The Rebuild Your Life Project Summary

The Rebuild Your Life Project, an empowerment outreach presented by MySavvySisters.Com is a continuous effort to support women during their most extreme life transitions.



To kick off this effort on April 11, 2011, Te-Erika Patterson, the publisher of MySavvySisters.Com gave away everything that she owned and became homeless on purpose to encourage women to teach women how to overcome their fear of failure. She aimed to showcase specific mental strategies women need to overcome failure as well as survival skills needed to make it through a life on the streets so that women would never be held bondage by fear of losing again.



MySavvySisters.Com publisher, Te-Erika Patterson, an inspirational journalist and author spent 4 months as a homeless individual in Hollywood, Florida. During her time as a homeless individual she accomplished the following goals:

1) Organized a job fair for homeless women and women in distress.
2) Raised money for a $650 rental assistance grant for women.
3) Reported on the benefits and pitfalls of the homeless lifestyle.
4) Secured a job as a waitress at Denny's that enabled her to move up out of homelessness.

The Rebuild Your Life Project was documented daily in writing on MySavvySisters.Com and in a series of 93 videos on our youtube channel, Embrace Your Fantasy. Each video was recorded on a low budget pocket digital camera, edited and hosted by Te-Erika Patterson. You may view the entire documentary at this link.

A few of the mental strategies for success that Te-Erika taught while homeless:

1. Reprogram Yourself
2. You're Supposed To Be Happy
3. Detach Yourself
4. Be Non Resistant
5. Eliminate Irrational Beliefs
6. Getting Out Of An Abusive Relationship
7. You Are Not A Victim
8. Own Your Greatness
9. Make Peace With Where You Are
10. Redefining Loss

A few of the startling discoveries about homelessness:

1) Inside The Homeless Shelter

2) The Top 10 Places To Sleep If You Become Homeless

3) The Slim Shady Hustle Lesson

4) Working As a Panhandler

5) Resources To Help The Homeless

6) The Faces Of Mental Illness

7) Mary Becomes Homeless To Escape Abuse

8) The Top 3 Reasons For Homelessness

Through donations from strangers and Te-Erika's tips and wages as a server at Denny's, MySavvySisters.Com sponsored a $650 Rental Assistance Grant For Women.

A Note of Thanks From the Rebuild Your Life Rental Assistance Grant recipient:

"When I received the $650.00 I was very thankful. God is very strong. Thanks to Te-Erika, who had that interest and helped me with the rent. Also, I was very surprised that there are very good people in this country, people that will let all go to help other people. I am a single mother and for me to receive money is a blessing. Thanks Te-Erika. Thanks to my God. Thanks so much for your help." ~ Teresita Ortiz

On August 13, 2011 Te-Erika was able to say goodbye to the COSAC homeless shelter and the homeless lifestyle and move into a house with new roommates.

The Rebuild Your Life Project didn't end when Te-Erika moved up out of homelessness. In November, 2011, Te-Erika continued her efforts to empower women by partnering with Denny's Restaurants to offer employment to women in distress.

On December 20, 2011, 14 South Florida Denny's Restaurants Will Offer Employment To Those In Need In Support Of The Rebuild Your Life Project

Read Press Announcement

Published Reports Inspired By The Rebuild Your Life Project

You can read Homeless On Purpose, Te-Erika's investigative report based on The Rebuild Your Life Project published in the Westside Gazette.


Homeless On Purpose - Part 1-What Leads To Homelessness
Homeless On Purpose- Part 2 - The Benefits of Homelessness
Homeless On Purpose- Part 3 - The Pitfalls of Homelessness
Homeless On Purpose- Part 4 - The Homeless Mentality
Homeless On Purpose- Part 5 -Nothing Is Permanent

EBook- The 1% Mentality- The Difference Between The Haves & The Have Nots

12 Key Characteristics that make all the difference between the 1% of America's wealthy and those who are not. Available For Purchase on Kindle.

The Rebuild Your Life Project continues to accept donations that will fund:

1) Establishing an annual grant to award a single mom with housing and living expenses for 3 months so that she can rebuild her life.
2) Survival give-aways, scholarships and financial assistance awards for women.

