Robert Egger´s Piece of Mind

A fast update as I once again roll in, and then out of town.

I have been ROARING across America for the past few months and scary as it sounds to say, I have even more gigs lined up in the next few weeks. But I love it. Why? Case in point—my gig yesterday up in Boston.

I was invited to speak at the annual gathering of the members of the Provider’s Council up in Massachusetts, which is led by a really cool cat, colleague and friend…Michael Weekes. Not only is he a dynamic leader locally, he has been a major force nationally (through the National Council of Nonprofits), and we (as in, me and him) were the Co-Conveners of the first Nonprofit Congress back in 2006.

As part of that visit, I stopped by Pine Street Inn, a legendary homeless program, where I met with CEO Lyndia Downie, the staff and clients for a great lunch, prepared by members of the Abundant Table team. Like DCCK, they have a training program as well as a revenue generating business (it brought in almost a MILL last year!!) and I was blown away by the caliber of the cuisine they put out.

(Sidebar—One of the coolest aspects of my journey, in just about every city I visit, I eat breakfast or lunch at the shelter or food program, and then get taken out to dinner at the swankiest shack in town. I LOVE seeing cities from those two different perspectives!!)

Anyway….if you live up there, make sure to give them your business or tell others about them—seriously…programs like Abundant Table (which was honored with the “Innovator of the Year” award at the Provider’s Council gathering) are the FUTURE, in that they allow you to make your philanthropy the way you spend your money everyday.

 While there, I ripped out a little video for your viewing pleasure.

The next morning, I spoke in front of over 1,000 MA based, direct service workers–MY PEEPS—who for lack of a better way of saying this, work eye-to-eye with people everyday. These are the men and women who staff the drug clinics, hospices, foster care centers, homeless shelters, re-entry programs, runaway safe houses, after school programs and they are the professionals who really, truly carry the big bucket for our communities. I was highly honored to speak with them, and to give them big props….as well as push them hard…as they look down the big barrel of a loaded, “the-budget’s-been-shot-to-hell-again” gun.

BUT…what made this gig so amazing—after me, Governor Patrick took the stage. Everyone knew that he was going to be announcing BIG cuts that VERYafternoon, as MA is already back in a  deep fiscal hole, only a few months after balancing the budget via massive cuts. Even though he was going to have to disappoint some, he had enough respect for the sector to stand face to face with them and explain what we was going to do. Now that’s leadership. The line I dug—“When I see a budget, I don’t see numbers—I see you”. This is just the kind of relationship with our elected leaders than we ALL need, and the Provider’s Council deserves big props for developing and earning that respect.

Anyway…a real cool day, with a great team, in a great city. 

 OK…off to San Francisco to give the opening keynote for the Purpose Prize.

I’ll sleep when I’m dead.

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post Delicious Digg This Post

It is from numerous diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends out a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.    Robert Kennedy

I’d been on the road for a full week, and I had a mountain of material the size of Kilimanjaro that sorely needed my attention….but yesterday I brushed that aside to take a short trip up to Baltimore to talk with staff and Board members of Tuerk House, a 40 year old recovery program tentatively exploring new forms of leadership, revenue generating and communication.

Given the withering effects of the road, and the litany of travel dates that lay before me, I was tempted to try to blow this gig off. In fact, these days I often find myself wrestling with the ramifications of saying “yes” as often as I do. Saying “yes” is a lot like flying out of BWI Airport—I love it when I’m paying for it, and don’t mind it when I drive there, but I fucking HATE it when I have to drive home after a crazed journey. That’s why…every so often, it’s a challenge to NOT consider inflating the value of my diminishing free time to disallow speaking with groups unless they have a big crowd assembled, can afford an honorarium or offer some sort of consulting fee.

But that just ain’t the way this homeboy rolls.

Plus, Ma Egger would no doubt pay me a nocturnal visit and commence to nagging me from the great beyond if I ever assumed such airs.

BUT that’s not why I honored the gig with Tuerk House. You see, I owe them something. I had a debt that had to be repaid.

In fact….if you live in DC, or in a city with a community kitchen, or have graduated from ANY of the numerous training programs that have benefitted from our cumulative work here at DCCK, then you owe them too. Why…because they got Marianne Ali, our amazing Director of Training (pictured below in the center of it all), clean and sober.

Marianne often says that “crack cocaine saved my life”. You see, she was a heroin addict, and a good one at that. If it hadn’t been for crack, which dragged her down like a rock, she might still be out there shooting-up today, or six feet under. But instead, she got clean, went to a fancy culinary school and ultimately got a job here at DCCK, where she has helped develop what is, all false modesty aside, one of the best training programs in the country.

So…I went to Baltimore, to tell an unsuspecting team at Tuerk House, that just ONE of their grads, ONE that NONE of them would likely remember, has helped feed millions, helped hundreds get a job, engaged thousands of volunteers, channeled the energy and skills of countless culinary pros and inspired me and the rest of the DCCK team with her passion, power and skills.

So I asked them to consider how many more Marianne Ali’s they may have created–how many other small ripples they set into motion….and well, I think that inspired them to leave our lucheon together a little more prepared to roll a little bit harder for a little bit longer. I hope it does you too….because if you work at ANY of America’s amazing, hard working, dynamic, innovative, social benefit organizations, then you throw powerful pebbles like Marianne into the proverbial pond every gosh darn day. And together, oh, mybrother and sister–what waves we are making.

OWN THAT. BE PROUD. ROCK ON. NEVER STOP.

And you know what—-that paperwork I was so concerned about. It was right where I had left it a week ago.

No harm done.

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post Delicious Digg This Post

I am on the road, HARD, these days, but everyday, no matter h-o-w exhausting, only energizes me more. WHY, you ask? Because everyday I see staggeringly amazing, bold fresh, wicked smart and wolverine aggressive agents of love and change, IN ACTION.

Case in point—today I’m in Ithaca, NY—one of my favorite cities. I’ve been coming here for 15 years…first to speak annually at the Hotel School up at Cornell, but over the years I have hit just about every corner of Tompkins County, and met hundreds of compassionate, hard working citizens who take making this corner of the world better, VERY serious.

I started the day at a gathering of 160 nonprofits to talk about OUR work, OUR future, THEIR state and THIS country. As one of the 36 states that will be electing governors in 2010, I really want to help NY nonprofits get to the point where ANY candidate for office WORKS to earn their votes (like the Labor and Tory parties did just recently with NGO’s in the UK).

On that quest, and over the past few months, I’ve been out to Long Island, up in Albany, over in White Plains and in a few weeks I’ll be back up in Syracuse, pitching UNITY and the V3 Campaign with abandon. BUT…what made this gathering so very exciting was that the audience included the ED of the Chamber of Commerce, a former Mayor and sitting City Council members, which is very rare, and indicates that my faith in the citizens of Ithaca has not been misplaced.

We spent over an hour after my presentation having one of the boldest community dialogues about the future I’ve been engaged in. Mark my words, Man….NY State will be out front in 2010.

But the real highlight of this trip, and a huge honor was being asked to keynote at the awards dinner for Challenge Industries, one of the country’s most amazing organizations. They have a business–Finger Lakes Fresh–that is off the hook, and it’s a premiere example of an “ALL people have a role” social enterprise—PLEASE…it is so very amazing…rather than me yacking, please just check out their website. But don’t stand too close to the screen–they are so hot you might get burned.

Anyway…the award ceremony was really, truly powerful…and I grabbed my new friend Robert, who won a “Perseverance Award” for a quick interview. We’re headed to LA together, so watch out America.

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post Delicious Digg This Post