the power of grateful
Posted: November 26, 2010 Filed under: community, general | Tags: community, family, friends, Thanksgiving Leave a comment »In the Americas, especially the US and Canada, today is Thanksgiving: the day to look back at the hardships we have endured and to count the blessings we enjoy, especially having gotten through those hardships.
The food is part of it, the family gatherings, the football (I remember the men all gathering around to watch the Army-Navy game when I was a child–big Navy family), and if we remember to do it, we look around at one another and realize how lucky we really are.
Yes, even in the midst of the aforementioned hardships, we’re still lucky. Blessed, if you will.
And now, in these uncertain years, we would do well to remember it. While yet we breathe, we still have phenomenal opportunity to get it right, or make it right, whatever “it” happens to be: the chance to forgive a loved one, even if you can’t do it to his or her face; the chance to change a bad habit or change your heart or recognize hurt or love and do something about it.
This past year, I spent most of my time in New York, working on a contract that turned out to be a great opportunity for learning, even while I struggled with my own demons and my own body’s reaction (not good) to living in Manhattan. As much as I love New York, as I like to say, New York doesn’t love me so much.
In the end, though, I came away with vast new knowledge, new affiliations, new experience and a much better understanding of my own abilities–and perhaps more importantly, my own limitations.
I came home.
To East Tennessee.
Yep, I can now call it home, because it is. I was greeted by friends who had missed me, warts and all; greeted by one of the most gently beautiful landscapes in the world; greeted by my humble home, of which I am now so proud, because it’s my humble home.
So this year, I’m grateful for my home, my family, all of whom I love; grateful for my friends, to whom I can now give my whole heart and not hold part of it back for greener pastures; grateful for the experiences, good and bad, that make me who I am today; grateful for surviving my difficult life and continuing to learn from it.
There’s so much more, because I’m certain as I’m sitting here that there are a zillion more blessings of which I’m not aware.
And I’m grateful because I had a truly lovely day today, and tomorrow is another day, another chance to get something right, do something good, choose something beautiful.
And always to love.
the power of an emergency
Posted: June 16, 2009 Filed under: community | Tags: community, domestic violence, emergency shelter, Haven House Leave a comment »Haven House in Maryville Tennessee, which specializes in crisis intervention, prevention and education around domestic violence, has itself suffered a crisis in the last couple of weeks: a kitchen fire has rendered the emergency shelter nearly unusable, leaving many domestic violence victims with no place to go. Read the rest of this entry »
the power of community
Posted: March 19, 2009 Filed under: clients, design, economy | Tags: AIG, AIG scandal, bailout, business ethics, Cafe Femenino, coffee, community, compassion, economy, ethic, ethics, Haven House, local economy, obama, president, trickle-down economics, Vienna Coffee Company 1 Comment »
Haven House web site relaunched 18 March
Today we re-launched Haven House‘s web site (http://www.havenhousetn.org) with an upgraded version of the Joomla! content management system. We’re particularly excited about this launch!
The design of the site is mostly the same as the previous version, with a few minor enhancements, but that’s not what gets us so excited.
What really has us going is that we added a shopping cart.
What does an online shopping cart have to do with domestic violence?
For the first time, Haven House has an online platform to raise money for the shelter and raise awareness in the community in one fell swoop. We’ve started with a few items: an upcoming benefit ride, a car magnet, and awareness bracelets. Best of all, Haven House is offering Café Femenino coffee, with the help of another SheTech and Company client, Vienna Coffee Company.
Coffee?
Yes, coffee.
Every once in a while, a project or idea comes along that truly represents the “everyone wins” model. Café Femenino is one such project, and in this case, benefits the community here at home and the global community.
Let’s start at home
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of Café Femenino either through the Haven House web site or through Vienna Coffee Company, directly benefits Haven House. This helps pay operating expenses and other costs associated with both maintaining the shelter and building awareness in the community.
Also, given that Vienna Coffee Company is a local business, the sale of the coffee helps maintain our own economy here at home.
Now let’s expand our view
Women now make up nearly 30% of the coffee growers in the world, while still having far fewer rights than men in their local communities. In response to this inequity, Café Femenino was formed as a coalition to help women growers gain the same rights as their male counterparts. The coalition, which started in Peru, now represents women coffee growers around the world. It has helped build social programs and support networks, aiding these women in their struggles against poverty and abuse.
Now take an even longer view
The coffee grown by Café Femenino producers is not only certified Fair Trade coffee, it is organic. So the communities in which the coffee is grown benefit as economic inequalities are remedied, and organic growing practices help ensure that the environment is cared for, promising a cleaner future for the green earth and its people and–let’s bring it back home–buyers get coffee that is free of damaging and dangerous chemicals.
See? Everybody wins.
The common good
In light of all the news about the economy, the shocking AIG bonuses in particular, we need to remember that ethical decisions are those made with the common good at their center. In his reaction to the AIG scandal, President Obama used the word “ethic”, which very few reporters seem to be picking up. “Ethic” does have a place in economic policy–or it should! It’s the lack of ethic that has gotten us into this pickle.
On a daily basis, in our normal, everyday lives, our community should be at the heart of our decisions. There’s nothing at all wrong with monetary gain; however, “Does it serve the greater good?” should be the question we always pose to ourselves. At top levels, for decades (centuries? millenia?) failed policies have been rationalized with a failed model (sometimes called the “trickle-down” theory). It doesn’t work. It hasn’t worked for a long time, and now it’s falling apart before our eyes. Greed begets greed.
And compassion begets compassion.
Let’s keep compassion at the heart of our decisions.
Learn more
Buy Café Femenino at Haven House’s web site: http://www.havenhousetn.org.
Learn more about the Café Femenino project at their web site: http://www.cafefemenino.com
Rebekkah Hilgraves
Theresa
andyscherer
Peter Mancini
alexasteele
