Singer Jewel This Year’s MK “Kiss For Country” Spokesperson
Written by L J on August 7, 2008 – 9:57 am -Singer/Songwriter Jewel is the spokesperson for Mary Kay’s “Kiss For Country” campaign this year.
The second annual event enlists celebrities to make their lipstick-coated lip print on a card to be auctioned off, with proceeds benefiting the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation to benefit women affected by domestic violence. Martina McBride was recruited as spokesperson for last year’s inaugural event.
To kick off the event, Jewel joined a group of 25 Mary Kay Consultants to help clean up the backyard of a women’s shelter in the Nashville area.
This is a great cause.
So why does the cynical side of me worry about the women in shelters being subjected to a recruiting pitch by those MK Consultants?
Tags: country campaign, domestic violence, Mary Kay Ash, mary kay ash charitable foundation, mary kay consultants, mk, nashville area, singer jewel, spokesperson
Posted in Articles & Commentary |
Colleen on 
Tam on 
Sassy_C on
August 7th, 2008 at 11:28 am
LJ, this piece reminds me of the stories of SD’s going into nursing homes, visiting cancer patients, and heart patients “pretending” to treat them to a special pampering session, when the real purpose was to make a sale and prey upon somebody with a seruous illness all in the name of making a buck!
This I thought was the sickest thing I ever heard.
Like a woman who is living in a shelter for abused women is just dying for a makeover.
How about what she really needs, a secure job with benefits and steady pay and enough money to pay a deposit and the first months rent on somewhere safe for her and her children to live?
MK does not enrich womens lives or empower them.
August 7th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
You know, I find it interesting that a company that reports to have charitable donations to cancer research in women makes and sells make up to people that contains talc, which is similar when inhaled to asbestos. Does anyone else find that odd?
August 7th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
I know that this article was for domestic violence, but it also brought to mind about MK’s other charitable donations to cancer research.
By the way, my husband said that there’d be less domestic violence if women wouldn’t spend all their money on so much MK product without telling their husbands!!! LOL!!! ;>)
August 10th, 2008 at 9:47 am
Jewel could do some good by remembering the people who lived through her own personal domestic violence encounters with her. It was her dad, Atz, after all, who threw the TV set at Jewel’s then step-sister, my best friend who I grew up with. Jewel has no contact with this part of her family anymore. While Jewel was allowed to live inside the house with the family in Fritz Creek outside Homer, AK, my friend who was in high school at the time, had to take a job at Subway so she could at least have 1 meal a day and was forced to live in an out-builing shed. Mind you this is in Alaska. Then Jewel had the nerve to write the heinously ficticious song, “Little Sister”. This part of her family has had some major struggles since the singer’s fame began, yet she keeps her millions to herself, and apparently now supports pyramind schemes. I think I will ask my close friend for Jewel’s address. I would love to clue her in to the deceptive world of MLM’s that takes women for all they’ve got (money, energy, etc.) and then tosses them aside.
August 10th, 2008 at 8:32 pm
This sooooo reminds me about how my director talking to women at a women’s shelter trying to recruit some of them.
I’m glad that they are “cleaning” up the backyard but how many of them are really going to be cleaning?
August 13th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
I was one of the Consultants there that day helping out with this project. Some of you have voiced some negative comments about what we were trying to do that day. We were not trying to sell these women make-up or trying to recuit them. We were never in contact with any of the women or children living there. We were there to give those women and children a great backyard so they would have a wonderful surrounding during this difficult time in their lives. We also gave that shelter a check for $20,000. With that money they are able to help these families and support them in finding jobs and becoming independent. The $20,000 is just the beginning of what we will be able to do with the Kiss For Country campain. Last year we raised over $12 million so we can help these victims of domestic violence.
It sounds like some of you may have had a bad experince in Mary Kay or crossed paths with a Director who was not very ethical. I am very sorry for that. Those people make the rest of us look bad. There are always bad apples in every bunch, but for me personally I have been in Mary Kay for 12 years and work my business the right way.
Love Mary Kay or hate it, please do not diminish the good that this campain does for so many people. If you could have been there as I was that day and realize how much these shelters need this money and assistance I don’t think you would be saying the things you are.
Also, Mary Kay is not a pyrimid or MLM company. We deal in Direct Sales. There is one wholesaler (MK Corporate) and one retailer (The Beauty Consultant) and no one gets a cut out of anyone’s sales. Our commission for our team members comes strait from MK Corporate, not from the profit of our team members.
Thank you for your time.
