kindness Reverberates Around the Globe
By Jan Tanis
Of course, hindsight is 20-20. With our experience level today we can see how one simple act has influenced the last twelve years.
During our travels in Africa in 2007, we had a brief encounter with a boy in a village in Uganda. Purchasing a carved gorilla, and learning about the young man who carved it, changed our lives. From this chance encounter, and the subsequent emails, grew a depth of understanding that inspired us. We helped him with his education and the snowball started rolling. To be open to this relationship has been the basis for so much.
Helping a student achieve his or her dream shows a rural community that others care. That kindness inspires others; the feeling that they are not alone, the inspiration to help someone else, the confidence to try for something they felt was unachievable.
One project led to many others, with the people hired to work on one project volunteering their time for the next undertaking. The entire development of a large network of supporters in Uganda and in the US began with that conversation in the village. It opened a door to a world that desperately needs some kindness and a never-ending array of possibilities to be of help. We receive more than we give; the kindness reverberates around the globe when people jump in to assist Bwindi Community Program in any way that they are able.
Kindness enhances lives and empowers a new generation to do the same. We are all just people trying to make sure that children are safe and have a future. It is still evolving; one act of kindness begets another and another……..
During our travels in Africa in 2007, we had a brief encounter with a boy in a village in Uganda. Purchasing a carved gorilla, and learning about the young man who carved it, changed our lives. From this chance encounter, and the subsequent emails, grew a depth of understanding that inspired us. We helped him with his education and the snowball started rolling. To be open to this relationship has been the basis for so much.
Helping a student achieve his or her dream shows a rural community that others care. That kindness inspires others; the feeling that they are not alone, the inspiration to help someone else, the confidence to try for something they felt was unachievable.
One project led to many others, with the people hired to work on one project volunteering their time for the next undertaking. The entire development of a large network of supporters in Uganda and in the US began with that conversation in the village. It opened a door to a world that desperately needs some kindness and a never-ending array of possibilities to be of help. We receive more than we give; the kindness reverberates around the globe when people jump in to assist Bwindi Community Program in any way that they are able.
Kindness enhances lives and empowers a new generation to do the same. We are all just people trying to make sure that children are safe and have a future. It is still evolving; one act of kindness begets another and another……..
