I was on a plane the other night waiting to be allowed to use my larger electronic device and I picked up the in-flight magazine. Morgan Freeman was on the cover. I so love him in anything that he does. I’d love to listen to him tell children’s stories some time. The article told of his longtime love of the small town in Mississippi where he grew up, and where he now lives again.
Years ago, a young middle school teacher in that small town went down to the water company where Morgan’s cousin worked and, on “a long shot request,” asked the cousin to ask Morgan to visit her class. She hoped for her students to learn that, despite the fact that their town was not the growing place it once had been, people from there could grow up and go on to achieve unbelievable success.
Morgan Freeman visited the class. While he was there, he talked to the children about the importance of goals and following your dreams – two of my favorite things. A few days later, he had an air conditioning unit installed in every classroom. Throughout the years, he’s given back to his community in many ways; from sponsoring the first integrated prom, to funding gymnastics programs for better health for the children.
The article brought tears to my eyes for a couple of reasons. It seems to me that he didn’t do it for the publicity – in truth that all happened years ago and I had never heard it before. He did it to make people’s lives better. He offered them comfort in the heat. He offered them an opportunity to set race aside, and a chance to have access to health programs they might never have had. To me, that’s so powerful and I admire his generosity.
But perhaps none of that would have happened without Glenna Callendar. Who? She was the teacher. She was the teacher who wanted to make her students’ lives better. She was the teacher who needed for her students to understand that they could follow their dreams, and that anything was possible. She was the teacher, who on a long shot, asked for help. To me, that’s every bit as powerful, maybe even more so because, really, what were the chances he would have come? What were the chances that IF he visited, he would develop a long time affection for the community and its school children?
In the end it didn’t matter what the odds were; what mattered is that she took the chance, and he responded kindly, and together they made a difference in many lives over the years. I admire that and it reminds me of how we’re in service to each other. This is a core value that I hold and part of the reason I choose to work with TrainerTainment. At our core, is that fundamental belief that we’re in service to our colleagues, families, clients, and our communities. So it makes me wonder what things we can do to spread that value. We recently participated in the Ballard vs the Big C Bowling Tournament in Dallas as a team. As you know cancer has touched our TrainerTainment family. We struck back at cancer by sponsoring a team and showing our support for the cause. During the holidays, lots of centers will partner with local food banks, Angel Tree Programs, Make a Wish and other organizations to spread good will. Others will do things on a smaller scale and host a Charity night where a portion of the proceeds are donated to a school or charity. And some simply choose families in their community to serve. There is so much opportunity out there to serve others. After reading that article, I feel inspired to take more chances in my own quest to make a difference in the world. I hope you will, too.
We would love to know what you have done in the past or ideas that you have for ways we can help others. If everyone did something, can you imagine the possibilities? That’s a world to be proud of.
