5 Holiday Questions for Sally Bergesen, CEO of Oiselle
During this season of giving, EMC has a lot to celebrate.
This week, we’re celebrating our partners. They inspire us by offering their time, resources, and support to help us improve maternal health around the world. We are grateful that they’ve joined forces with us. We’ve asked some of these givers — who are also amazing leaders, women, and moms — five questions for the holidays.
Sally Bergesen, CEO of Oiselle, is a perfect fit with the team here at EMC. She’s an avid runner and mother who’s passionate about her work and her family. Sally started Oiselle six years ago to give women stylish running clothes that fit and perform the way women need them to. And through a chance Twitter connection — when Sally realized our founder Christy and Executive Director Erin were in the neighborhood — the three of them met up in Seattle. Oiselle quickly became EMC’s official marathon apparel sponsor this year and created an awesome apparel collection for EMC. Sally weighed in on our 5 holiday questions, below.
1) This holiday season, EMC has been thinking about all the different ways that people can give back to their families and their communities. What are your favorite ways of giving back?
In years past we have coached a running club of girls, ages 10–12. In 2010, this group was extremely competitive and was ranked third in the nation in cross country. Beyond the winning, however, was just the notion that we were helping girls build confidence through a stage of life that is usually fraught with problems, including poor body image, not fitting in, and involvement with boys. This year, we’ve been most proud of our work with you and EMC, raising funds for maternal health while training for the NYC Marathon and the Seattle Half Marathon.
2) We’re so grateful for your support of Every Mother Counts. Why is the issue of maternal health important to you?
I’m a mother. I have two girls. I also had two at-risk deliveries in that they were precipitous, start to finish in under two hours. Being a fast runner is desirable, but fast deliveries can cause a lot of problems, including not being in a hospital or doctor’s office when the critical time arrives. Those experiences make the need for support in this area very personal and vivid.
3) What is the most meaningful gift you’ve ever received?
There are some gifts that are simply good fortune…genetics, family. Other gifts, however, are the result of conscious decisions. Usually that involves the gift of oneself to another, whether it’s a parent or a partner. The most meaningful gifts I’ve been given are the love and confidence of incredibly strong people who have imparted wisdom and integrity. An internal value system is not something you can get from Santa.
4) How do you celebrate the holidays?
We try to make it low key. More about coming together rather than gift giving. I prefer Thanksgiving for this reason. Still, some of the trappings of holiday are undeniably charming…from trees, to wood fires, and snow and, yes, even Christmas music.
5) What’s on your holiday wish-list this season?
A crystal ball, time machine, and magic carpet. Failing that, I’ll settle for a nice run with my girlfriends.
