Can you imagine visiting a city of 8,000 and learning that there is no food? Can you imagine standing over a starving child and being told … there is no food to help this child and subsequently watching as he died of starvation?
Floyd and Kathy Hammer experienced this heartache on a trip to Tanzania where they witnessed the death of many, many children from starvation and hunger-related diseases. Monday, July 15, they became the 5,000th award recipients of the Daily Point of Light award begun in 1989 by President George H. W. Bush.
The Hammers non-profit, Outreach, was created in 2004 out of the severe need they witnessed in Tanzania. They recognized that “just giving support to someone doesn’t solve the long-term problem but has the opposite effect by creating dependency.” So they began bartering with the villagers—trading food for the beautiful woven baskets made by the village people. Outreach grew through its countless volunteers and support and today provides food, clean drinking water, medical care, and an education to millions of children around the world.
As a non-profit consultant, I have witnessed time and again the truth that when we give of ourselves and collaborate with others sharing the same burden – we also share the task of solving the problem.
How does your nonprofit breed volunteerism and independence in the lives of those you serve? Please share your victories with me!
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