your clients with a healthier way to clean their homes?
Let's be a little honest for a sec. We actually love their pets more than the clients themselves. The pets might lick the floor, or drink from the toilet. So started our love for non-toxic cleaning supplies!
7. The two of you met while working at the Adolescent Psych Unit at Bryan Campus West. How did you come up with the concept of Purely Maid?
We really didn't. A nurse nearly forced us into cleaning her house. She bribed us with Bloody Marys. Purely Maid really began from us realizing we could ride together to "work" while eating Sour Patch Kids, and having weird conversations all day long that only made sense to us. We soon found that we enjoyed being our own bosses, so we could make our own schedule, build something we were proud of, and all the while not following a set dress code.
8. Balancing life and work can get nuts. What’s it been like to build and grow your business as single moms?
Being single mothers is something we are proud of. It has molded us into hard-working, multi-tasking, ultra-efficient human beings. We are dedicated to being positive role models to our kids, through giving back to the community. We are all in this together. We were put here to help one another.
"This has literally blown us away. The power of social media has amplified our voices throughout this project, but the kindness and compassion of others has been nothing short of incredible."
9. After a successful campaign, what’s next for Purely Maid?
We have been asked several times if we are going to do this each year. When this idea came about, we really thought that maybe in the end we would have a big box of tampons to deliver to a homeless shelter. This has literally blown us away. The power of social media has amplified our voices throughout this project, but the kindness and compassion of others has been nothing short of incredible. Whatever it is we choose to do next, we know we have some pretty awesome people by our side.
10. I Admire U; whom do you admire?
We admire the kind gestures of others. From something as simple as a passing smile, to funding organizations that support people who don't always have access to life's necessities. Kindness is free! How easy is that? We admire women bosses, because....well, we rock.
We have been asked several times if we are going to do this each year. When this idea came about, we really thought that maybe in the end we would have a big box of tampons to deliver to a homeless shelter. This has literally blown us away. The power of social media has amplified our voices throughout this project, but the kindness and compassion of others has been nothing short of incredible. Whatever it is we choose to do next, we know we have some pretty awesome people by our side.
10. I Admire U; whom do you admire?
We admire the kind gestures of others. From something as simple as a passing smile, to funding organizations that support people who don't always have access to life's necessities. Kindness is free! How easy is that? We admire women bosses, because....well, we rock.
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