August 14th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
“It sounds like some of you may have had a bad experince in Mary Kay or crossed paths with a Director who was not very ethical. I am very sorry for that. Those people make the rest of us look bad. There are always bad apples in every bunch,”
There’s that “bad apples” comment again! Aaaarrrgh! Please see this post:
http://www.pinklighthouse.com/2008/08/just-a-few-bad-apples/
“Also, Mary Kay is not a pyrimid or MLM company. We deal in Direct Sales. ”
Sorry, Mary Kay Consultant, but you are WRONGO on this.
Mary Kay is MLM. Period. End of discussion. Yes, you sell directly to people. But MK is a stair step breakaway model MLM. The wholesale/retail relationship has NOTHING to do with whether or not they are MLM. Just because you don’t buy product from other consultants does not ensure that you aren’t MLM.
Regular businesses don’t recruit people.
August 17th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
YAY LC for stepping in!
Mary Kay Consultant, I do know how much effort and money and assistance shelters of any kind need in order to run properly. So please don’t start assuming that we don’t know or that we don’t have a heart large enough to care. Most of the women in my family has had to deal with domestic violence in one form or another; but I can honestly say that nobody was there when my oldest sister was being beaten on by her husband other than myself and I had to protect her three young children at the time. Oh and by the way I was 12 years old at the time. Since then I have struggled hard with trusting men in general after seeing so much violence in my own family and I take my time out whenever I can to help other women and children to over come the same issues.
I’m glad that Mary Kay decided to help out but I will not give them a pat on the back for this. They shouldn’t have to advertise the fact that they helped. All it says to me is “Look at us, look at us!” it’s called a publicity stunt.
I’m not trying to attack anyone and I’m very pleased that you were one of the ones that helped and that you all did do something but answer me one thing please: Will you be back next week to help more? What about next month? What about tomorrow? Do you pray for these women every night before going to bed? Do you pray for all of the women that can’t go to a shelter? Do you pray for the souls of the women that didn’t survive the beatings? What about the children? Do you pray for every one of them?
And why we you not in contact with any of the women or children there? Why did not a single one of you walk up to one of them and hug them and tell them that they WERE going to get through this even though it felt like they couldn’t? Have any of you gone back since that day and volunteered your help? Have you gone to any other shelter to volunteer your help?
<i>”We were there to give those women and children a great backyard so they would have a wonderful surrounding during this difficult time in their lives.”</i> You make it sound like their going through a foreclosure. This time in their life isn’t difficult. It’s a living Hell! Because most husbands don’t just give up once they walk out the front door.
I’m sorry if it sounds like I’m attacking you, I don’t mean to. I really don’t. And I hope that that experience touched something very deep down inside of you as well as all of the other women working with you. And I pray that you ladies are effected enough from it to do something more outside of Mary Kay to help these families.
With love always,
E_K
August 18th, 2008 at 6:25 pm
one should ask the same questions of you english_kashu.
August 18th, 2008 at 7:50 pm
Yes Lisa, as I have already stated in my last post. I do. I do as much as I can in one week. If you want to know, on my days off right now I am teaching a girl that was sexual abused how to ride a horse.
August 19th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
Ummm… Lipstick, I HAVE heard of consultants going into nursing homes, hospitals, homes for women, etc, and offering samples and such for women to put a little make up on and feel prettier for the day. And, how in GOD’S NAME IS THAT SICK???!!! OMG! I’m pretty even natured, but that is just ridiculous. WHAT CORPORATE RUN COSMETIC COMPANY GOES IN AND GIVES MAKEOVERS! Este Lauder? merle Norman? Revlon? Clinique? Good Lord, you DON’T KNOW the hearts of those consultants! Reading that comment you made sincerely broke my heart! Those people DON’T BUY ANYTHING! Especially in nursing homes and hospitals. And that’s not the point! Those ladies COULD be doing anything else, but they are spending time to brighten someone’s day. Did you know those consultants? Did you speak to them? Did you watch them do the dirty deed? What nerve do you have speaking evil of someone when you dont’ know their hearts? Only GOD can do that. If they were there trying to con people, then I hope they can live with themselves cause that’s evil, but I don’t think that’s how it was. I personally have never done that, but that’s just because I hate hospitals and nursing homes. They make me uncomfortable, and I’m being honest about that selfish aspect of my personality. (Something I need to work on). But when you said that about it being the sickest thing you’d ever heard… oh, girl, it literally made me nauseous because I felt it was very unfair.
