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Former ad exec now
promotes success
for women
Since Sept. 11 there's been a lot of talk about people trading up for jobs more spiritually meaningful.
If you're one of these worthy folk, you'll be pleased to know that Mary Scott Lau, a convert from the world of advertising, has no regrets.
"Do it!" she said without hesitation. "No matter how rough it is, you will never have more of a rewarding feeling ever. Drop everything, forget about assurances. Go do something that makes other people feel good, and you'll feel good."
And what will make other people feel good? Winning, for one. And WIN, for another, as in Women in Need, the nonprofit organization Lau started six years ago during the waning, benighted days of her previous career.
"They're usually in transition," she said, "either from substance abuse or domestic violence. Some women are transitioning out of prison, and they have lots and lots of basic tools that they need."
For a few of Lau's clients, it is as simple as learning how to look a potential employer in the eye or how to properly shake hands during an interview; for others it is about improving computer skills (taught at WIN's family resource center in Waianae) or obtaining a wardrobe suitable for the business world.
"I'll have girls call me from prison -- they have three minutes to call -- and they'll say, 'I'm being released tomorrow and I have nothing to wear.'"
Lau, who gets clothing donations from all over, including local churches, has been known to rush to the aid of these women in need. "They want to do the right thing, and how can you expect them to do the right thing when they have nothing to wear? I've brought down shoes, clothing, anything they need to give them that lift."
It was a luncheon with a representative of the Mary Jane Program (which provides assistance for women with unplanned pregnancies) that first piqued Lau's interest in Hawaii's somewhat tattered safety net. "She talked about how wonderful it was, but what she really wished was that someone would come in and teach (the women) how to dress, so other people would look at them with more respect, instead of as a kid having a kid." For Lau, who comes from a modeling background, such a job would be a cinch.
"I thought, 'Well, I can do that with my hands tied behind my back!'"
Even the strongest among us will relapse into an abusive relationship or substance abuse without societal support, said Lau, 45, whose brother died after a long struggle with heroin addiction. And not unlike the rescue workers at Ground Zero, many of whom lost a comrade in the terrorist attacks, she continues undaunted, determined to help save as many souls as she can.
"That's all that really matters -- that we're all there to help each other."
Scott Vogel, Star-Bulletin
