At ALEX AND ANI, two of our core company pillars are giving back and making a difference. Rebecca Steinbach, a teenager with a passion for philanthropy, fashion, and photography, recently shadowed our photography team and learned more about the world of giving.
After chatting with Rebecca at length, we realized she was familiar with one of our CHARITY BY DESIGN partners, PeaceLove Foundation, and had attended their workshops in the past. Learn more about her experience and desire to change the world below!
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My name is Rebecca Steinbach and I am a seventeen-year-old identical twin. Born a preemie, I was on life support, weighing just over two pounds. Despite the odds, my sister and I grew up to be healthy, thriving people.
In middle school, I was socially withdrawn due to my introverted personality and struggled with terrible anxiety. Fortunately, I learned a variety of coping methods, which made things better. I will never forget the wonderful people from PeaceLove Foundation that help people with conditions like mine. They showed me their impactful methods of mindfulness and art therapy, which I still use to this day. My interest in art became a release. The idea that you can take any picture and transform it into a masterpiece was enlightening. I started taking simple pictures of my dolls, make-up and jewelry and added a magical effect, which made me fall in love with my camera.
In November 2015, my mom told my sister and I she had a surprise for us. I had no idea where I was going or what I was in for. However, I was thrilled when she brought me to ALEX AND ANI World Headquarters where I met Jon Doucette and Jacky Soto from their photography team. I love ALEX AND ANI bangles and to be in their studio was beyond exciting. Jon and Jacky gave me unforgettable memories as they let me create my own mini bangle stack and capture it using their professional camera. My sister and I even got the amazing opportunity to practice modeling wearing the stack I created!
It was also fun to chat with Deidre Fraser from the CHARITY BY DESIGN division. She gifted us several bangles and told us about how ALEX AND ANI supports non-profit organizations like PeaceLove Foundation. One thing my twin sister and I have in common is our interest in helping less fortunate people. We support a teen girl in Cambodia and donated money to help build a small farm in Africa. We always give clothing we’ve outgrown to charities and one year gave a donation for our names to be put on a brick used for an organization’s walkway. I now see the numerous ways money can be raised to help those in need.
I hope to one day have my photography published and also raise funds for those less fortunate. Meanwhile, I will continue to do what I can to help others, a little bit at a time – much like pixels join together to make a photograph. If we all pitch in, together we can make a big difference.