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Last minute preparations are underway for our return trip to Guatemala at the end of next week. I am looking forward to seeing the impact of our work in the winter and working toward making an even greater impact on the lives of these deserving people.
What we are doing is made possible by the generous donations that have been made by friends and supporters like you. I wish I could name you all individually, but know that I thank you from the bottom of my heart, as do the families who are benefiting from your help.
I do want to acknowledge one special donor. Sarah Thomas identified one of our Big Task Foundation kids to receive donations in her mothers' name, Gill Thomas. These donations will fund Abner's education until he graduates.
Sarah writes:
"Gill Thomas was born on 6th October 1939 in England and passed away after losing her battle with cancer on 15th February 2012, leaving behind her husband Eric, daughter Sarah and son, Simon. Gill was a lifelong teacher with a passion for education, the English language and reading. She taught both her children to read and ignited a lifelong passion for books in both of them. Gill taught primary school children during her career as well as English as a foreign language and adult reading classes. She loved learning and inspiring others. One of the most touching tributes on her passing came from a former pupil from the very first class she taught after graduating from college who simply thanked Gill for giving her such a happy childhood.
Rather than asking people to send flowers to mark Gill’s passing, as a family we thought it was a much more fitting tribute to remember her in a positive way – by giving a child an education and a future that they may not otherwise have had. Everyone who knew Gill commented how fitting it was and we are thrilled that through the Big Task Foundation we will be able to help her memory live on by enabling someone else to learn, be inspired and to achieve their dreams through education. We are all looking forward to meeting (virtually) the child we sponsor and through Keith and his team, helping him develop a passion for learning and open up new opportunities for himself and his family."
The child they are sponsoring, Abner, is 10 years old and a 4th-grade student at San Miguel Milpas Altas. He lives with his mother, grandmother, and brothers in a small tin house with a cement floor.
Abner wrote a letter to thank the Thomas family (translated from Spanish):
Thank the support you give me, I'm happy to have you in my life as you know I am in in good health and my family too I would like to know more of you and that you know more about me. I always ask God to watch over and protect you. I want to tell you that I did my first two months of classes and I got a good degrees. You are my second family because I have only my mother and my brothers and my grandmother. my mother is a single mother to come forward with us when I grow up I want to be an expert accountant after working very hard. And support my family and people.
The educational support coming from the Thomas family will completely change the direction of Abner's life. An amazing legacy for Gill Thomas, I think she would approve.
Any donations of any size to support our work are welcome - you can donate via Paypal through the link here. Stay tuned over the next weeks for updates from the trip.
I beat the drum for vulnerability in the workplace in almost every article I write. Today I want to shift your attention from your workplace to your child’s workplace: School. I know not everyone reading this has kids, but you may someday, or maybe you’re a college student yourself. Keep reading.
High school and college are pressure cookers – far more competitive than in my day, and it was intense then. I remember feeling so alone at times at Yale. Despite my gregarious outward appearance, I longed for real connection. To feel that I was enough.
This week, a friend from Yale sent me an op-ed from my alma mater’s daily that took me right back – not just to my undergrad time, but to a few years ago when I did a session with the freshman class there, organizing them into small groups to discuss the question, “Which major experiences of your past make up who you are today?" I was taken aback by the incredible personal struggles some of these young people had already faced – and also by their ability to open up when they felt safe to do so, and to support each other. Friendships were made that day that carried through all four years.
But tragically, the op-ed my friend sent was written in response to a student’s suicide several weeks ago; a boy whom apparently no one had any idea was struggling.
In her op-ed, recent graduate Kate Calhoun wrote:
“Yalies tend to talk freely about achievement but remain silent about hardship. In this stoic culture, people easily slip through the cracks. We notice when it becomes a tragedy of the magnitude of last week’s, but there are people all over Yale who need some support, compassion and relief.
“You can’t provide this support only in the toughest moments. It’s when people are in trouble that they are least likely to feel comfortable speaking up. Openness, encouragement, and understanding need to be cultivated long before hardship hits.”
Kids today need all the help we can give them to learn that the ability to open up to others about fears, doubts, and dreams is a key survival skill and a badge of strength. Then, once they learn that it’s OK, they need help learning how to do it – not just shoulder pats, but organized, facilitated peer coaching that lets the students develop the dialogue themselves.
