Episode 173 - Redeeming Brokenness Through Business with Michelle Buelow
What began in 2006 as a passion project to help vulnerable children has since grown into a booming mission-driven business. Michelle Buelow, Founder & CEO of Bella Tunno, is on a mission to create fun, safe, and innovative baby products and with the sale of every product, give one meal to one child. Over the past 16 years Bella Tunno has provided over 6.4 million meals to children in need. Michelle joins us to share her story, how God redeems broken situations, and the challenges of running a business and raising children.
Episode Transcript
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Michelle Buelow: I came across some research that said food insecurity in early childhood has a link to addictive behaviors in adulthood and things like that, then that is the breaks. That's how I can continue to fulfill my passion project and honor my brother and change lives, but do something that aligns with the mission of our brand. So we got our product and our purpose in such a powerful alignment where we're selling kids, feeding products or selling bowls and spoons and plates and bibs and we're feeding children.
Henry Kaestner: Welcome back to the Faith Driven Entrepreneur podcast, William Rusty, greetings,
William and Rusty: greetings, greetings indeed.
Rusty Rueff: Hey, I know you're going to figure out a way to weave in the USC Tar Heels here shortly. So I'm going to I'm just going to get it out in front of here. This is more for the past. This is March that we're recording this like the year that we're going to like they're not going to make the big dance.
Henry Kaestner: No, no, don't say that. I don't know. Why do you have to go there? I think that that's an appropriate thing to talk about with regards to Duke. Right. But I think that I think that we can I think we can all agree that Roy Williams will not be denied that the that the Tarheels absolutely will be in. And I'll tell you, though, to bring it kind of into our speaker here the last time where I think
Rusty Rueff: I think that was very sensitive to you. I think you took that very sensitively
Henry Kaestner: and may have I may be wanting to kill it, but right now I may be really fired up that my son just got into Carolina. And this may be more personal information than our listeners.
Rusty Rueff: That's awesome.
Henry Kaestner: But I'll tell you another time when Carolina was not great and basketball was back in 2000, 2001, when Carolina lost to the alma mater of our guest that's on the program. And the NCAA is they lost to Penn State. And in that game, Julius Peppers, the football player, was Carolina's leading scorer. We have Michelle Tuno, Bülow from Beltana with us. Michelle, welcome.
Michelle Buelow: Thank you. Thank you. I'm super excited to be here. I totally fell out of my league on the sports fuck. So just roll with it. Just talk about. And that is kind of one of.
Henry Kaestner: So what was it like? Did you ever go to a Penn State football game in the big what's it called? You know what it's called? It's not the big house. It's a that's Michigan, but it's it's happy Valley. Right? Just called Happy
Michelle Buelow: Valley. Yeah, it is Happy Valley. And I went to pretty much every game. I mean, that's that's college at Penn State. Yeah. Go up and shop there and you show up early and you stay late. And it was it was so fun. I was actually there. I don't know what year it was. You probably do, but we made it to the Rose Bowl. And so that was a really. Really. Yeah.
Henry Kaestner: That means unless it's in a covid year, that means a trip to Southern California, which is a welcome, welcome trip from State College in the in the geographic center of Pennsylvania is not a very warm place in early January.
Michelle Buelow: No, that's not it. It's funny you say that because that's how I met my husband. There was a woman out there who offered her house kind of without ever meeting my husband super, one of those super strange college stories. And he stayed there and she came back and he's like, I mean, you're going to marry. Well, I don't think you did, but that's how it happened. So I have the Rose Bowl to thank.
Henry Kaestner: Wow, that's a great story. How many other times it had been told to you up until then, I've met the man you're going to marry, or is that the only time?
Michelle Buelow: So, again, it's like you're Kenia for things you don't even know. But I actually said, no, you're not. And because I wasn't interested in dating at that point. And about a year later, my husband, his name's Todd. We had this thing at Penn State called the Ride Board, where you grabbed a Post-it note and took a ride from a completely random stranger wherever they said they were going to go and use like gas money. And another one of my friends is going that. And she needed a ride home back to New Jersey. And she rode home with him, completely random. And she came back from that trip and she's like, I met the guy you're going to marry. And it was the same guy. No way. Different people at Penn State. And it was my husband. So I was like, you know, I don't even need data. Let's just do that.
