By Cathy Kaiser, Past President, QI of Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.A.
Where were you when you learned that Quota International was preparing to close?
Where were you when you learned that a deadly virus was causing schools and businesses to close?
Where were you when you learned that violent protests were bursting out in Grand Rapids and around the world?
These world-stopping events have impacted all of us. You don’t need to be a healthcare provider, a non-profit leader, or a peaceful protester to feel the pain personally. You don’t need to be in Michigan or Minnesota or Bangladesh to see the devastation from disastrous floods or hurricanes or pent-up anger. But recognizing that we are all in this together forces us to look for opportunities to make life better for all of us.
Sometimes we need a storm or flood or disaster to learn what’s really important. And knowing that some things will never be the same gives us all the opportunity to change the world for the better. For example:
· Did you know that the idea for Kentucky Fried Chicken – a fast food empire – was sprouted during the era of the Great Depression?
· Did you know that M & M’s candies (now sold in over 100 countries worldwide) were created out of a collaboration between competitors in the chocolate industry during World War II?
· Did you know that Oprah Winfrey was born into poverty to a teenage single mother, and was named by Life magazine as one of the 100 People who Changed the World?
Quotarians are equipped to make a difference because of our 100-year legacy of sharing to make a difference for individuals around the world.
Take a page from those who are working to recover from a 500-year flood that devastated central-Michigan in May, causing the evacuation of over 10,000 people.
United Way of Midland County Michigan posted this message:
We are a community built on helpers. Healers. Do-ers. Dreamers.
We are the Hand Raisers. Game Changers.
Let's rise to the occasion so we can help people stand on their feet.
Together, we can make a difference.