The Adventure Continues

When I got back from this trip, I thought that my South African adventure was over. Little did I know it was really just the start of something bigger. What has happened in the past month has really solidified my belief that everything in life happens for a reason. It may sound idealistic, but despite my periodic fits of anxiety about what I'm doing with my life (I know, its hard to believe that I'm not always so composed), it seems that everything that has happened in the past few years, as much as I might not understand it at the time, has led me to exactly where I think I should be. While I will take credit for making some things happen, I think others are just pure luck and coincidence and having some great friends that have helped me to make connections, like my wonderful friend Naomi who I owe for my new job. For those of you who don't know, I just took a position as Executive Director of Champions of Caring, the organization I've been working with since around April.

Shortly after I came back from South Africa, my boss, Barbara, headed there on safari and what was meant to be a vacation. I have learned in my short time working for Barb that she is never on vacation...everywhere she goes and everyone she talks to, she brings her passion for our work and her mission along with her. Before she left, I set up a meeting for her with Bob in Kliptown. As soon as Barb arrived in Cape Town, a series of events began that led us to where we are now...to make a long story short, Barb somehow ended up giving a presentation to a group of 50 young black South African women who were touring the Holocaust Museum in CapeTown. The director of the museum heard her speak, and put her in contact with another Barbara, who is the director of an organization called Ma Afrika Tikkun. Tikkun is a Jewish term meaning, as I understand it "to fix" or "to repair"..so, Fix My Africa. Nelson Mandela is on their board, and they were founded by a very high profile, very wealthy group of philanthropists. Fast forward a few days and a few 4 hour dinner meetings, and Barbara 1 took representatives of Barbara 2's organization with her to meet Bob in Kliptown. As with my experience with Bob, they were all inspired. And so, Ma Afrika Tikkuns' Champions of Caring program was born.

Right now, we are working on developing a pilot program that will match 30 South African students with 30 of our students. We will provide curriculum, training and support and they will run a parallel program to our Ambassadors of Caring Leadership Program. Students in Cape Town and eventually Johannesburg and Kliptown and students here in Philly will share their work on service projects through email, video conferences and letters. We want them to think about this in terms of a cultural experience, but also in looking at the universality of many of the problems that they face in their communities. While I feel that working locally is important, I also think that our kids need a global perspective and an awareness of what is going on outside of their Philadelphia block or Main Line bubble. For the South African students, I think its important for them to understand that while their problems might be more severe, they aren't alone.

Right now, unfortunately, Bob and SKY do not have the resources to get our programs up and running. To give an update, it has become increasingly difficult to get funds and ship items to Kliptown, so Bob has been very nervous about the future of the organization. We haven't forgotten about him and will continue to support him and keep SKY involved any way we can, but for now Ma Afrika Tikkun is jumping on the chance to work with us. Our hope is that they will be able to provide support on the ground in South Africa for Bob once they establish the program, more effectively than we can from here. Also, we may be able to ship things directly to Ma Afrika Tikkun and have them deliver them for us.

A sidenote to all of this which puts an exciting (and maybe somewhat selfish) spin on the project: Barb has had a book proposal in the works for years. I have my own vision for a book geared more towards kids. Our hope is to compile the correspondence between the students and their experiences into a documentary or book. Think Freedom Writers....any suggestions for who would I want to play me in the movie? Julia Roberts is my obvious choice, but may be getting a little too old:) We want to show the positive work that our kids are doing in Philly and around the world.

So, that is the evolution of my South African adventure up until this point. Now, what exactly is my motivation for returning to my blogging career? Part of it is a selfish way for me to keep a record of what I'm doing and reflect on it. Part of it is getting over my hestitation to share my work, my ideas and my writing. And, I will admit that part of the reason for this blog is that I find it really hard to explain what it is that I do for work sometimes, and I think we all know that I have a tendency to downplay things that I am involved in. So, if you are ever wondering what exactly it is that I'm doing (sometimes I'm not even so sure!), here it is. Also, I never want to push my family and friends to get involved, but well, that just might happen on here also...so you are warned. From time to time I may also just go off on random rants or post articles that I think are interesting.

Also, I really want to invite everyone to post their ideas, comments, and things they might be involved in! I know a lot of my friends are involved in really cool and inspiring work, and I want to share that as well.

If you want to know more about the organizations involved in this new project:

My organization: http://www.championsofcaring.org/ (its under construction)

Ma Afrika Tikkun: http://www.maafrikatikkun.org.za/

SKY: http://www.sky-foundation.org/

I hope you all enjoy and share your thoughts and ideas!

Brie