Henry Kaestner: Yeah, let's just get it done. That's really impressive. That's a great that's a great guy.
Rusty Rueff: It's a little bit like saying I met my husband, who is an Uber or Lyft driver, but we're
Michelle Buelow: a little bit about some years, right?
Henry Kaestner: Wow, that's cool. OK, so there's such a great story behind Bella, you know, with your mission and your history and the purpose. But we want to start with history and let's start first before we talk about the history of Bella. Let's talk about your history, who you are. We now know where you went to school, of course. But talk to us through up until the time that you launched Bella to know about who you are, what shaped you and your history and your faith brings right up to the launch of Bella to now.
Michelle Buelow: Yeah. So I grew up in the smallest, smallest town in Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh was two hours away. It was literally a dot on a map. We don't have one person that I could say their name that, you know, from our town, pretty girl. And I always knew it wasn't quite my home, if that makes sense. It was just I could not wait to kind of get out and see the world and do all this kind of stuff. And then I grew up in a very, very religiously extreme family and. A very fire and brimstone church, the God that I met when I was young was a god of wrath and judgment and that kind of thing. And I remember spending my summers at church camp and truly hating it, just hating it. There was one summer, I think I was maybe in fourth grade and I got to get a snack at the I think they called it the canteen and I got a soda because of course I was to have that at home and I drank and it tasted terrible. And I was so bored, I just kept chugging it and I had someone else taste it. I'm terrible, but maybe I'm just not used to soda. Turns out it had all these cleaning products in it. And I got to call my parents. This is on a Wednesday and I got to leave camp early. And I was so excited. I had my blood drawn for every six weeks for like two years to make sure I carcinogens weren't in it. And it still was worth it because I hated church. Oh, my God. I did like the best soda I ever had. And so after that
Henry Kaestner: happened, I mean, just that sounds so Mebazaa, right?
William Norvell: This is not a promo for church camp
Henry Kaestner: or apparently this brand of soda.
Michelle Buelow: No, it gets better. And I won't say that brand of soda, but it was a root beer. But anyway, I don't know how it happened. And they reported it and there was a recall and all that. But I guess my point in all that was I was raised just in a way that God was terrifying, just terrifying to me. And I really when I went off to college, I did not attend church at all. And growing up, I spent every Sunday at church. We were involved with the musical and my parents did everything. They played the instruments. They led Sunday school. They were the elders. They did literally everything. We spent every Sunday at church, every Saturday night, every Wednesday. So when I got to make choices for myself, I didn't I probably took 10 years off church, you know, it just wasn't going to be part of my plan. So anyways, I went to college and I took every opportunity to see the world through college. I studied abroad in Australia. I gave internships at Disney. I traveled Europe, just really wanted to come in from that small town. I just wanted to experience everything. So when I graduated, I came down to Charlotte and I got a job that big consulting. And the reason I love that job was because I was on a plane every week and I get to see everything. And I should I should back up and tell you that I came from a family of a mom, a dad and a brother. My brother was three years older than me. And from day one we were so opposite. But we were each other's kind of soft landing and we were just kindred spirits. We just the memories just out there, the best MIT was the funniest person, so witty, so kind. But he was always a free spirit. And when I lived at home, I very much played by the rules. So if I go up to Charlotte, I get my first big girl job. I'm climbing the corporate ladder like literally two, three runs at a time. I just couldn't climb fast enough. I couldn't get enough promotions. I left that job at twenty five because I got offered to be the head of grand strategy at an agency here in Charlotte. I had no idea how that happened, but I was like, as long as they don't find out, I'm just doing this. I loved it. And then travel was international and it was exciting. At the same time, my brother was in his fourteenth struggling with drugs and alcohol addiction. And so as I felt like I was truly living like that, it felt like I was exactly on track. This is what I dreamed about from that small town. It's level of freedom, this level of early success. My brother was just in this downward spiral and when I was twenty seven, I got a call on August 3rd, 2005, and it was that call that for 14 years I would put my head on the pillow every night and be like, don't take it, God, don't take and keep my brother safe. And so I finally got that call that my brother had passed away. And, you know, this time it wasn't like he was missing or he was on a binge or he got in a car accident and we couldn't find him. It was like he was really gone. And so I feel like that was the beginning of my life 2.0 and also really the beginning of my own faith journey, like finding God for myself.
