WORKOUT -
(Yesterday)
Ran on hotel TM -
8.0 miles/1:04
1.0 incline
Yesterday we spent the day in Portland Christmas shopping so in the morning I got in a few miles on a treadmill in the small hotel fitness center.
My brother and sister-in-law gave me this cute Zella zip up for my birthday, and I’ve been wearing it nonstop, like I don’t own another piece of clothing.
For dinner we had some fresh Dungeness crab… tasty stuff.
![dirt_thumb[1]](http://skinnyrunner.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/dirt_thumb1.jpg "dirt_thumb[1]")
THE CUPCAKE GIRLS
When I was at the Pro Compression booth at the race expo in Las Vegas a couple weeks ago, I was able to meet reader Britt:
Britt works for The Cupcake Girls, a non-profit organization that supports women in the adult entertainment industry in Las Vegas and now Portland, Oregon.
You can read more here, but the Cupcake Girls go into clubs with cupcakes and meet the girls backstage and build friendships with them. I love that there’s no judging (the strip club owners allow them in!), telling them stop, or looking down on the women.
{The cupcake Britt gave me, so cute and sparkly}
The CG come alongside these women and support them… maybe they need child care, a reliable car or want to get their GED. A lot of women think they can’t do anything else, but The Cupcake Girls help them realize and reach their goals by supporting them and “breaking the ice” with cupcakes (and other fun events like a holiday spa day or Zumba event). How neat is that?
The Cupcake Girls are also on Facebook and twitter.
You can volunteer, you can donate money or buy a dozen of their cupcakes if you’re local in Las Vegas.
Twitter
Facebook
{ 44 comments… read them below or add one }
I just wore a new sweater out to dinner back to back….apparently I also have no clothes. My rationale is that I assume it’s dry clean only or difficult to wash, so I need maximum bang for my buck.
Cupcakes are doing major work at the moment. Not only do they race through my head and motivate me to run, but now their offering support to women? Over-achieving…
The Cupcake Girls sounds like an awesome organization! It is really refreshing to see women supporting and uplifting oppose to making assumptions about one another
What a great mission! Thanks for sharing. Oh, and I love the zip up
Love Love what the cupcake girls are doing. It’s an industry that is overlooked and those ladies need to know there is so much more for them. They are not defined by this moment in life.
The CG are very similar to this organization
https://www.facebook.com/stripchurch?fref=ts
These guys are doing amazing things to help the girls in this industry and more.
I love Dungeness crab but I have no idea how to prepare it. I should probably google it and try it.
What a neat organization! Thanks for sharing the information about them.
What a wonderful organization!!! Thanks for promoting this!!
LOVE IT! Some people have such loving and generous hearts. Thanks for sharing this amazing ministry.
Love the colour of your zip-up.
Cupcake girls sounds like an amazing idea. I also love that there’s no judgement- just the realization that there are people who care and are willing to help out.
I loved reading about this new to me organization! I wish I could help them start a NY chapter- I’m a baker and I’ve met some sex workers so I’m definitely sensitive to the stigma involved with sex work. And besides, everyone needs some non-judgmental friends in life!
yes!
Becca! One of our goals in the organization is to have a Cupcake Girls in every major city in the US. I am originally from Connecticut and moved to Las Vegas to work for The Cupcake Girls and my dream is to start a Cupcake Girls New England or more specifically in Connecticut. It’s crazy since there is about 30 strip clubs in the small state of CT alone! If you’re interested in helping start a NY chapter, email me and we can chat!
britt@thecupcakegirls.org
I love that you shared this, what a great idea and such a lovely practical way of helping people. Yay!
That’s a very unique and great idea! Kudos to the CG for thinking outside the box!:)
I love the Cupcake Girls’ idea! What a great way to show love and truly make a difference in a non-judgemental, friendly way. I hope they keep it up
PS: Your hair is insanely gorgeous. I wish I could grow mine that long. So jealous!
Hope you’re having a great trip so far and keep warm!
SR: How many days a year do you spend in hotels? I swear, you are in a hotel every week! =)
I’m homeless practically so I move around a lot.
That is an amazing organization! I wish I didn’t live so far away!
Gosh, do we ever need MORE of these Cupcake Girls around. Thanks for sharing!!
What a great organization! Very awesome that they can look past judgement and offer support.
Damn Gina. Love the jacket!!
great run to! Cupcakes make perfect recovery fuel right?
That organization sounds seriously awesome!
The intentions seem nice enough, but I can’t see how it is non judgemental. The very fact that there is an organization to “help” them, assuming they are uneducated & help them see there is a better way is inherently judgmental. Perhaps they chose it on purpose because it is better money or hours for them versus another job…Just a thought that struck out to me.
