Archive for the 'Community' Category

Gifts: No Unwrapping Required

Published February 22, 2020 Community , Life , Uncategorized 1 Comment
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They say it’s your birthday
Well, it’s my birthday too, yeah
They say it’s your birthday
We’re gonna have a good time
I’m glad it’s your birthday

In November 1968 this Beatles song (Birthday) made its debut when “the White Album” was released. Three short months later, I made my world debut. Legend has it Lennon and McCartney made this song up “on the fly” at the studio during the recording of the album. In a 1980 interview John Lennon characterized the song as being “a piece of garbage.” Perhaps not the best work from the Beatles, but still a catchy song to hear now and then.

I recently celebrated another birthday as those things seem to come around every year like clock-work. While this was not one of those milestone birthdays, it was memorable nonetheless. This one started out in the air. After multiple mechanical issues, my flight from Chicago to Austin was somewhere over north Texas when the clock struck midnight and my birthday day officially started. My first birthday greeting happened around 1:45a when I walked into the house and my loyal Shih Tzu greeted me with a “hug” after waiting patiently for hours for my arrival back home.

The first gift of the day was being able to sleep in until 7a – thanks to my loving wife getting one kid off the early morning cheer practice and calming down the other child as she fretted about missing an early morning flight due to an extremely slow moving security line at the Memphis airport. While I had decided to take the day off from work, I knew this birthday would not be devoid of work.

The second gift of the day was seeing that daughter who was able to catch her early morning flight in Memphis, coming down the escalator at the Austin airport. While we are blessed to be able to travel back and forth to the Velvet Ditch of Mississippi (aka Oxford) on a fairly frequent basis, it is always a lift to the spirits to spend time with child that you don’t to get see on a daily, weekly or sometimes monthly basis. After a quick bite to eat at Whataburger to satisfy a college girls Texas cravings (note the closest WB to Oxford is a 3 hour drive), the work part of the day was about to start.

As referenced earlier the younger daughter is on her school’s cheer squad. For the past 7 years that cheer squad has held an annual event called Savio Cuts for Cancer. “Savio” is the short name for St Dominic Savio Catholic High School – a small 400 person school on the north side of Austin. “Cuts” is in reference to students and others in the community donating 8+ inches of hair to an organization that makes wigs for those fighting cancer. And “Cancer”, well sadly I don’t think that needs a description or definition. Tradition is for the juniors on the cheer squad to essentially chair the event – plan the event, find sponsors, arrange for hair stylists to cut hair, promote the event, etc. This year that meant my daughter and one other cheerleader were given the honor of chairing the event. Planning an event takes a ton of time and effort and these two young ladies were definitely up to the challenge. Part of that planning included cheer parents helping set up for the event and being there to guide people to the right places during the event – an event that this year happened to coincide with my birthday.

That is where my third gift surfaced. One does not usually associate work with a being a gift, but when you are supporting a good cause it certainly does. Setting up tables, moving chairs around, hauling boxes from cars, building a balloon arch…all gifts. And then there was the event itself.

  • What a gift to see a charity event coordinated by teenagers go off without a hitch.
  • What a gift to listen to a high school freshman give her personal testimony on her battle with cancer and the importance of her faith and her faith community in her journey over the past year.
  • What a gift to see girl after girl (including my own daughter) give a small part (8+ inches of hair) of themselves to help others.
  • What a gift to see hundreds of kids come down from the gym stands and write down the names of loved ones that have faced cancer.
  • What a gift to see an entire community coming together to stand against a dreaded disease and to remind each other that we are never alone.

c4c

 

The event was a huge success with close to 150 ponytails collected and over $2,300 raised for St Jude Children’s Hospital. But the numbers pale in comparison to the success of bringing together a community.

My day concluded with dinner and margaritas at an “old Austin” institution – El Patio; opening some physical gifts from the family; and then my traditional yellow cake with chocolate icing. All in all a great day, and a birthday like no other. And yes, I had a good time.