Henry Kaestner: Wow, that's awful. I'm very sorry to hear that, tell us. Walk us through that time and what finding God look like, as you are just wondering, maybe even if there is a God or just. Yeah. What did it look like?
Michelle Buelow: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I still it's been over 15 years and I still have a hard time to put into words what that kind in my life was like. You know, I was raised in a church with parents that gave literally everything they have to God every moment, every gift. And so when my brother died, my parents all of a sudden were like, what God, we've been you know, we've been praying forever. We you know, we knew he strayed, but he'll always come back. And there began to really be tested. And my faith was already tested because the God that I watched them worship wasn't God that I felt safe with. So when my brother died, he was just like, what in the world? What is happening at watch? These super faithful people just be old. And of course, you can imagine what happens to parents when they lose one of their only children and they have been so faithful and everything's being questioned. A lot happens to them personally. And so I guess to answer your question, it was this moment where I was beyond angry, beyond disappointed. And I I really was like, there can't be a bad because God wouldn't do this. God wouldn't bring us here just like literally drop us with no parachute. And then I think it's just one of those things where it is all the light went out of the world, all the brak felt like it was taken from every group that was in. And yet there was this piece and I can't really describe it, but it was so beyond me and it was so much more powerful than anything I've ever felt. And, you know, I remember being at my brother's funeral and this is MIT me sound crazy and I'm OK with it. But we were all standing around praying at the end and I truly was not crying. I was like this, you know, this is my moment where I'm so angry I can't private. Someone was praying and I it was open casket. So I'm looking at my brother and as luck would have it, it was raining terribly and the lights went out, which, you know, lights out an open casket. Funeral is about the most freaky thing ever. And it's a God you can can you sign if you really are there? And I know that you're not supposed to do that to God, but, you know, all bets were off at this point. And I was like, you've got to give me a sign. And I remember right then the lights came back on and probably be coincidence. I don't know. I'm not saying God listen to me by any means. He's so much bigger than that. But that's what I needed at that point to be like, OK, I'm listening. Not that I'm fully there, but I'm listening. And there were so many just little things that happened, just people showing up and people showing love. And I'm telling you, this piece, it just the piece wouldn't leave me in the darkest moments of my life. I just knew things are going to be OK even though they didn't feel OK. I don't know if you can relate to that or not, but that was really the beginning of knowing that there's something real here. There is a real God as far as I'm trying to run. He's so good. Just kind of cradle me a little bit
Henry Kaestner: and said, what are you talking about? This is very, very special gift, of course, and it's very, very personal. And there's no way that I can know exactly how you feel about that. But when I had my aorta, which is the main artery coming out and heart dissected in an emergency dissection with some amount of drama, the piece of God came over me at a time that you would think would be very characterized by lots and lots of anxiety, because as you're being rushed to the hospital and on the shoulder during rush hour, the only feeling I could describe was one of being peaceful. And it was really, really special. Gift is a special gift that God allowed me. And I think that maybe it's a gift that he gives to his children at a time when they really needed it. I really needed it. And obviously that happened for you. And that's a special thing. Thank you for sharing that. I know that's very hard to talk about. Bring us through your career and just tell us about Beltana. Tell us about your mission and what you're doing there.