3) The Homeless Voice Homeless Shelter

4)A redevelopment of MySavvySisters.Com

To Donate By Postal Mail

Address checks to:

Te-Erika Patterson
The Rebuild Your Life Project
P.O. Box 221736
Hollywood, FL 33022


To Donate Online

Paypal donations accepted by sending them to mysavvysisters[at]gmail.com


To Donate Goods or Services
All goods or services donated to The Rebuild Your Life Project will be used as give-aways for our readers. Please send an email to the Lateenya, our Executive Assistant with details about your company, a photo and your offer.


To leave a voice message of support:
Call 678-590-1487

We would appreciate your support during this endeavor. You may choose to become a partner by contributing a monetary donation to our fund and/or publicly supporting this project by means of a newsletter or press announcement.

During this time Te-Erika Patterson is also scheduling speaking engagements at various homeless shelters, women's groups, civic organizations, radio and television programs to speak about REBUILDING YOUR LIFE, our website and its mission. I would love to be included in your organization's next meeting, event or broadcast for an opportunity to share my wisdom, resources and inspiration.

We appreciate your support. You may contact me directly at RebuildYourLife[at]mysavvysisters[dot]com to receive a personal invitation to partner with us.

Te-Erika Patterson

Publisher, My Savvy Sisters

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Join My Savvy Sisters Circle

Are you an established professional that has the time to offer advice to women in need? My Savvy Sisters invite you to join us in empowering women around the globe. By joining the My Savvy Sisters Circle you will become a resource to women who need help in the area where you hold expertise.


How My Savvy Sisters Circle Works
Women from around the world reach out to My Savvy Sisters.Com for guidance, advise and emotional support. Some of them are seeking opportunities, others are seeking professional opinions. The My Savvy Sister Circle of women are dedicated to offering a portion of their time, through an intermediary, to help set women back onto a peaceful path.



Who Are We Looking For?
Women who are skilled in a particular area, laws, arts, sciences, counseling, spirituality, business management, healthcare, social work, etc. If you know that you have the skills to help we would love for you to join.


How Much Time Is Involved?
The time you dedicate to this project is entirely up to you. There is no way to gauge how many women will need help but if the need arises, we would like to be able to contact you via telephone or email with your availability so that we can brief you on the situation and ask if you could connect with the woman in need by phone or email.

Who Are My Savvy Sisters In Need?
My Savvy Sisters.Com has a worldwide audience of women that are as diverse as the colors in a crayon box. The average age of the readers of My Savvy Sisters is 32, however their financial background and interests vary. We have received emails and calls for help from women who need legal advice, career guidance and moral support through leaving abusive relationships. If you have ever had a need and you could not find anyone to help you through it by offering guidance or emotional support, then I urge you to join us so that no woman has to go through life alone.

To speak with the organizer of this project, the publisher of My Savvy Sisters, please do not hesitate to contact her by email at te-erika@mysavvysisters.com.

We look forward to working with you to empower women everywhere!

My Savvy Sisters Circle Photos and Bios Coming Soon!

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Your World News Report - November 10, 2011

Greece Makes Plans To Do Without The Euro

Prime Minister George Papandreou of Greece called for a referendum related to the euro zone bailout to support a contingency plan that will shift the country's economy away from using the euro as the standard form of financial bartering.

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UK Prime Minister Forces Unemployed To Volunteer 30 Hours Per Week

After noticing that the unemployed who receive state benefits spend as little as 8 minutes a week job searching the UK now requires those unemployed for more than 2 years to volunteer for 30 hours per week.

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Germany and France Plot To Reconstruct Eurozone

Because of weakening interest in the euro, EU officials meet to discuss a possible restructure of the eurozone amidst warnings from the European Commision about the dangers of splitting the eurozone.

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Amazon Dam Construction Commences Against The Pleas of The Indigenous

After federal prosecutors filed a motion to suspend construction of the Belo Monte dam in the northern state of Para, a Brazilian court ruled that the commencement of the construction of the world's largest hydroelectronic dam can proceed without consent from the indigenous population that it may uproot.

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Virginia Elects First Black Supreme Court Justice

54-year-old Justice Cleo Powell has joined the Supreme Court becoming the first African American female Supreme Court justice in the state of Virginia.

