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A former victim of bullying launched a nonprofit doll line to promote self-love among young girls of color.
In 2011, then five-year-old Zoe Terry and her mother, Nakia Bowling, founded Zoe’s Dolls—a line of brown-complexioned dolls that are donated to girls of color who are not able to afford their own dolls.
The launch of Zoe’s Dolls follows Terry’s experience with bullying in 2010 during her first day of kindergarten. Terry cited her skin color and coarse hair as the main reasons behind the bullying.
Although Terry, who is now eleven years old, admitted that the experience made her feel upset and helpless, her mother’s encouraging words boosted her fighting spirit. This newfound self-confidence then prompted Terry to empower other young girls through Zoe’s Dolls. According to Terry, she wanted to create something in the image of girls of color to make them feel comfortable in their own skin despite being the subject of ridicule.
Terry and her mother have expanded their cause by starting the Girl Ambassadors program, which handles community initiatives. They also recently launched Girl Fit Experience, an initiative that aims to educate young girls of color on healthy eating, and Love Letters to Black Girls, which encourages adults from different parts of the world to send empowering letters and stories to young girls of color.
Because of Terry’s hard work, she was chosen as one of the four recipients of TV network Nickelodeon’s Helping and Leading Others (HALO) awards. This recognition earned Terry a $10,000 scholarship and a $20,000 grant, which she plans to use to distribute more dolls and produce the new Simply Zoe dolls, the proceeds of which will go to underprivileged families.