Michelle Buelow: Sure. So after my brother died, I quit that job that I told you about and I just didn't know what I was going to do next. But that didn't matter anymore. Getting on the next flight and working on the next project, that didn't matter. And I found out that I was pregnant probably almost a year after my brother died. And I knew I wanted to do something to honor him, because one thing that bothered me so much was on top of all the grief. That we were going through there felt like there was just this stigma of drug addiction and alcoholism that was like he died. He was an addict. And as you know, he wasn't an addict. He he was an addict. I'm sorry, but he died from drugs. But it wasn't really what it's what killed him. You know, he was funny and he was witty and he was kind and generous. Man is Hillier's needs my best friend. And I'm like, I'm not going to let just that label Bilquis remembered. And so I knew I wanted to do something, but I didn't know what. So I find out I'm pregnant and I start looking for things for my soon to be daughter. And the look out there just wasn't anything related to. I've always been expressive in how I dress and I've always loved, just not afraid to make a statement. And the things that were out there were very bland and boring and yellow and teddy very much just nothing that appealed to me. So I have a lot of free time. I wasn't working and my only job at the time was to try to grow baby. And so I'd go to a fabric store and I'd buy these really cool prints. And I my mom actually bought me a sewing machine because she was getting nervous that I was doing nothing and that I needed a hobby. And that was one of her favorite hobbies. Turns out I hate terrible things, but the thought was very kind. So she buys me sewing machine and I start trying to make burqas and bibs and things like that for my daughter because I couldn't find what I wanted. Well, I tend to make long stories longer, but what ended up happening was I started giving these gifts to my friends because I was in that age range that everybody was having babies. And so I would give them showers. And people are saying where to get that. And there seem to be whitespace. There seem to be this opportunity to put a very fashion forward, a double look that was almost a Puji need fully pullets or type look on baby products. And I had one good friend who, like, you've got something here, you've got to get out. You've got to show people what you're doing. And I thought they just feel bad for me. You know, there's nothing here. They just want me out of my pajamas. They want me to brush my teeth. And so I finally get a few prints off my back. I need appointments with 11 of the local boutiques and I showed them what I had. And ten out of the eleven, when can we get it? We lock this lock and side. No, I did get the eleventh Otik just three years ago, so I got all of them. But wow. But anyways, I ended up realizing maybe there is a way that I can sell these products and I can give the proceeds back and I can try to change some stories and I can do it in my brother's name. So simultaneously I launched Balakian now and the mats make a different size and we just started selling products and go in the markets and FOMO it. We were in the Gap and Target and Doors just opened that I never thought would open and we were able to do the coolest work. So we've never today sold a product without getting back to the market, going to make a different fun. And for the first seven years of our business, it was all about drug and alcohol rehabilitation. So we did some awesome projects that we did in Extreme Mission Makeover, where we brought together seventeen companies and about 80 volunteers and we added five bedrooms to a local rescue mission so that that allowed 40 more clients to go through the program per year. We did a one night kind of shopping event where we were able to do any thirty thousand dollars to the doubleness, which is our women's recovery program here in Charlotte. We gave scholarships to unwed teen moms because they're in a very vulnerable group and the work was so meaningful and it was so healing and it was all in my brother's name. But what we've realized with that was that there was this sizable disconnect between the products they were selling and the people we were targeting, parents bringing new life into this world and the mission we were supporting, which is drugs and alcohol. And people think of addicts because of the stigma, is like people in Skid Row, you know, people that are just out on the streets looking for their next hi. And I think. Sometimes addiction really terrifies people and especially people that are bringing into this world the people that they think are going to be the first female president or cure cancer. We're talking about addiction and that story. And so in 2013, maybe 2014, I came across some research that said. Food insecurity in early childhood has a link to addictive behaviors in adulthood and physical death, think that is the brigs? That's how I can continue to fulfill my passion project and honor my brother and change lives, but do something that aligns with the mission of our brand. So we got our product and our purpose in such a powerful alignment where we're selling kids, feeding products or selling bowls and spoons and plates and bibs and we're feeding children. And then there is a tieback. Q Addiction, but, you know, even behind the scenes, we can still do all that work but forward facing, we now for every single product sold, give one meal to one child. And so just last week, we crossed over the five point four million meal donation point and products are sold in the US. We partner with Feeding America to make the meal donation happen and the products are sold outside of the US. We work with the Global Food Network to make that happen.
