Charity Matters Inspiration Archives - Page 28 of 37

Charity Matters Inspiration October 7, 2015

Dream it

“If you can dream it, you can achieve it.”

Zig Ziglar

I love big dreams. As I mentioned last week, I am a bit of a dreamer myself. What I love almost more than dreaming is being surrounded by people who think big, have a vision and go for it.

Last week I was in Texas for meetings at TCU and had the privilege of hearing the story of a big dream about football. The dream was about becoming part of the Big 12 Conference. As I listened to the story about this dream, it was clear that in order to make the dream a reality, the vision needed to be shared and the dream needed to become everyone else’s dream too.

Then came the how to achieve it, or the breakdown of the vision and the steps towards the goal. A long path with many on the road of a shared vision and purpose. Of course, it wouldn’t be a happy ending without the realization of the dream and becoming a part of the Big 12 Conference.

Regardless of the dream, these stories refuel me in wondering what are my big dreams? And make me ask myself am I dreaming big enough? I do believe if you dream it, you can achieve it.

What are your big dreams?

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Charity Matters Inspiration September 28, 2015

Dreaming Big

I was raised by parents who told me I could do or be anything and somewhere along the line I began to believe them. “No” has never been a word in my vocabulary, for better or for worse. Did I mention that being stubborn is also part of the equation? The result of this is being a bit of big dreamer.

Over a decade ago, a friend reached out and asked a group of us girls for help. He was the one of two chaplains at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. He shared his vision for help, support, families having chaplains of all faiths before surgeries, end of life, celebrations and simply someone trained to listen and provide faith and hope. It was a tall order for a group of women who had never started a non-profit before but a perfect big dream.

Within a year of the launch of The Spiritual Care Guild we had chaplains 24 hours a day 7 days a week. But big dreamers don’t stop at that, they keep going because once one dream is achieved, its time to make the dream bigger. Each year the Spiritual Care Department grew as did its integral role in the hospital, with staff and patient families.

Like all good dreams, they can’t come to an end. Then five years ago, the dream expanded to having a chapel that would accommodate people of all faiths, families, patients, staff and give them a place to pray, to think, to hope and to dream. This was the biggest dream of all, especially in a hospital where real estate is reserved for medicine and all that goes with providing excellent health care to tiny patients.

However, last week that dream became a reality. I stood in the physical space, now a construction site, that will become the new Interfaith Center at CHLA. It was such an amazing moment to see what happens when people come together with a common goal, a big dream and a huge team effort. Dreams do come true and the bigger the dream the better!

Charity Matters.

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Charity Matters Inspiration September 23, 2015

One important non-profit leader: Pope Francis

This week marks an important visit as Pope Francis heads to the United States. While most of us see Pope Francis as the leader of the Catholic Church and some as a symbol of hope, we often forget that he is also the head of one of the largest social-service organizations and non-profits in the world. Because of that Francis for many is a symbol of charity.

The Pope is not only an advocate for the poor and the suffering but also the leader of an organization with over 68 million members in America alone, and the largest religious denomination in the United States. The Catholic Church supports and runs schools, hospitals, and hundreds of Catholic Colleges to name a few.

Last year Catholic Charities USA, which works to reduce poverty in the U.S., ranked number 7 on the Philanthropy top 400, raising more than most of the non-profits in the United States. Many are attributing the spike in giving to the enthusiasm about Pope Francis. His message of love, compassion and charity can often be found on his twitter feed. Last January 24th he said, “Practicing charity is the best way to evangelize.”

This week the United States welcomes Pope Francis and his message of hope to all.

Charity Matters.

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Charity Matters Inspiration September 17, 2015

All you need is love….

“I live in a small town where things rarely change.” This is the opening line from Steve Martin’s movie, Father of the Bride that references the tiny suburb I live in outside of LA. However, today this statement isn’t as true as it once was, things they are a changing.

Our little town is infamous for having great people hail from it who changed our world. Henry Huntington, one of the first railroad barons and General George Patton, to name a few. One of the most recent, is someone you have never heard of, but in her short life she created enormous change, her name was Sophia Tam.

Sophia was a bright light who was inspired by her grandfather at the early age of 10 to help the children of Burma, who were fleeing war, poverty and enormous challenges. Sophia’s teacher Erin, learned about these children and traveled to Burma or modern-day Myanmar to see first hand. Almost immediately, Erin and Sophia began working, fundraising, advocating and donating their summers to begin to build what would become the non-profit All You Need is Love, which supports the Good Morning School.

Sophia was diagnosed with brain cancer her junior year in high school and despite treatments she was undeterred in her commitment to these children. Three weeks before Sophia died at age 18, in August 2013, she hosted a fundraiser to keep this school open. This weekend her family will do the same once again and continue to spread her message of All you need is love charity.org.

Change only happens when people educate their hearts and their minds in tandem. Sophia Tam was and will continue to be a change-maker who has left her imprint on our tiny town and the world with her love, light and compassion for others.

Charity Matters.

