(left) Judy Wicks, founder of the White Dog Cafe.

From her beginnings as the founder of Philadelphia's White Dog Cafe, Judy Wicks has emerged as a national leader in the local, living economies movement. The Cafe combines award-winning cuisine and social activism.

White Dog Enterprises now employs over 100 people and grosses approximately $5 million annually, demonstrating the concept of "doing well by doing good." The Cafe sources all produce in season from local organic family farms. All meat and poultry is humanely raised, and most seafood is sourced from sustainable fisheries. The Cafe has helped lead campaigns to ban the sale of endangered fish and eliminate the use of genetically modified products. The Cafe's electricity is generated by wind power and entry- level employees earn a minimum "living wage."

Twenty percent of profits are contributed to the White Dog Cafe Foundation and other non-profits. Foundation projects include Fair Food, which connects local family farms with urban markets, the PIG Alliance, which supports pastured pig farming as an alternative to confinement pork production, and the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia, which supports independent local businesses committed to building a local living economy.

One of the most interesting community building programs undertaken by the Foundation is the "sister" relationships program. Customer visits to minority-owned sister restaurants and nearby minority cultural attractions are promoted in the White Dog newsletter. The purpose is to encourage customers to visit neighborhoods they otherwise might not go to in order to increase understanding, build citywide community, and support minority businesses and cultural institutions.

Judy and the White Dog Cafe have won numerous awards for creative leadership in combining sound business management with social vision. Accolades include Business Ethics Magazine's first "Living Economy Award," Conde Nast Traveler's list of top 50 American restaurants, and Inc. Magazine's 25 favorite entrepreneurs in the country. Judy has co-authored, with chef/partner Kevin von Klause, White Dog Cafe Cookbook: Multicultural Recipes and Tales of Adventure from Philadelphia's Revolutionary Restaurant.

In Seasons of Grace: The Life-Giving Practice of Gratitude (Wiley, 2002), Alan Jones and John O'Neil explore the spiritual practice of gratitude.

The book is organized into sections around the four seasons: spring is a time to appreciate gifts, summer a season of enjoyment, autumn a time of introspection, and winter an interval of gathering people together. Each chapter closes with "gratitude practices," offering concrete ways to cultivate and express gratitude.

There is a close link between the practice of gratitude and giving the gift of self. For example, one family dedicated their home-building efforts to their grandmother Mildred. Now, after many years of volunteering, the family albums are filled with pictures of "their" crews and "their" houses.

Seasons of Grace would be a useful discussion book, especially before Thanksgiving and the holiday season.

(left) Workshop participants engage in a circle dance to celebrate their connection.

Jean Shinoda Bolen and Rosemary Williams teamed up in September to present a groundbreaking workshop integrating Jungian psychology and money/spiritual issues. Both traditions have deep roots. Jean is author of The Goddess in Everywoman and other books on the mythic life of the soul. Her ideas integrate with Rosemary's teachings about the fundamental decisions women make in their spiritual and financial lives.

At the workshop, Rosemary leaned forward and rubbed two fingers against the thumb of her hand. "For me, the key following my thread. I know I am on the right path when I have this sense of being connected to my thread." Jean jumped in with the Greek myth of Ariadne (representing our feminine side), who provided the thread to Theseus (our masculine side) that enabled him to find his way through of the labyrinth (the great maze of life). "Absolutely," said Williams, "Each of us needs to follow her own thread to find her way through."

Building our communities has always been a woman's way. There are many ways of giving, but the most important is to give time. When we give our time, we give the best of ourselves. We give our love, our attention and the very best we have.

For many women, community building is best done with others. Motivated groups have been able to do great things. Some women ...

(Left to right) Sister Ilona Mensik, Sister Bernadine Gutacker, Caridad Garcia and WP board member, Kathleen Gorelick at Caroline House.

This fall Women's Perspective launched a series of practical financial training classes for immigrant women in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The WP classes are taking place at Caroline House, which provides information and education to low-income women in that community.

The program was spearheaded by WP board member Kathleen Gorelick, a retired public school teacher. Using materials entitled, "Planning Ahead, Staying Ahead," from the University of New Hampshire, Kathleen and Rosemary Williams taught basic financial skills, such as using existing community resources and keeping track of expenses by category.

Kathleen said that she had long dreamed of bringing her skills and WP's teaching to women in need in her local community. "Our group has 28 women from 9 countries, and they all help one another in class with translation and information. It was such a blessing to work with them!" she said.