The Real Friday Night Lights of Texas

Published September 23, 2017 Community , football , High School , Uncategorized Leave a Comment

Well it’s turn to face the stars and stripes
It’s fighting back them butterflies
It’s call it in the air, alright
Yes sir, we want the ball
And it’s knocking heads and talking trash
It’s slinging mud and dirt and grass
It’s I got your number, I got your back
When your back’s against the wall
You mess with one man, you got us all
The boys of fall

The Boys of Fall by Kenny Chesney is practically a gospel hymn in the football (American football for my international readers) crazed state of Texas.  It’s not often that the Hollywood version of something is a tamed down portrayal, but when it comes to high school football in Texas, the Friday Night Lights movie and television show might not fully capture the insanity that ensues each August in Texas.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love Texas high school football.  I grew up an steady diet of high school football games in East Texas.  I have fond memories as a young kid riding on the cheerleader bus by dad often drove and standing on top of press boxes helping him film games (with a camera with actual film reals) for the dear old Whitehouse Wildcats.  One of the benefits of now having daughters that are cheerleaders, is that I have a perfect excuse for still watching games every Friday night.  However, unlike many in Texas, I am not watching the mega-schools of the state playing.  Instead I am usually watching schools with enrollments of less the 400 students across all  four grades of high school.

As you may recall, my daughters are Catholic school kids.  One recently graduated from St Dominic Savio Catholic High School and the other is a freshman at the same school. Football at private schools is not exactly the same as  at their public school counterparts.  The number of kids playing is much smaller, so small that on many teams there are numerous players that are two-way starters.  It is iron man football.  The coaching arrangements are also very different, with many coaches having other day jobs outside the school. The crowd sizes are also much smaller, usually numbering in the 100s, not the 1000s.  And of course that usually means playing in stadiums that are a far cry from the palaces that seem to constantly  pop-up across the state.

And it is that difference in stadiums that really sticks in my mind as I visit different places on Friday nights.  St Dominic Savio doesn’t even have a home field.  Home games are played on the campus of a nearby public high school, using that school’s practice field that has never been used for an actual varsity football game for that school.  And most of the teams St Dominic Savio plays have “stadiums” that can usually be described as grass fields with a few aluminum bleachers.  There are no video boards, no permanent concession stands (think pop-up tents with folding tables), no hospitality areas (unless you count the lawn chairs in the gravel parking lots) and in most cases no rest rooms that aren’t a good 1/4 mile hike to the nearest building.

These places are a far cry from the $60-70 million high school stadiums that have recently been built in the Dallas and Houston areas of the state.  I think if you added up the cost of all the private school stadiums I have visited over the past 5 years, they would not even come close to the costs of even one of these taxpayer funded monuments to the Texas Football gods.

Fortunately the lack of posh surroundings does not seem to dampen the spirit and determination of these Friday night warriors.  Nor does it seem to hinder the excitement and passion of the fans of those teams.  In fact I think the back-to basics environment enhances the entire Friday Night Lights experience.  I wouldn’t trade all those nights in the cramped, dusty, muddy, buggy football fields for even one night in one of  those gleaming high school football palaces.

Here’s to the Texas private school boys of fall, and their fans – you are the heartbeat of the real Texas Friday Night Lights.

Glory Days

Published May 3, 2017 Class Reunion , Community , High School , Life , Uncategorized Leave a Comment

I think I’m going down to the well tonight

And I’m going to drink till I get my fill

And I hope when I get old I don’t sit around thinking about it

But I probably will

Yeah, just sitting back trying to recapture

A little of the glory of, well time slips away

And leaves you with nothing mister

but Boring stories of

glory days

 Glory days well they’ll pass you by

Glory days in the wink of a young girl’s eye

Glory days, glory days

If you recall from my last post, my 30th High School Reunion happened recently.  A part of me thought I would walk in to the opening night festivities at the VFW Hall  to something that resembled this Bruce Springsteen song – a room full of upper 40-somethings stuck in the glory days of the late 80s.

I am happy to report that was not the case.  Instead I walked into a room full of people that were genuinely happy to see old friends and in some cases meet new friends.  Sure there was plenty of talk about our high school antics, but there was also talk about families, jobs, sports, the weather, maybe some politics, and many other topics.  Not once did I talk to someone who thought their glory days peaked in 1987.