After serving more than 2 years on the Virginia Court of Appeals and Working under the direction of Hunton & Williams law firm in Richmond, Virginia, Powell specialized in labor and employment law.

Her achievement sets a precedence that many others will seek to follow including Illinois Justice Joy Cunningham who has announced her bid for the Illinois Supreme Court election to be held in March 2012.

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Help for California's Pregnant and Parenting Youth

Health, Legal and Women's Experts Release Comprehensive Legal Guide for the State's Pregnant and Parenting Minors and the Professionals Who Work with Them

PASADENA, Calif., Nov. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A 16-year-old in San Jose thinks she has to drop out of school because she is pregnant. A 17-year-old parent in Chico believes her child's father should pay child support, but isn't sure how or where to begin the legal process. A 14-year-old undocumented immigrant in Riverside learns she is pregnant and fears being deported. These scenarios occur each day in California, and teens often do not know where to turn for accurate and unbiased information. As a result, many do not get recommended prenatal care, drop out of school unnecessarily, and in other ways compromise their future prospects and their children's health.

Today the National Partnership for Women & Families, National Health Law Program (NHeLP) and Planned Parenthood of Pasadena and San Gabriel Valley, Inc. are releasing a free, comprehensive guide and companion website written and designed expressly to inform pregnant and parenting youth inCalifornia of their legal rights.

The need for such information in California is great. According to a Public Health Institute study, in 2008 nearly 52,000 teens – almost four percent of all female teens aged 15 to 19 – gave birth in California, and many more became pregnant. Although rates of teen pregnancy in California have declined, they remain high, particularly among Latinas who are twice as likely to become parents as Caucasian teens. And the legal rights of pregnant and parenting minors are frequently violated.

"Teens who are pregnant and parenting are at a greater risk for dropping out of school," said Sue Keppler, Vice President of Education and Community Outreach for Planned Parenthood of Pasadena and San Gabriel Valley, Inc. "The California Pregnant and Parenting Youth Guide empowers them to know their rights and start connecting with available resources that can offer the support and help they need. With the right tools and knowledge, many more pregnant and parenting teens in the state will be able to get the help that allows them to improve their and their children's health and prospects."

The Guide and website (www.PregnantYouth.info) are designed as prevention tools to help the state's young women, their partners and families make the best possible decisions. The Guide is divided into broad topic areas: "Sex and Pregnancy;" "Being a Parent;" "Managing Your Life;" and "Special Situations." These cover critically important issue areas, including: health care; domestic violence; staying in school; custody; emancipation; and immigration. These topics are presented in an easy-to-read question-and-answer format:

• Can my parents make me leave home because I am pregnant or have a child?
• What rights does the father have?
• Can I get public benefits?
• How much can I work during the school year?
• Does it matter whether I am a United States citizen or an immigrant?
• As a foster child with custody, do I have the right to keep my child with me?

The California Pregnant and Parenting Youth Guide is a comprehensive and accessible plain language resource to assist pregnant and parenting minors in navigating access to health care, school, work and custody issues," said Susan Berke Fogel, Director of Reproductive Health at NHeLP. "It distills the intricacies of the law and makes it understandable. It is also an invaluable reference for social workers, educators, and health care providers who advise and work with youth."

Free quick-reference guides are available for educators, health providers, and social service professionals to guide their work with pregnant or parenting minors in California. These guides are available here.

This fall, NHeLP and Planned Parenthood of Pasadena and San Gabriel Valley, Inc. are providing online and in-person trainings for educators, health providers, and social service and legal professionals across the state, to help familiarize them with the guides and how they can better serve pregnant and parenting youth who seek their counsel. Professionals can learn more about the trainings here.

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Ditch Your Timeshare For A Better Way To Vacay

I don't care what kind of amazing deal you got after sitting through that timeshare presentation, you're wasting your money paying a timeshare mortgage when you could be vacationing in style by using one a private home vacation rental service.

When you browse through these websites, you'll find everyday people who own vacation homes all over the world and are willing to rent them to you for lower prices than a hotel room. Substitute a manufactured vacation for a more personalized experience that you will never forget.

