For many women, the "Third Act" of life begins when the to-do lists of work and raising families give way to long-awaited freedom. It’s a time of transformation — not winding down, but rather, turning up the volume on what brings you joy, meaning, and connection. Think of it as a personal encore. You’ve gathered wisdom, weathered storms, and built a life filled with experience.

I was 8 years old when my mother was diagnosed with colon cancer and hospitalized for a month for surgery and post-surgical complications. I worried that she might die and leave me motherless. I also worried that her cancer might be contagious and that I might very well catch it and die as well. I had no one to talk with about my fears. My father was preoccupied with my mother’s illness while...

Erika earned her Master’s in Social Work in 1997 and obtained her Clinical Social Work License in 2006. Before that, Erika’s passion for humanitarian work took her to orphanages and hospitals in developing countries; primarily through Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity. A defining moment in Erika’s journey was meeting Mother Teresa herself in 1993 in Calcutta, India. This is Erika’s story of teaching children and young mothers self-healing through Havening.

One day long ago my mother treated me to a day at the beach. She didn’t swim and as far as I recall she didn’t particularly like the beach, but for some reason, that one day she decided to humor me and take me to the beach; just the two of us. I am guessing it may have been Laguna or Newport as we were still living in Thermal, California and it was a long there and back.

Standing in a tiny boulangerie in France at just 11 years old, I felt a spark of independence ignite within me. I mustered all the courage I could to order a baguette in French. The thrill of being understood, of stepping into a world so different from my own, filled me with a joy I couldn’t quite put into words. Little did I know that this small moment would become the foundation of a lifelong love affair with travel—a love that would lead to profound self-discovery and a deeper understanding of life’s possibilities.

In every corner of the world, there are women quietly shaping their communities, making impactful changes with small but powerful acts of kindness, leadership, and dedication. These unsung heroes, from the USA to China, are the glue that holds local neighborhoods together, helping others not for fame or recognition, but simply because they care. Their stories show us that a single person can inspire change, and even small acts of service can have a ripple effect that touches countless lives. Let’s take a moment to celebrate these remarkable women from six different countries, who are making the world a better place, one community at a time.