How Adrienne Benkert and Amber Shopay Are Changing the World…One Shirt at a Time
By Laurie Mega

Adrienne Bankert is an Emmy-Award-winning journalist, a correspondent for ABC news and a host on Good Morning America. Amber Dawn Shopay is the founder of Global Angel, a clothing line that partners with charitable organizations to raise awareness and improve lives.

What do these two have in common? They both believe in the power of kindness. And now, they’ve partnered to create a line of clothing to make good on that belief. Amber launched Global Angel in the fall of 2018 to help victims of the Woolsey Fire in Malibu, California. She had many friends who were affected and, she says, “I wanted to do anything and everything I could to help.” She started by donating clothes and food she collected to the survivors, but she wanted to do more.

So, she created Global Angel and launched with a super-soft hoodie with the Global Angel logo on the front: a heart-shaped map of the earth with wings. Some of the proceeds from the sale of the sweatshirts went right to the victims of the fire.

The past

But the idea for Global Angel was years in the making, when Amber met a girls' soccer team on a trip to Mexico in the 90s. They had only dirt to play on and desperately wanted a grass field. That team, and the idea of helping people across the globe, stuck with Amber for decades.

She wanted a way to bring awareness to local issues all over the world, issues that didn’t necessarily get media attention. 

Through Global Angel, Amber partners with a host of charities. When you buy a product from Global Angel, 25 percent of the purchase goes to one of those charities. All you have to do is choose one.

Her charity partners include the American Cancer Society, the Wounded Warrior Project, and the Ocean Conservancy, among many others.

“If people knew, they would help. I believe that when people know better, they do better,” says Amber. “So, then I had to find a way to inspire people to give so I decided that I would create products to sell and with every purchase, you had to choose a charity to donate to.”

A partnership is born

Adrienne’s line now includes t-shirts and sweatshirts for women, men, and kids; beach towels; phone covers; onesies for babies; and even masks.

Now, she has partnered with Adrienne for the Kindness Collection, a line of t-shirts designed to reinforce Adrienne’s message in her new book, Your Hidden Superpower: The Kindness That Makes You Unbeatable at Work and Connects You With Anyone. The super-soft t-shirts carry the message “I am the unbeatable kind.”

Proceeds from the sale of the shirts go to the Sacramento Helping Hands, a northern California charity she has been involved with for 15 years.

Adrienne says she’s always looking for creative ways to be philanthropic. When she heard about Global Angel, she was eager to get involved. “I love the concept of giving 25 percent and working with Amber, who has the heart to change people’s lives.”

Words of wisdom

If you’re looking for a way to make a difference and you’re not sure how, Adrienne and Amber have some advice.

“Start with who your heart breaks for and who your compassion is going toward,” says Adrienne. “Then I would get started! Start helping those around you. Put handwritten letters of encouragement in people’s mailboxes. Give surprise coffee by Venmo-ing people five to ten bucks and tell them the next coffee is on you!” 

Amber points out how easy it is to make a difference simply by volunteering. “Whether it is planting a tree, being a part of a mentorship program, walking dogs at your local shelter, picking up trash in your neighborhood or feeding the hungry, so much good can come from this.”  

She encourages students to pay attention to the needs of their communities. By doing so, students may even find their passion and life’s purpose.

“Whatever that is, do it and watch the world change! Be a visionary, see what is needed or what is missing and fill that void. That's when the magic happens! The benefits are priceless.”

Adrienne agrees: “We need constant reminders of kindness. It’s not automatic. We need to be refreshed in our understanding of how powerful kindness is and what it can do in the lives of others.”