Don't book another hotel room before you check out:

VRBO- Vacation rentals by owner

AirBnB- A community marketplace for unique spaces

Vacation Home Rentals - Last minute deals at great prices

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EDITORIAL: Opt Out of Political Parties On Election Day

By Christina Fermin
Politics & Society Columnist

As the march towards the 2012 election cycle bang their drums of war, we the people must stay alert and on the defense. I Would advise to stay away from both Republican and Democratic candidates. Both parties have been purchased by Wallstreet and corporate interests, both parties have sold out the average citizen, the 99%. Due to the supreme court decision in the famous 2010 Citizen’s United case, corporations and labor unions have no limit to the amount of money they contribute to campaigns. Essentially, we the people have been sold out, it is very difficult for any one of us, or even many of us to match the donations given by special interest and lobbyists.

This one simple decision has reversed years of attempts of removing corruption from government. The year this decision was passed, the 2010 midterm elections were the most expensive elections in the history of elections, roughly $4 Billion dollars. Wow! That is a very large number for an election, never mind a midterm election. Speculators are already estimating that the 2012 election cycle will cost about $6 Billion dollars. Think about that number and what it implies. So where is this money coming from? In a 2010 study, is was discovered only 20% of corporations disclose their campaign contributions. Leaving 80% of corporations who do not disclose their campaign contributions. Out of the 20% that do, the top 3 donors of all time are:

Actblue @ $55.7 Million

AT&T @ $47.6 Million

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees @ $46.2 Million

Courtesy of Opensecrets. With numbers like these, I am scared to know what the other 80% of the numbers look like.

As 2011 comes to a closing, I would like to bring to your attention our dying country, with our dying economy. The failure of Congress is apparent and people are disgusted with what has happened to our country and our politics. Everyone understands change at this point is not only needed, it is welcomed and welcomed with open arms. If you tired of the same crap and the same argument as it is evident that is has not changed since the 1970s, we need to destroy the two party politics that has torn this country apart and sold it to the highest bidder. When November 2012 comes, whether you think your vote counts or not, make and point and make your voice heard, go to the ballot box and make sure you choose any other candidate BUT the Republican or Democrat.

To date there are several political parties out there, some of the most popular are the Green Party, the Libertarian Party, and the Progressive Party. All of which hold very strong democratic principles. Next time a political campaign with a democrat or republican come on air, shut it off or switch the channel, ignore the candidates and pay attention to the others, do some research or just endorse some of the candidates from the parties listed above. The only way to instigate change is to initiate change, in order to do this successfully we must vote the ruling parties out of office. Today’s congress is owned and operated by Wallstreet. Let 2012 be the year where the people took their country back and voted out the incumbents of Congress as well as the 2 parties who have ruled and dominated politics for over 100 years. It’s time we brought the discussion back to reality and face the real problems plaguing this country, enough of the ideological debate and more solutions to the issues we face.

About the Columnist

With a bachelors degree in political science from Florida Atlantic University, Christina Fermin has always cultivated her love for history, politics, sociology, ancient knowledge and teachings, the outdoors, the ocean and the environment. Christina strives to make our world better by helping us all create a new reality and understanding of all taking place here and now.

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My Savvy Sister of The Week- Sikivu Hutchinson

Sikivu Hutchinson

Los Angeles

Senior Intergroup Specialist, L.A. County Human Relations Commission


Sikivu Hutchinson is the author of Moral Combat: Black Atheists, Gender Politics, and the Values Wars. She founded the Women’s Leadership Project (WLP), a South L.A.-based feminist mentoring and social justice advocacy program for high school girls of color. The WLP trains young women to advocate for gender justice in their school-communities around anti-violence, reproductive justice, media representation, undocumented student rights, college access and LGBTQ rights.

MSS: Being Black, feminist and atheist sounds like a triple punch in the face to the "Miss Manners" generation. Can you remember what it was like to form these feminist and atheist views?

Sikivu: I grew up in a secular household, so I had a leg up on skepticism, freethought and intellectual curiosity. Both my parents were what I would call “activist scholars.” Some of my earliest memories coming of age in South L.A. in the 70s and 80s were of going to demonstrations, public forums and meetings on social justice issues relevant to the black community, particularly around the pervasiveness of police terrorism and police misconduct during that era. I was also exposed to authors, intellectuals and historical figures of African descent (many of whom embraced freethought) very early on, so this became my moral foundation.

