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Posts Tagged ‘non-profit’

Get Inspired! Meet John Miller

March 9, 2010

John Miller is a sweet, articulate and friendly person. I met him on twitter, and we hit it off immediately. I’d say we have similar values and we both care about others — and we’re kinda quirky in a fun way! In fact, when I asked him to send me a picture, he sent one where he’s dressed as a sheep for Halloween. I love it! John says the picture “expresses his oddness.”

Read about some of his life experiences and how they’ve made him who he is today. He’s an ambitious and caring blind individual with a passion for life that’s sure to inspire you!

ATG: What do you do “for a living?”
John: Currently, I torture myself by attending graduate school for rehab counseling and psychology. My ultimate goal is to find a way to bring people with disabilities and travel together.

ATG: What’s your favorite childhood memory?
John: My first airplane trip, which was from Charlotte to Los Angeles. We were headed out there to compete in an event called the Braille Institute Olympics. We trained for months, but were still slower runners than most of the other athletes there. I didn’t care though, as I got to meet some celebrities and visit Magic Mountain amusement park.

ATG: Have you ever been discriminated against or treated poorly for being who you are?
John: I was once denied a chance at employment when the hiring person heard that I was blind. She told me and my job placement specialist to turn around and leave because “he can’t even see the screen!” This was before we even pulled into the parking lot.

I know it’s something I should have fought, but I lacked the advocacy skills to do so at the time. It gave me a taste of how cold and cruel some people can really be.

ATG: What do you believe in?
John: I believe there’s ultimate goodness in people. Despite me mentioning how cold and cruel some people are, I have actually had many more positive experiences.

ATG: What are your life goals?
John: To gain a real sense of independence for myself. Then, I’ll reach out to help others do the same.

ATG: What do you do to “de-stress?”
John: Turn the volume way up and bounce around! You’d be surprised at how getting your blood flowing can change things. I admit that if things are looking particularly bad, I might crawl into bed either for a short nap or an early crash. I think the first method is actually more effective.
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To Write Love on Her Arms

February 4, 2010

You know me. I find something. Ask about it. Love it. Then tell a million people.

I was at the Moorestown Mall the other day; I was looking for a “crazy” tee-shirt. After all, I can’t possibly celebrate my birthday without wearing a random tee-shirt. Of course, I stop at the “kiddie” shops — Journeys, Hot Topic, Pacific Sunwear … Zumiez. I really like that skater-ish stuff, even though I’m going to be 30 in four days. Kinda too old, but whatever!

So I see this shirt — a few shirts — that say “To Write Love on Her Arms.” I didn’t know what that meant. I thought I should buy it, and it would be cute. I love my Billy and I love to write! Plus, Billy already said I shouldn’t wear what I wanted to wear — an airbrush tee that said “The Future Mrs. Meise.” (He said that’s a bachelorette appropriate shirt.)

So back to this “To Write Love on Her Arms” tee. Loved it. So I asked the guy at Zumiez what it meant. What really happened was …. I said – “I’m old. What does this mean?”

This is what I pulled from the site:
To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.

Part of their vision:
• The vision is that we would learn what it means to love our friends, and that we would love ourselves enough to get the help we need.
• The vision is better endings. The vision is the restoration of broken families and broken relationships. The vision is people finding life, finding freedom, finding love. The vision is graduation, a Super Bowl, a wedding, a child, a sunrise. The vision is people becoming incredible parents, people breaking cycles, making change.
• The vision is the possibility that your best days are ahead.
• The vision is the possibility that we’re more loved than we’ll ever know.
• The vision is hope, and hope is real.
• You are not alone, and this is not the end of your story.

I am so impressed with this organization. Now … I’m going to Facebook fan them, follow them on twitter, and email someone there to let them know I’m digging it. If you like it too … do the same!! Read about the organization, be inspired and do what you can to help others that need it. Open your heart!

Photo by euanmayte.

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A Good Idea

January 14, 2010

Jared’s story is a great one! It’s about passion, purpose and “living the life.” I hope you find it inspirational and uplifting. I also hope you take a few minutes to help his non-profit, A Good Idea, win $1 million! A Good Idea connects people in need with people who want to help — but it’s actually much more than that.You’ll learn all about it below.

Right now, you can take action. Vote for A Good Idea in the Chase Community Giving contest between January 15 to January 22 by clicking here. Please send the link – http://tinyurl.com/ydm6d3o – to your friends and family as well!

ATG: Tell me about yourself.

JP: My name is Jared Paul, I am 33 years old, and I’m the founder of the San Francisco nonprofit, A Good Idea.

ATG: Tell me about significant things in your life that have let up to A Good Idea.

JP: About two years ago, I went through a major life transformation. I like to call it a “1/3 life crisis.” It happened after a break-up with a girl that I lived with at the time. I had been so stuck living by societal standards and making decisions for so long that would make other people happy. After my break-up, I started digging deeper into my spiritual self and realized that I wanted to take my natural skills — which I had been using for almost eight years in business development and sales — to start helping those in need.

Since surrendering to and accepting what “was” and most importantly, what “is” in the present moment, the most incredible synchronicities — or as some people call them coincidences — have occurred. Once you stop trying to control your destiny and just live your life, amazing things will happen.

ATG: What is A Good Idea?

JP: A Good Idea, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is a vehicle for positive social change ideas that connect people in need with people who want to help. We have been fully volunteer-driven since our formation and have served thousands of people in need with virtually zero funding. A Good Idea is in the process of bringing a first-of-its-kind, fully accredited residential high school for homeless teens to San Francisco.

ATG: What was the motivation behind it?

JP: The motivation behind A Good Idea was to get people together who were going through a similar life transformation that I was going through, to better ourselves as human beings so that we could ultimately provide a higher level of service to those in need.

ATG: What do you envision for A Good Idea?

JP: My long-term vision for A Good Idea is to have a few different divisions of the organization that focus on different social issues. Some of those might be homelessness and poverty, the environment and people in need (for example, cancer patients, the deaf and blind communities, personal growth). We’d have people come to us with their “good ideas” and we’ll help them bring them to fruition. Then, we’ll truly live up to our mission of being a vehicle for people’s positive social change ideas!

ATG: How has A Good Idea made a difference for people?

JP: A Good Idea has made a huge difference in both the lives of the people we serve, predominantly the homeless, and in the lives of the people that are serving those in need. At all times we are trying to strengthen and connect our society through service, which ultimately builds compassion and empathy.

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