As a kid I grew up with a show called Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. It began with a song,
It’s a beautiful day in this neighborhood,
A beautiful day for a neighbor.
Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?…
The song carries on talking about the beauty of the...
I had the honor in March of being a judge for a middle school oratory competition that was put on by a program run by one of my college classmates. It included students from several schools in the city. It has been a few years...
On any given day, there are approximately 415,000 children in foster care in the United States. While meeting with two friends a few weeks ago, one of them mentioned a young woman with whom they had recently reconnected after a long break. This girl, Sandra...
Your work focuses on the real, daily needs of children right here in our own neighborhoods. But sometimes it seems easier to think about the needs outside of our borders, like focusing on the hunger faced by children in far-off countries. Why do you think...
Many years ago, early in my nonprofit career, I was visiting with a church partner in Tacoma. I was there to consult with them on the afterschool program they wanted to start. We happened to start talking about their food bank and feeding programs. As...
One of my favorite things to do with kids is ask them why they are thankful to God. They give the best answers, in my humble opinion. I remember a particular answer that has stuck with me for years, like an ebbing tide that rises...
It is true that getting older doesn’t necessarily make you wiser. I must admit, though, that not becoming wiser as you age must take very active resistance to learning. In other words, it is more natural to gain wisdom than to not. It would seem...
I had the most unusual experience a summer or so ago at a camp where I met a young girl who told me she didn’t like her last name. Now, I’m not so naïve that I’ve never heard someone say such a thing. But until...
Every year, I read or listen to that speech. Each time, those words come alive in my heart. At some point in my life, they became my words, as though Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had read my mind. I realize I am in the...
As we fall headlong into another presidential election season, I find myself in a surprising calm that does not align at all with my passionate sense of what needs to change in our country to make it a better place for the most vulnerable children,...