Due to family commitments (my own daughter was having her senior prom the same weekend), I was not able to stay for all the events of the weekend, but I was able to catch a couple of them.  After the Friday night VFW mixer, about 90 of us came together to walk the halls of our old high school on Saturday morning.  The campus, part of which was originally an elementary school, had been converted into a junior high school at some point after our graduation.  And as part of some upcoming construction projects, all the existing buildings will soon have a date with a wrecking ball.  Thanks to the current school superintendent, a fellow 1987 graduate, we were able to take a final stroll down memory lane through the halls of our school.  We also gathered in the gym to take a class picture and hear some thoughts from a few classmates.

One of my lifelong friends (Mary Olga) had asked a few days prior that I be one of those to share a few thoughts.  Not being one to shy away from sharing my wisdom, I promptly accepted.  While I totally adlibbed things that morning, I did actually have some thoughts jotted down, so I thought I would share those with you:

30 years ago I was given the honor of standing in front of you at Wagstaff Gym to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance.  If I recall it was some form of consolation for not being quite smart enough to be our Valedictorian or Salutatorian.  So when Mary Olga messaged me to ask if I would say a few words this morning, I thought “awesome, these people are finally going to have to sit through a speech from me.”  Then she told me I was limited to 2 minutes, so I guess you are still getting off easy.

Being back here on this campus where many of us started and ended our time in Whitehouse schools brings back a flood of memories.  Not very many people can say they attended Kindergarten and Physics class in the same room – but I am blessed to say I did.  Thank you Dr Moran for letting us spend a few last moments here before you call in the wrecking ball next year.

And being in this gym especially brings back into focus my pedestrian, at best, basketball career.   Coach Nix was right, I was too slow and too short for the game. That said, I was able to turn that hoops experience into an impressive 13-10 record in two seasons as a volunteer coach for a  girls junior high basketball team , leaving me just a few victories shy of his win total.

Since leaving here in 1987, I have been fortunate to meet thousands of great people from all over the world, but this place and the people here hold a special place with me .  I don’t make it back to Whitehouse very often and I rarely talk to any of you, but the memories from my first 18 years of life are always top of mind. All of you had a hand in forming those memories –  For that, I say thank you. I sincerely hope you all feel the same way about our fellow classmates.

My oldest daughter just finished up four years of high school cheer and my other daughter will be taking her place on the high school squad next year, so I have become a bit of a cheer dad in recent years.  So, in conclusion I am going to ask for any cheerleaders that are in the house to come on down and join me.

We’re from Whitehouse, couldn’t be prouder, if you can’t hear us, we’ll yell a little louder   (3 times)

I need to once again give Heather and Kelly, my varsity cheerleaders, props for being called out of the stands on the spot and joining me in the cheer.

Sadly I had to bolt out of town back to Austin as soon as we were done at the gym, but I heard that the main event Saturday night was nothing short of awesome.  From the pictures posted on Facebook, it looked to be a party for the ages.  More props to all those that had a hand in planning the weekend.

As my oldest daughter prepares to graduate from high school, I only hope that 30 years from now she can attend an equally fulfilling reunion.

Oh, in case I have not told you:  I’m from Whitehouse and I couldn’t be prouder!

I Found Help (and Hope) in Orlando: And I Wasn’t Even Looking For It

Published January 23, 2014 Community , Leadership , Life , Uncategorized 1 Comment
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Help, I need somebody

Help, not just anybody

Help, you know I need someone

Help

“Help” is one of my favorite songs from that lovable British boy band, The Beatles.  As you start reading this you will more than likely be thinking  “what do these lyrics have to do with these ramblings?”, but stick with me.

I had to attend a company conference this week in Orlando, Florida.  And quite frankly in the days leading up to the conference, I was less than 100% enthused to be attending.  I was going to miss several of my kid’s activities during the week; my wife was going to have to play single parent for most of the week; I was on the agenda to present; and overall I thought “been there, done that.  I’ve seen this show before.”

There is still one day left in the conference, but my attitude has changed.  The feel of the conference; the content of the conference; and what I am getting out of it is much more than I ever imagined.  But that doesn’t make a great story, nor is it what spurred me to write about it.

As part of the conference agenda, we had a social responsibility event.  But unlike some other charitable exercises at these types of events, this was not just going out and picking up trash, or working on a house, or beautifying a park.  Now don’t get me wrong, these are all fine things to do.  However, the event at this conference was geared around leveraging the collective marketing expertise that the employees of our company possess.  The event was to create marketing plans for 8 Orlando-area charities, and to then compete in a marketing strategy throw-down in an effort to win $10,000 in marketing services for one of the organizations.