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Charity Matters Inspiration September 15, 2015

A Gift from the Sea

As I mentioned last week, the need to run, to escape and to take a breathe….I found myself heading towards the ocean with a gloomy mind on a brilliant sunny day. Salt, sea and sand have been a life long source of peace, happiness and comfort. I realized quickly that I wasn’t running but rather running on empty. That vicious cycle of giving until there was nothing to give.

I arrived with journals, stacks of books, and “plans to relax.” However, the ocean had bigger plans. The sound of surf that lulls you to nap, the warm water that calls you in and the miles of sand that beg to be walked upon and the pile of projects quickly became a distant thought.

One book that I brought along with me was Anne Morrow Lindenberg’s, A Gift From The Sea. As I opened the first chapter these words told me all I needed to know,”One becomes, in fact, like the element on which one lies, flattened by the sea; bare, open, empty as the beach, erased by today’s tides and of all yesterday’s scribblings.”

I came to the sea for peace, solitude and renewal but what the sea gave me was much more. It gave me the moment to look inward for strength, to find my core and to know that giving must come with purpose. Anne Lindenberg’s words were my thoughts, “Only when one is connected to ones own core is one connected to others. For me, the core, the inner spring, can be best refound through solitude.”

As I leave the beach on a gloomy cloudy day it is with a sunny attitude for all that lies ahead, for the gratitude of friends, family and the life I am blessed to have and with a renewed focus on what really matters.

Charity Matters.

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Charity Matters Inspiration September 11, 2015

Find Your Sanctuary

On the heels of the “mid-life crisis” post, a girlfriend sent this to me. It spoke to me beyond words and was created for a new ad campaign in Great Britain called Find Your Sanctuary.

Next week, I have decided to go in search of my sanctuary for a few days. A time to relax, breathe, reflect, write and simply be.

Charity Matters.

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Cancer September 4, 2015

A fight song

The other day I went to the dentist for my annual appointment. My dental hygienist, who has become my friend over the past decade of having my mouth held captive, did not look like her usual perky self. I only see her twice a year but she somehow feels like a dear friend every time we visit. I asked her about her children who are the same age as mine and as the tears began to flow, she shared that her college age son was just diagnosed with cancer.

I came home devastated and in shock at how quickly lives are altered by the words, “You have cancer.” As I scrolled through Facebook as a distraction, I came across this and felt compelled to share.

Having spent over a decade at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, supporting families in crisis, this spoke to me on so many levels. Coincidentally, September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Life can change on a dime, one never knows and it is the power of love, compassion and a fight song that makes it all worth the fight.

Charity Matters.

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Charity Matters Inspiration August 28, 2015

The Alchemist

“The closer one gets to realizing his destiny, the more that destiny becomes his true reason for being.”

Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

My girlfriend and I were talking the other day about our lives and this new chapter, as we have launched our children. I mentioned my favorite book of all time, The Alchemist, a story about a young boy’s journey through life and the lessons learned along the way. The conversation inspired me to pick the book up, yet again and revisit the story.

No matter how often I read it, I always feel as if I come away enlightened. So as I look to the year ahead and the next chapter, I do so knowing that each day brings me closer to my purpose. It is the journey, that is the joy of being alive.

Charity Matters.

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Charity Matters Inspiration August 19, 2015

Millennials

There is much said about the millennials, that generation born between the 80s and the turn of the millennium. Many of the generalizations have to do with young tech obsessed hipster professionals that are self-absorbed and ego-centric. However, a new study from The Case Foundation, says that these generalizations could not be farther from the truth.

The study is entitled, “How Millennials are Changing the Definition of Philanthropy,” says that this generation is among the most generous and committed members of society. Like everything they do they are changing the face of philanthropy. Forty-eight percent of these millennials are using their skills and talents, combined with technology to volunteer.

This philanthropic trend is not only helping this generation with their resumes and experiences, it is also helping non-profits to thrive with fresh and innovative ideas and volunteers. It is easy to size up this bearded, coffee, boba loving generation as self-centered but we all have it wrong. These young hipsters are paving the way for an exciting new chapter in how we as a society share and give our talents to help others. This is as hip as it gets in my world.

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Charity Matters Inspiration August 7, 2015

The greatest power of all

I was scrolling through Facebook the other day in procrastination mode and I came across this post that was supposedly a lost letter from Albert Einstein to his daughter. Fact checking, yes we do that here, proved that sadly this letter was a fake. However, I decided that I wanted to share it with you regardless of its origin because it is beautiful….whoever the author.

There is an extremely powerful force that, so far, science has not found a formal explanation to. It is a force that includes and governs all others, and is even behind any phenomenon operating in the universe and has not yet been identified by us.

This universal force is LOVE.

When scientists looked for a unified theory of the universe they forgot the most powerful unseen force.

Love is Light, that enlightens those who give and receive it. Love is gravity, because it makes some people feel attracted to others.

Love is power, because it multiplies the best we have, and allows humanity not to be extinguished in their blind selfishness. Love unfolds and reveals.

For love we live and die.

Love is God and God is Love.

This force explains everything and gives meaning to life. This is the variable that we have ignored for too long, maybe because we are afraid of love because it is the only energy in the universe that man has not learned to drive at will.

After the failure of humanity in the use and control of the other forces of the universe that have turned against us, it is urgent that we nourish ourselves with another kind of energy.

