I had a chance to have work with a group of mid-twenty something year old’s on a local event in San Francisco. A couple weeks after the event they came to PFA to proudly produce a check for $400.00 donation. I took this young woman to lunch with her friend and spent the next hour or so being peppered with questions. …..the differences between the SF social scene from when I was their age to today…25 years have passed since that SF was my “playground”… and it was not until I started bench pressing 30, which seemed so ancient at the time, that I looked around and decided I wanted to chase the almighty dollar… but for good things…not to let my boss park another Porsche in his garage, giving me a gold watch and Christmas bonus…to make money for good.
Most unexpected were the questions about how do you become a non profit? How do I build my career and build a non profit cause that I want to champion? These questions, which clearly had much soul searching, struck me. Here I am, looking like Carol King is having lunch with Coco Channel and yet not much has changed. Those dogged questions and desire to be more than a paycheck, how to build a life of integrity, with meaning and soul brought me right back to 1989…when all those questions and MORE tugged at my heart..my soul..my being. The only thing different is that now I am me, 25 years later, and can look back and tell these kids with confidence…nothing has changed….have a deep faith, driving passion and commitment and be open to the fact you probably won’t get most of what you pray for. Not because what you want is not right …. it is that NOW that you are looking, searching… the Universe will reach out to you and bring to you blessings that you never saw coming!
I could have never imaged the people who are now in my life, the places I have seen in this fine country and the raw soul of American communities who care so deeply and completely that you are compelled in ways that drive you to the next level of faith, hope and validation. You can pray for the teddy bear, but sometimes you end up with the whole damm toy store! This is not a money thing…but it is as, all I do is fund raise funds to help PE teachers and their schools…but is not about money, because if they did not have that inner spirit drive and calling to do what they do …I would not find what moves me and PFA forward. People always say “You could sell yesterday’s newspaper!”. ..these kids said that too…but my reply is the same one I gave, at 19 years old, when someone said that to me for the first time,…..”No I can not…I don’t believe in it.”
I do believe in the future generation and their passion and heart to be more than a paycheck. The “old guard” has an audience that can lift up and embrace the young people of this country. We see this everyday at PFA …the nurturing, the sharing the rallying behind those who are called to give. We succeed not because we push our message, we succeed because we help the next generation find their own voice and message and support the teachers who are in the field right now, who will wake up tomorrow morning and work with 25 kids every hour on the hour and change their lives. I will say this again and again…..this nation will NEVER solve the obesity epidemic as long as PE Teachers are left on the side lines and taken out of the equation… okay I am off track and on a soap box….
I sent the kids packing after lunch to a good friend’s winery, Delecutus, and returned to the office and looked at our list of Bay Area schools. One recently emailed us to tell us she needed more PFA Fitness Cups for her students. I cannot wait to call her in the morning to tell her I have 2,000 to donate because of these young people who cared enough to raise the funds, drive to our offices and do this thing. Next week about 500 kids are going to be red faced, sweating and smiling as they work so hard to do fitness activities to earn those cups and build, as a team in creative fitness play, where their imagination takes them….the great wall of China, the pyramids of Egypt or entomb the teacher… and to show this teacher, once again, their commitment matters. That is why we do what we do and why giving a hand up to the next generation is what makes our charity great and this country great. Some things never change and for this I am glad.
Experience & age are great teachers but knowing yourself invites wisdom more quickly!
Finally had a chance to read this. Beautifully written and inspiring. Make that SUPER inspiring!
hello we gabriel de la Fuente and Rodrigo Jorquera, physical education students from the Universidad Catolica del Maule, Chile. We read your blog because it seemed interesting to create new prospects for physical education, which may not seem absolete or monotonous, also seems important to us that so many people with this interest as us, and around the world, and so is achieved the problems caused by obesity and physical inactivity may be diminished and some day quisaz eliminated.
congratulations on this idea, was very helpful thank you very much, we hope to continue with this and good luck. goodbye
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