Rusty Rueff: That's very cool. Yeah, we've heard you, you know, put the statistic out there that one in six children, you know, are food insecure, which is just a huge number when you stop and think about it. Right. So, you know, getting to that problem is such a wonderful thing that you're doing. I'm curious, though, because, you know, obviously a decision making process had to go through what organizations, you know, how much when and I think a lot of entrepreneurs want to give back, but they're a little afraid that, you know, they're not going to do it well or they're going to give to the wrong organizations. Just go through that a little bit with us for our listeners.
Michelle Buelow: Yeah, sure. And just quickly before I jump into that, actually, due to the pandemic, the statistic is now one in four children going to bed hungry said. Twenty five percent of kids in the U.S. are going to bed hungry. It's it's heartbreaking. But anyways. Yeah, so we actually need. I don't really do anything without making spreadsheets. We need this huge spreadsheet. And we got on things like Charity Navigator to see reviews. And then we interviewed a bunch of different organizations. And I am really proud of our decision to work with Feeding America because they are such a good source of our money, what they do. And there's so many organizations that are doing really good things. But because they're so big and because they're a network of so many food banks, the money isn't going to overhead. The money is going to connecting people to meals. Because the food insecurity problem isn't one of a food shortage, it's one of a distribution model. And so that's what they're phenomenal in doing, connecting people to food that already exists, but they just have no way to access it. And so that was why we chose to work with them. The touch on the point about building some type of get back into your model. I think it used to be like this nice to have thing, and some people did it for marketing, I actually think in twenty, twenty one it's almost mandatory. I mean, we see there are so many challenges in the world and all the statistics about why people buy the underlying purpose behind a brand really matters. And with transparency and with social media and just with being able to find out everything about everyone and every brand, it's really easy to find out what brands stand for. And standing behind a brand that really makes change or wants to make positive change in the world is a driving decision about why people buy. It's not why we do it. We've been doing it for 16 years. I mean, we're a B corp now, which means we're certified as using our business as a force for good. But even before we were before we were always living that way and following that methodology. When I speak to young entrepreneurs and I tend to do a lot of mentoring, I say build it now. It's almost like it's either like tithing or just comes off the top and you don't ever expect to see that back. And you want it to be invested in something bigger than you, where it's almost like when you get your first job and you think, in my case, I'm only making thirty two thousand, how am I going to give you a 401k? But the minute that you never see that money and you just live off of what's left and you put that aside first, it just becomes the way that you function. And so that's what we've done. It, you know, we actually to keep ourselves so honest, everything goes into a fund that we can't pull from no matter how bad things get. I mean, the pandemic pushed us, the recession pushed us that no matter how bad it gets, it goes into this fund that can only come out to the one C three organizations. And I love that. And I suggest that everyone, like it's easy to give when times are good, it's easy and a banner year to just be like, here's some free and here's some free because there's plenty to go around. But what about the years where your dipping back into your savings? What about the years where you just don't know? Because that would come for any entrepreneur almost any more times get tough. And I always wanted to be the brand that doesn't have the option to cut that out. So I think you just built it right into your model. And the key to that, in my opinion, is finding what you're passionate about because it never feels like a sacrifice if you figure that out. I mean, the fact that children are going to bed hungry kept me up at night and I'd wake up in the morning and I think about them. It's like, how how can I help my kids? I've never gone without a snack. Like, I want to be part of the solution. And so if you find the thing that you super passionate about fixing and you don't mind giving the money away, it's a gift.
Rusty Rueff: That's great. You mentioned B Corp and I'm glad you did, because that question comes up occasionally from our listeners about, you know, should I be one? How hard is it to be one if I sign up to be one and I always one, you know, can you enlighten us a little bit about the B Corp?