If we want our species to survive, if we are to find meaning in life, if we want to save the world and every sentient being that inhabits it, love is the one and only answer.

Perhaps we are not yet ready to make a bomb of love, a device powerful enough to entirely destroy the hate, selfishness and greed that devastate the planet.

However, each individual carries within them a small but powerful generator of love whose energy is waiting to be released.

When we learn to give and receive this universal energy, we will have affirmed that love conquers all, is able to transcend everything and anything, because love is the quintessence of life.

Charity Matters.

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Charity Matters Inspiration August 5, 2015

Mothers to the Rescue

Our sons have all attended a high school with the motto, “Men for Others.” Service is at the core of the school’s philosophy. As a result, the most remarkable young men come from this school and George De La Rosa, is no exception. When I heard what this junior in high school has done, it brought tears to my eyes. George is the founder of the volunteer service called Mothers to the Rescue. He was inspired to help children who are growing up without a mother, as he has. His goal, to simply provide a mom…even if temporarily…. to help provide those “mom moments” of back to school shopping, getting ready for prom or even the holidays.

“I created this organization because I was forced to grow up throughout most of my life without a mother. When I was seven, my mother unexpectedly died due to a complication during surgery. I want to give others what I never had and that is the opportunity of having a strong helpful mother figure to teach him/her lessons that only a woman can teach. I want to provide others with the opportunity to have a strong woman who can “come to the rescue” and help shop for school clothes, prepare for proms, dates, and have the ability to ask any questions about life.”

George began pairing his volunteer moms with children in need just around Valentine’s Day this past year and is currently applying for his non-profit status.

“Every Child deserves a mother, and I want to afford all young people who grew up without a mom, the opportunity to experience love and life lessons from a woman.” George is living proof of being a “Man for others” and I am sure his mother is smiling down on him and all those children whose lives he changes.

Charity Matters.

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Charity Matters Inspiration July 31, 2015

For Max

As many of you have read here, Max Paige (aka Little Darth Vadar) and his family have become dear friends of Charity Matters. Max was born with a congenital heart defect and over the course of the last 10 years has had 9 surgeries. This week Max will undergo yet another surgery on his heart.

His mother Jennifer said, “When Max was an infant, he had an incredible will to live. At age 4, he asked how much surgery would hurt? At 7, he wanted to know why he needed to go through with this and now at 10 he is keenly aware of time and how precious it is.”

Max and his family have used his celebrity and innate goodness as a platform for so many wonderful causes. He is wise beyond his years and he and his brother are two of the most philanthropic young people I have ever had the privilege of knowing, thanks to their inspiring parents.

This is his theme song for the next leg of his journey and I wanted to share it all with you, in hopes that you can send a prayer or kind thought his way in the next few days and weeks.

Max as always uses his experience to make others lives better, even at the tender age of 10. His hope is that if someone is inspired to do something because of his journey, that they would consider supporting a place that has given him so much and become a second home, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and the Heart Ambassadors program. Max here is to you and the good fight!

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Charity Matters Inspiration July 29, 2015

A New York State of Mind

Last week I was in New York City with friends, a city that I love to visit. The energy and the frenetic pace take this Angelo’s breath away every time I am there. The word that comes to mind when I see New Yorker’s in action is, alive. There is something so special about the city, the people and the passion of New Yorker’s that is contagious.

On a stunning day in the city, walking along the High line I found myself wondering how do New Yorker’s give back? Where do they volunteer? My first place I checked was Yelp and the top rated New York non-profit (according to Yelp) was an organization called New York Cares.

The organization began in the late 1980s, when a group of friends wanted to take action against some serious social issues that New York City was facing. Finding few options to help, they created their own organization to address the problems from the ground up. Their mission was mobilize caring New Yorker’s into volunteer service.

New York Cares is now the city’s largest volunteer management organization, running volunteer programs for 1,300 nonprofits, city agencies, and public schools. They have more than 62,000 volunteers who volunteer annually with them and together help over 400,000 disadvantaged New Yorker’s each year. That passion and love that New Yorker’s have for their city and one another continues to make New York more than just a state of mind.

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Charity Matters Inspiration July 15, 2015

Special Olympics

A few years ago, I attended Maria Shriver’s first Women’s Conference in Long Beach which had previously been set up as an event for the Governor’s wife. Of course, at the time Maria was the Governor’s wife and she used that platform to create an event to empower and honor women. It was an extraordinary day that I will never forget. Oprah spoke and we then watched Maria honor her mother, Eunice, who was the founder of The Special Olympics.

Next week the Special Olympics World Games will come to my hometown in Los Angeles, to celebrate their 14th Special Olympic Games. When I saw this tribute, I thought you should too.

Maria and I don’t have much in common, but we both had mothers that told us we could be anything and do anything. It is that belief, when installed in another that will inspire more than 7,000 Special Olympics athletes from 170 nations to compete in 25 Olympic-type sports. These athletes will demonstrate their courage, determination and spirit of sportsmanship, just as their founder Eunice Shriver did from the very beginning…..bringing the gift of possibility to all.

Charity Matters.

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