I’m still working with Yale on this, and hopefully with more schools soon. A group of Yale Sophomores recently took a version of the myGreenlight training, translated for their specific environment by a couple of really bright students, and with a peer-coaching and support component built in. I was so moved and inspired by the enthusiastic response to the program. So many of them pushed past their comfort zones to share intimacy and vulnerability, and finished with better relationships and the knowledge that they could be themselves, warts included, and be respected and supported all the more.
Kate closes her piece with exactly the right suggestion (in fact, the one I’ve given many times) to give anyone the power to kickstart culture change where they learn, work, or play, in the absence of a formal program or help from leaders:
“Start small. Create the type of culture in your own life that you want to see across this campus. But start immediately. People close to you might need you more than they’re able to admit right now.”
Please share your ideas on how to help our kids open up. And thanks for listening.
I met Garrett at Summit Series and was so impressed by his success story launching his nonprofit (buoyed by advice from NEA!) that I asked him to contribute a blog. Audacity and the power of a great idea are the big drivers here. - KF
I was a college student when I co-founded SEE College Prep, a non-profit that has helped more than 1,300 low-income high school students improve their SAT scores an average of 200 points and become the first in their families to go on to college. At the time, I had no idea what it meant to raise large amounts of money, or the kinds of relationships I would need to build to do so.
Fortunately, a friend clued me in to Keith and Never Eat Alone and that wisdom has supported me ever since. It has been an extraordinary learning curve: in a short period of time, I went from not knowing a single person who could donate more than a few hundred dollars, to raising nearly $2 million in 18 months.
I followed my heart, risked embarrassment by asking simple questions, and found the courage to ask for people’s time and eventually money. I was empowered by the mission of what I was trying to achieve, and since I had a calling I knew that no request was too silly or too bold. I reached out to mentor after mentor—first professors, then non-profit leaders, then heavy hitters like Stanford University President John Hennessy and billionaires John Fisher, John Morgridge, and Laurene Powell Jobs. Not all of these conversations were successful, but I saw first-hand how little I knew and how much people were willing to help. Technology has helped people like me: many of the most impressive people I’ve met have agreed to meet following a cold e-mail; some of those people are my closest mentors and advisors today. Read more →
I am just back from my second trip to Guatemala, and am feeling more committed than ever to weaving volunteerism and service into corporate America’s culture. There are so many in need, and I believe that as in all real relationships, the benefits are mutual – we receive as much or more than we give.
This year, it wasn’t just “my” trip. I traveled to Antigua, one of Guatemala’s poorest regions, with a group of 11 others, all of whom not only volunteered but also made donations (along with some of you via Paypal!). Together these donations will send 25 of the brightest, most promising children to school and pay for food and health care. Thank you to the Livecchi Family, the Lim Family, Gold, Jordan, and those who donated online!
Media entrepreneur Joe Livecchi wrote a trip diary and shared the story of a moment that I think is a strong metaphor for the entire experience. After spraining his ankle and having to sit out some of the day’s fun activities, he wrote: “One of the boys I had talked to earlier came over to check on me. He offers me a piece of the candy he retrieved from the piñata to try and ease my pain… That's when it hit me. I had flown thousands of miles to help these kids and I was the one being comforted by an eight-year-old child who has almost nothing.”
Again, we get more than we give. In fellow traveler Max Lyons’ words, “The transformational impact we're seeking to have in the lives of these children is being returned to me just as much, if not more so.”
Joe’s daughter, Sophie, age 12, wrote her own blog. My favorite line from it: “I suddenly just figured out this whole new world of poverty. Nobody on the other side realizes this world. If everyone could get the experience that I got to come here... The other half would be more grateful, and this half could get more help.”
As I wrote on the blog, I went intending to fund 10 children. I finished the trip with a total of 41 names. Together, between my donations, those of everyone on the trip, plus Paypal, we now have enough money to support 25. That means we’re looking for donations to support 16 more. For $200, these kids can go to school and have their basic needs paid for. I mean it when I say no donation is too small: If everyone who reads this email donates just ONE dollar, we’ll more than cover the $3200 we need for those children, and be able to support several more projects in those villages through Cultural Exchange.
Click here to contribute. I will follow up next week and let you know whether we hit the target!
Thanks for reading – and I look forward to some of you coming on a future trip!
P.S. Check out Mark Goulston's Usable Insight mailings at: http://markgoulston.com and sign up at the NEWSLETTER SIGNUP window. I've been a subscriber for several years!