Michelle Buelow: Sure. So it is definitely a multistep process and it takes the better part of the year, I think from start to finish the best ten months, they just peel back every single layer of your business. And what happens is you start by doing this assessment. It's out of two hundred points. There are these different pillars of social responsibility, environmental responsibility, how well you treat your team and your people. And it's just financial giving. So it's all these I think it's five different pillars. And you get points on the assessment for where you rank, but you don't just self select your answer. You have to send in so much verification and then you're going to interview and then you lose or gain points based on that and then send in more verification and more documentation. And at the end, if you get over 80 points out of the two hundred you're certified, which in any other test, I mean, is miserably failing. And if you slip on by with eighty one point, you're like, oh my God, I mean, it's the coolest thing ever, but you're not certified. You're certified for three years and then you go through a recertification process. And one of the things that I love most about before is that you get your congrats. You are officially part of it. You are certified in using your business as a force for good. You have a legal obligation to do so. And then they say, okay, but you only got X amount of points. So here are the ten things that we know you can improve on. And they're constantly pushing you to do more and to do better. And there is nothing more empowering than being surrounded by a group of people who are like, OK, that's good, but what's next? And that's I mean, it's just the energy from that is contagious. And then we all want to shake. How we're doing, lawn care, how we're growing and whether it's with racial justice or sustainability or good ideas for how to treat your team better, there's always ways to learn more and do better. And I just I'm like, I'm obsessed.
William Norvell: Oh, that's amazing, Michelle. William here, thank you for sharing. We're on video, if you've noticed me being a CIMMYT train wreck over here. I was just kind of living through your story a little bit. I lost my longest friend about 19 years ago in college. And I just all the visions of being in the church with her and like what is happening right now and and then in the midst that we start talking about hungry children, but my son walks in and gives me the first gift he's ever given me that says to Dad loved William. And I'm just like, I just I just fall apart. So I'm a train wreck over here. But I'm going to ask you a question, but I'm grateful for your story because it's God's way of telling us where we're a community and we're together and we can walk through things together and we can see his light through other people. So thank you for that. And so I have a three year old and one year old. So one of the things I'd love I don't think we've gotten deep, but I've already texted my wife, your website, because I'm excited about getting more things. Tell us a little bit about the product line and where it is today and and how you're trying to reach children with the continuation of your unique products.
Michelle Buelow: Yeah. Thank you. Our products are mostly feting. Products are best sellers are BAM. And then we have these great suction plates and suction bowls that they say on the table. So when kids are in that early feeding phase and they're knocking everything off just to watch it all because it's fun, we're trying to come up with solutions for that. And that's really what we're trying to do. We're trying to be part of the solution for the hunger crisis, but we're also trying to be part of the solution for parenting to try to make things a little easier on parents. And also, if you look at our products, if you check out our website, it's just a reminder that parenting time, we try to have such a sense of humor in our products. So our main collection, it really is just these fun things that hopefully when you put that bag on, your kid takes four weeks or so and we literally have like three hundred different views. And I can only think of destress right now.
William Norvell: But if I see a picture of Kellyway, you'll be like kids for weeks that
Michelle Buelow: will work now and works or like I like my lunch or, you know, stuff like that. You you just remember this is fun and I need to stop and enjoy it. But one other thing we've really been able to do through our products is launch collections. And my favorite collection that we've ever launched is called The Kindness Collection. And for that collection to get two meals instead of one for every product sold because we believe there's really no better investments, we want to double down on that. But the much things like Lovemore, Choose Joy, Stand Together Kind is cool. And I just think putting that on a child as a statement that the parent believes that this child is walkaround pudding, that kids are eating from that. And it's just a really, really sweet and innocent and a great message to be putting out in the world from the very beginning. We also had collections. We do a lot in different collections, but that is by far my favorite collection. We have one that is a little advocate collection and that one says things like there are more about saving the world and your statements about really wanting to create the world that we want to live in. And so it's fun to get to use our products at the larger voice as well.
William Norvell: Amen. And it sounds like, you know, you've lived you've used your life to create this voice. And I think that's something we see in a lot of entrepreneurs. And I love the word you use passion. And every time I think about that, I think about, of course, you just going into the cross and, you know, the passion meaning to suffer with. Right. And he was willing to suffer with and for us. And that's what kept him. And you said the words, it doesn't feel like a sacrifice. And I feel like one day we're going to talk to Jesus. How he's going to say wasn't a sacrifice. Like I knew I knew what the suffering was for him was for you. And I love you so much. It was a gift. It was something I loved to do. And so I would love for you to maybe walk through some encouragement and maybe some thoughts for other entrepreneurs that maybe listening how to use your life and your personal stories to find the place God may be calling you to make a difference.