I had the good fortune to be on a team working with Shepherds Hope, a faith-based organization running 5 medical clinics providing free medical services to the uninsured  – and yes despite ObamaCare and all it’s promises there is still and will continue to be a large population of people without medical insurance – in the Orlando area.  The story of the inspirational start of Shepherds Hope, the heart-wrenching stories of patients saved by the services provided, and the thousands of hours of service donated by area medical professionals were awe inspiring.  I think each of my colleagues on the team were brought to tears as we learned about what this organization does in the community.

What changed my attitude was the passion that was exhibited by my fellow co-workers as we in 2 short hours put together a marketing plan for this great organization.  Most of us on the team were not from Orlando, and several were not even from the United States, yet we all felt an immediate connection to this organization.  I was inspired by the collective talent of the group; each of bringing unique skills to the table in an effort to make a difference in the lives of people we will never even know.  To the last person on the team, we all wanted to help Shepherds Hope by providing them the seeds for a marketing plan to attract more medical professionals, attract more and larger monetary donations, and in the end to help them improve the lives of so many people.  This wasn’t about closing a sale for our company, or hitting some financial performance target; it was about using our special talents to help others.

Well it turns out that our team did not win the marketing pitch show-down, but our company graciously donated $7,000 in services to each of the 7 “losing” organizations and the members of my team (without provocation or threat from anyone) all committed to donate personal hours to supplement the $7,000 so that we can help make Shepherds Hope’s dreams for more medical professionals and more donors a reality.

What I thought was going to be just another charitable event where I and others without much effort, thought or connection to help a community, turned out to be so much more.  It turns out, I was the one helped.  I was helped by the dedicated staff of Shepherds Hope and the other charities that reminded me that there are measures of operational success much more important than revenue and OI.  I was helped by my fellow co-workers that reminded me of the passion that we all have within us and the immense amount of marketing talent we possess within our company.  This helped me realize, that while things may not be perfect in our company, we have the passion and the expertise to make it so much better.  I didn’t fly to Orlando thinking I needed help, but I did, and fortunately I found it.

If you would like additional information on Shepherds Hope, you can visit their website (hopefully soon it will be a better site) at www.shepherdshope.org and you can follow them on Twitter @shepherdshope

Touched By An Angel in the ATX

Published February 22, 2013 Community , Life Leave a Comment
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I recently celebrated another birthday.  I received numerous well wishes via social media; a phone call or two from close family, a great meal followed by cake and presents with the wife and kids; and three birthday cards delivered the old fashion way via the US Postal Service.  While all of those things were meaningful, there was one of those old school birthday cards that had an extra special message.  That special birthday card was from a soup kitchen.  Yes, a soup kitchen.

The special card was sent by Angel House Soup Kitchen.  Angel House is located in downtown Austin.  Since 1990, the kitchen has been serving a hot lunch meal to the homeless and economically disadvantage seven days a week.  Today the number of people receiving this life sustaining service averages over 300 each day.

My oldest daughter and I have volunteered at the Angel House several times.  The volunteering involves assisting with the preparation of the meal, which always includes a huge pot of soup, and also serving the meal to the long line of people queued up when the doors open each morning at 11a.  A day of volunteering takes 3-4 hours; a small amount time that makes a big impact in the community.

Now back to that birthday card.  The message on the card:

Our prayer for you on this very special day –

The day that God created you in His image –

Is that it will be all that He wants for you!

A day to rejoice and be glad.  It’s your day!

 

I recently wrote about trying to be joyful each day.  Receiving a message to “rejoice and be glad” felt like a great reminder to find happiness in each day – not just on your birthday.  Receiving the card was also a good reminder that it probably time to arrange another volunteer day at the kitchen.  All too often we get caught up in our busy lives and forget that we need to find time to give back to others around us.  This birthday card made me stop and remember that we need to share our blessings with others.

If you are interested in learning more about the Angel House Soup Kitchen or want to arrange a day to volunteer or want to make a small monetary donation to a great organization, you can find out more at:  www.angelhouse-abc.com

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