From the little I understand, the vast majority of women are greatly appreciative of the friendship and support of the cupcake girls whether thats helping with future education or just having a cup of coffee and chatting. Also from my limited knowledge and talking with Britt, there’s a huge number of women who don’t want to be in the industry but don’t know how to get out or what else they can do. But again, that’s just the small amount I’ve learned.
Yeah, I have to say I would need more info before donating to this. If the Cupcake Girls are actually helping them GET out of the business for good, then I am ALL FOR IT and would give my money in a heart beat. But it sounds like they go in, give cupcakes, some of them get dental care, and other help yet they keep stripping. I have struggled some months myself to pay bills, have had my lights turned off and my water but I never turned to stripping as a way to make money. the whole ends don’t justify the means thing. alot of strippers could find other work but the money is good stripping so they are willing to strip to get it. I would work at McDonald’s before I would ever be a stripper. It’s a CHOICE, and they all have one.
Just my opinion. I think these cupcake girls have HUGE hearts and I commend them for that. we need more people like them in the world. my only thing is i would hope the GOAL is no more stripping for any of these ladies. and not just giving handouts if they are going to keep doing it.
Although I appreciate your sentiment that they should work toward getting the girls out of the business, I can’t help but feel bad for how noble you think it is for you to never have done it. They arent asking you to, and I see it interesting that you have to outline all the struggles youve gone through, but at least you never did.
Your attitude is really what the girls face and where the problem lies. I danced for two years in collge, and I was able to work very few hours, with the money to travel and live very nicely on my own with no parental help. I graduated college with no debt and a cush job.
Many of the girls had children, no cars, and even worked a bit to put minutes on their phone. The people who take free handouts will do what they want no matter the help. My largest fight through all of it was hiding it and everyones perceptions. I think it is good that the women set out to make minds change and support the girls. What a great idea.
Similar thought here. I love the idea, the support for women, etc. But I guess I’d like to hear how they handle confronting a woman who says, “this is my dream job! I love to dance and Vegas pays very well”. Some of those women surely exist, and my hope is that the Cupcake gang says “Awesome! we shall move on to see if anyone else here could use our support.” As opposed to, “are you sure? stripping is evil.”
What an AMAZING organization! It’s so good that there are non-judgmental organizations out there looking to help women.
I think this is fantastic. Over the years I’ve worked a lot with addicts, sex workers, etc and there is so much stigma and judgement against these groups. The CG seem like a fantastic support system for women that often don’t have much positive support in their lives.
What a thoughtful and creative organization! I love the idea that they are there to help and not judge. It is wonderful to see women supporting other women. Thanks for sharing!
Sounds like a great organization! I did giggle about the cupcakes, if I was about to go walk around practically naked I wouldn’t be eating cupcakes.
I LOVE this idea!! Add this to my list of reasons for visiting Las Vegas sooner rather than later!
I have never heard of the Cupcake Girls before but I love their mission! I want to be a CG! Maybe they’ll grow and come to Sacramento. It’s refreshing to here about women being supportive and nonjudgmental instead of tearing each other down.
This is why I’m always supportive of organisations, NGOs, support groups, events, races etc founded, organised, administered by women for women. Can I also take this opportunity to highlight this race I’m helping a friend organise over in my part of the world? This will be the first Malaysian Women Marathon, in fact the first all-ladies event in the country. Be great if your readers could “like” the FB page and tweet about it…or come on over for a destination race!
https://www.facebook.com/MalaysiaWomenMarathon?ref=ts&fref=ts
I think I will take the kiddos to get cupcakes soon!
Anyone who approaches me with a cupcake gets my undivided attention. Great great cause!
If nobody was trying to help, people would complain. Now people are trying to help and, what do you know, people are complaining. Can’t make everyone happy, but at least some people are getting a little bit of happiness with a side of cupcakes! I think that’s pretty cool
word.
all you can do is love on people and be kind.
Do you have any tips to running on a treadmill? I get so bored and unmotivated after 4 miles. I’ve tried watching tv and listening to music and nothing helps!
look online for treadmmill workouts where you vary the speed or incline every couple minutes instead of running the whole time at the same speed.
That’s a really cool organization! I love that she went out there, took a chance offering support to women who are usually judged and is making a difference in many of their lives. Good for her, and thank you for sharing her organization. This is def something I would have never even thought existed, but glad it does.
What a great organization! It’s crazy how many strip clubs there are per capita in Portland…I think the Cupcake Girls are doing great things!
Wow! I can’t believe all the negativity! I love what the CG are doing! Some of these women have no one and no where to turn to. I have a friend that is a part of a ministry that takes home cooked meals to local strip clubs. They love these women and mentor them. They provide love, guidance and friendship. If CG was judging these women, I don’t think they would step foot in a strip club.
That’s awesome what they’re doing! Thanks for sharing!!
What a great organization. There needs to be more out there like this!