Michelle Buelow: Yeah, I think that's such a personal journey to get there. But that's kind of my best piece of advice. Like to actually own your story and use your story. I mean, it's what makes you uniquely you and therefore uniquely qualified to do something nobody else can do. And so I think so often when people look up to someone else and want to be just like them, they're robbing the world of what they had to offer. And so it's taken me a long time to realize that my story isn't what I would have authored myself. And there's been a lot of pain to it. But I'm grateful for my story and, you know, through that pain. I found my passion, and that's led to my purpose and then that's done some really powerful things and so I think that's No. One, I do not back away from your own story. Get to the point that you can face it and use it instead of running from it. I also think when I look at young entrepreneurs, I think find your own measuring stick for success. I mean, the world is going to tell you it's your profit and loss statement. Probably think, you know, in our case, it's meals and that's how we measure things and that's how we reward our tough sales people. It's not like how much money did you bring in? It's how many meals did you. And we send them. Thank you. With those meals, are we commission? We actually commissioned a brand to make a custom necklace for our top salespeople, and it was made by homeless people out in L.A. and it's and it's stamped into it. It's like those are the things where we just we want our measuring stick to be giving and we want it to be so much more than just about the dollar. And so I think it's important for everyone to find what success is to them. And that's a very, very it's a personal journey. And then the other thing is, like I share with you in our story when we started sharing our story and it was all about drugs and alcohol, and then we were doing photo shoots with these sweet little babies in these sweet little soft blankets. And the connection wasn't there. And I think it's really important you can support whatever you want to, but to make sure that you're forward facing products and brands and mission aligned with your purpose, because that's when it's like jet fuel. You know, it's just becomes like this rocket launch when everything can be digestible. And I think that's a really important thing.
William Norvell: Oh, I love that. On your story, I understand your own measuring stick and alignment is what I hear at the end. Just what amazing advice. And unfortunately, we're going to have to come to a close here in a minute, which is always the saddest part, but sometimes is the most fruitful part. With the last question. One of the things we love to do is to see how God continues to weave his story through his scripture and how it continues to be alive and well and always teaching us. And we love seeing how our guest and her listeners can learn from each other. And so what I would love to ask you and invite you to, if you wouldn't mind sharing where God has you in his word today could be something this morning he told you could be something a friend texted, you could be something you've been studying for years. And it's the season. But love to invite you to share with our audience.
Michelle Buelow: So, you know, there's two verses not to use the Bible like a fortune cookie, but there are two verses that I feel like I hold on to for dear life. And the first one is Jeremiah Twenty nine eleven and talks about the plans God has for us and its plans to prosperous and plans for good and not evil. And I just kept hearing that over and over in my head after my brother died and when I was pushing God away and truly tried my best to forget everything that I learned in church growing up. And I just kept hearing. And then more recently in my life, it's it's a verse in Romans, I think it's Romans eight twenty eight. And it's that verse for God works all things together for good for those who love him. And I think that's so long. I believed that all things had to be good, like everything I gave was good. And that's certainly not been my story. There have been terrible things and some really bad things, but I started diving deeper into that and I'm in a Bible study. We talk about this a lot. It's the God works all things together for good. And so even though there is so much pain and I feel like so many times where seemingly I fell, he was always there to pick me up. And it was like, this is part of the story. So looking back, there was this weaving going on and at the moment, so much of it was so bad. But together it can be something beautiful. Right? And it doesn't mean that the bad turns good and it doesn't mean that all things have to be good. It means that God works. All things together are good. And that's still a journey I'm on. It's still something that, you know, if I'm truly alone with my own thoughts, there's still a part that's like, why me? Why is this my story? But I've seen enough and I've felt enough. And I've witnessed where his hand has been in things along the way, especially in hindsight that that's the person living by these days.
William Norvell: Amen Amen, thank you so much for sharing. Thank you so much for sharing your story for your time, coming soon and sharing your products in my home. And so all of those things are very, very grateful for you.
Michelle Buelow: Well, thank you. I'm very grateful for the opportunity. I really enjoyed speaking with you.