Domestic Violence is a plague that you can find anywhere and everywhere. And SOMETHING has to be done about it. To be honest, the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation is a separate entity from the profit side of the company. MK Inc DOES contribute to the foundation tho, but funds are gathered elsewhere as well. And honestly what that ONE organization can do is not NEARLY enough to fight the problem, but they are trying. And up until recently they DIDN’T advertize what they were doing. Much isn’t even documented publicly. We as consultants know more b/c of the Heart to Heart publication. Also, most likely it was JEWEL’S Publicist as well as the CMA awards who publisized that event. But even if they shouted it from the rooftops, so freaking what? They do a LOT more than just that one event.
This world is about doing your part to help out. All of us should be involved, whether it’s just helping a person we see as we’re walking by, volunteering for a cause, giving money to someone else to be a steward of, or whatever. At least MKACF is doing what they can to help.
Also, I’ve seen many remarks about mineral powder, talc, and cancer. That MK is hypocritical for funding cancer research while selling products using talc. If you have questions about cosmetics and health risks go to cosmeticsinfo.org. it is an independant website, of HIGHLY respected SCIENTISTS (not just normal people talking about stuff they arent’ educated about-including me!!), not affiliated with any particular cosmetic company. Check it out for facts about health. I honestly haven’t looked up talc yet, but I will. Maybe that will answer all our questions.
I use the mineral powder foundation and I’m totally in love with it!
I know I’m new to this and really talking a lot on here but I really enjoy the discussion. I try not to get too emotional, but if I see something I feel is unfair, I’ll call you on it for the sake of giving both sides.
August 19th, 2008 at 6:34 pm
Here is the link for info on talc
http://cosmeticsinfo.org/HBI/26
August 19th, 2008 at 7:51 pm
Let me point out this. Lipstick was just saying the truth about what she experienced. I know that most of you consultants want to believe that there aren’t consultants or SDs or NSDs that don’t do that but there are! We aren’t saying that all of you are like that but there are sure as hell alot of them that do. My own SD was one of them (and yes she did go there JUST to make a sale)! And I don’t see why women need a damn facial or makeup in order to feel pretty! And before any of you ask, the only makeup I wear is mascara..and yes I am one of those women that believe beauty is one the inside and yes I do believe I am an attractive woman. I do believe that society has screwed up the vision of true beauty. Why give someone a facial when it would be better to sit and talk with them and be a friend? That would make them feel just the same if not better.
Peace and Love
E_K
August 19th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
The way Lipstick worded it made it seem as though she was speaking in general, so I took it as such. If that was your experience, and you DID have someone do those things with ulterior motives, then I believe you! And that is despicable. It’s just hard to hear people talk badly about the company as a whole when I feel that there are many of us (including Mary Kay Corporate) who truly DO care about people.
I didn’t used to wear ANY makeup! =D I’m 27, and I still look exactly the same as my senior high school picture when I was 17. Most people think the picture is very recent! I didn’t even learn how to put makeup on til I was 23!
So I am totally cool with people not wearing makeup. And some women can feel wonderful without it! But for myself I just feel MORE beautiful and MORE confident when I’ve got a little makeup on, and am dressed nicely. And I think that when people are stuck in a hospital bed or nursing home it just helps them feel good that someone THOUGHT to do that for them.
The girls that are in my unit are made up of a LOT of nurses. Mostly nurses and teachers. Two of them work for a home care nursing service and they have voiced that it really does make the ladies feel nice. They feel like somone thought of them. And it’s not about the make up. The fellowship is done during the process.
I hate the fact that some people have been exploitative with their MK businesses, but that was a personal choice based on THEIR lack of ethics. Please don’t judge an entire company based on those jerks.
August 19th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
Sarah, let’s be realistic, with healthcare the way it is now, if you are IN the hospital, you are more than likely seriously ill!
I think it takes a lot of chutzpah to visit somebody you don’t know in a hospital or nursing home offering to “pamper” them just out of the “goodness of your heart”.
The only possible reason for doing so that I can think of would be to possibly make somebody feel so good that they want to purchase everything you pampered them with or you want a “legit” sounding way to get to the regular staff and get either bookings or sales.
Just be honest about it and don’t make like you are doing this as a volunteer.
August 20th, 2008 at 11:57 am
Sarah,
Are you new to MK too? Glad to have you here, please join us in the forum….we have a section dedicated to active consultants that has a ton of helpful information!
Hope to see you there!
August 21st, 2008 at 2:31 pm
Sassy_C
I’m not new, kind of a veteran I suppose. :P But I’ll stop by, thanks! =D