My parents ensured that I had literature from black women thinkers and writers. My father gave me my first anthology (by Mari Evans) on black women writers in high school and my mother was a nationally esteemed English teacher heavily into forerunning womanist/feminist writers like Toni Cade Bambara, Alice Walker and Toni Morrison. These were my values. Consequently, Christianity, supernaturalism and belief in God really had no bearing on my sense of ethics, justice, fairness and identity.

MSS: Outing yourself as an atheist in this society could be painful and scary. Why is it important to you to share your views on spirituality or the lack thereof?

Sikivu: My world view as a non-believer and a humanist goes beyond the question of spirituality. There have always been black free thinkers and secular humanists who have challenged the ways in which Western notions of personhood, public morality and Manifest Destiny-style justice pivot on racial/sexual otherness and the imperialist dehumanization of people of color. The dominant culture simply doesn’t acknowledge these traditions as being a legitimate and culturally relevant part of black intellectual history and social thought. For example, mainstream discourse fetishizes black religiosity and deifies MLK as a strictly religious figure and thinker without reference to the humanist underpinnings of black liberation struggle. So my charge is to bring secular humanist traditions to the fore and contextualize them in terms of the human rights struggles that people of African descent are still waging in this so-called era of American exceptionalism, post-racialism and post-feminism.

MSS: Who is your target audience and how have they received your philosophy so far?

Sikivu: My target audience is those who are open to a different take on American social thought and the insidious moral regime that has been institutionalized by the Religious Right and its allies across the political spectrum.

MSS: Is Feminism an anti-man movement? In your eyes, what is it?

Sikivu: The idea that feminism is “anti-man” is an absurd caricature. In its most radical humanistic form, feminism is a movement for the recognition of the absolute human rights of women, their families and communities. It seeks to break down heterosexist and patriarchal models of masculine and feminine that straightjacket all genders into binary oppositional roles. Patriarchy and sexism damage boys and men because violence, domination and control over women and other men become the most “authentic” ways of being male. So, for example, feminism is a useful lens for assessing why homicide is the leading cause of death among very young African American men.

Because men of color are denied living wage jobs, jim-crowed in the educational system and over-incarcerated due to racialized sentencing disparities they have been socialized to believe that killing someone that looks like them, in order to validate a sense of manhood, identity and worth under dehumanizing conditions, is not a major barrier. Patriarchy, institutional sexism and heterosexism work in concert with each other to further institutionalize racial inequality by establishing a racial hierarchy of men and women. While violence against all women is naturalized, violence against women of color is perceived by the dominant culture as “less” heinous and more justifiable because the lives of women of color are not as valued as white women’s (which is exemplified by everything from America’s cult of missing white women to death penalty disparities for white murder victims versus black murder victims).

MSS: Where do you meet other people who share your views and insights?

Sikivu: While I don’t know scores of non-believers personally I have met many folk who have problems with organized religion and religious dogma. Some consider themselves “spiritual”, the alternative term du jour, some agnostic, some religious humanist, etc. Many of the “out” non- believers of color I’ve met have been through conferences, talks I’ve given, or online.

MSS: How do you deal with the religious pressure you come across?

Sikivu: It depends upon what the nature of the interaction is. If someone asks me what church I attend or what did I do/cook for Easter, etc. I’ll tell them nada and that I am an atheist. This generally elicits one of two responses: subject avoidance or stunned silence, followed by a volley of sputtered questions. If someone keeps trotting out religious homilies or adages in a way that presumes I’m a believer I’ll gently disabuse them.

MSS: What is your central message that you want people to understand by reading your book?

Sikivu: That freethought and humanism go beyond rejection of organized religion and demand a principled activist stance against the Religious Right’s white supremacist/nationalist/capitalist demonization of human rights. For women of color, the very act of staking a claim to self-determination is a radical humanist act which has the power to dismantle moral regimes based on destructive oppositionalities.

Visit Sikivu's website to learn more about her work at BlackFemLens.org.

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