I heard today that my friend Chet Holmes, who has always been so generous with his time and advice is back in the hospital. Chet's fight with cancer this past year has been an inspiration to me. I saw he and his family for a wonderful and fun dinner with strong spirits the night before he went back into the hospital. My prayers are with him and I hope yours will be too.
Keith
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Subject: He reminded me of you so I funded his education and then another...
Hey Chet, you just changed some lives. Well, your inspiration of me prompted me to step up in your honor. These boys have the guts and courage and persistence of Chet Holmes. Through all you have dealt with this past year you remain an inspiration to me and I send you the gift of my love and admiration and also the knowledge that you have now changed two boys lives forever.
Here's the back story. I met Jose two years ago when we visited his school and he proceeded to follow us around all day in the village and act as our tour guide. Such charisma. We ended the tour back at his home which he was so proud of. It was a one room shack for he and his family with dirt floors but his pride was real and you could tell they kept the room as cleas as a dirt floor allowed. We left him and his family with food supplies to last months.
Well, last year we were originally scheduled to revisit Guatemala and Jose heard that the Americans were coming back. This is a boy who lives many miles from any bookstore but somehow found his way into the city and somehow bought a copy of my book (translated in spanish). He wanted to be able to say he read it and wanted me to sign it. We changed our plans and and ended up visiting Cambodia and Thailand. Then two years after having met Jose, we were visiting a school in another village and Jose found his way to us and when I turned around I saw this slightly older version (now 13) of our young "tour guide" proudly holding a copy of "Nunca Comas Solo." I was blown away.
Again we spent the afternoon with Jose. And if that wasn't enough, one other punctuating great moment. In your honor, I had given Jose the support he said was most important to he and his family and I was telling Jose that I really wanted him to go to school. It's a struggle to get these kids to attend school when their families need the money. Over my shoulder a little boy tapped me and said,"Do you want me to go to school?" I smiled as another little Chet found his way to me. "Yes, I do want you to go to school and I'll even pay for it." He responded, "How about college?" I laughed out loud and said, "Absolutely!" Knowing that my contribution in your honor had just taken an unexpected spike, but so joyful to reward such perseverant behavior in the face of whatever adversity. So Chet, you have changed the lives of these two young men, and may their gratitude and joy spread into your healing process and lift your already inspiring spirit.
Relationship Roundup - how to build relationships over the digital divide, best practices for accountability and generosity, and a new way to share your currency.
Ready for this month's master's mission? If you try it, you'll benefit not only from "vuja de" but from the opportunity to connect with two members of your network. Enjoy! - KF
On this month’s myGreenlight Social Capitalist webinar, agenda-setting writer, Fast Company co-founder and entrepreneur Bill Taylor explained what he calls “vuja de.” We all know what déjà vu means: the feeling that a new situation already happened. Bill flips the term to describe the experience of examining the industry you've been in for so long -- and suddenly seeing it differently.
The need to continually self-evaluate and evolve is necessary to be truly successful, especially in this economy. We all get into routines in every aspect of our lives and find ourselves doing things a certain way because that is how they’ve always been done. Don’t let your expertise get in the way of innovation.
Your Mission: Pick a current professional challenge you're facing. You can make this as big (raise company’s sales revenue) or small (payroll went out late) as you want. Instead of going to your staff or coworkers for advice, call two contacts in different industries and ask for their input. Have they had similar problems with solutions that could be adapted to fit your scenario? Note how these conversations change your perspective. Did they produce new insight you couldn't have come up with on your own? That's the goal.
What practices do you use to get a fresh perspective on something
The child they are sponsoring, Abner, is 10 years old and a 4th-grade student at San Miguel Milpas Altas. He lives with his mother, grandmother, and brothers in a small tin house with a cement floor.
Well, last year we were originally scheduled to revisit Guatemala and Jose heard that the Americans were coming back. This is a boy who lives many miles from any bookstore but somehow found his way into the city and somehow bought a copy of my book (translated in spanish). He wanted to be able to say he read it and wanted me to sign it. We changed our plans and and ended up visiting Cambodia and Thailand. Then two years after having met Jose, we were visiting a school in another village and Jose found his way to us and when I turned around I saw this slightly older version (now 13) of our young "tour guide" proudly holding a copy of "Nunca Comas Solo." I was blown away.
network. Enjoy! - KF
