When the officer pulled me over, I decided immediately that I’d tell him the truth. Don’t get too excited, it was a traffic stop; my front right headlight and my left tail light are out. Routine car maintenance has not been at the top of my to-do list of late. But tonight, I required a slurpee, and when the cop stopped me, I told him so. He understood my hankering well, and let me off with a “Be careful. Enjoy your Slurpee.” I am.

Something about tiny frozen granules mixed with syrupy goodness makes the impossible seem, well, somewhat more manageable. Maybe it’s because the concoction itself seems like a miracle realized.

Before I left for the S’leven, I was in the midst of coding a vast set of nested tables and implementing the Google AJAX API on our site for the new, improved front page of the Epic Change website. I haven’t coded since grad school, so the task is a little ambitious. In truth, this is probably one of my favorite parts of being a “social entrepreneur” (sounds fancy, eh?); I’m certainly never bored. From coding to PR to accounting to fundraising to video editing, there’s literally never a dull moment. Just check out our to-do list on the three white boards I’ve now built and installed in my living room:

As a change management consultant for years, and now in my role at Epic, I’ve often wondered what from a massive list like this is the “key ingredient” to creating successful change. Tonight, I think I’ve discovered the simple truth.

Slurpees.

No, seriously, I read an article today in Fast Company about Google. The author wrote that their secret was their ability to “instill a sense of creative fearlessness”. I read another note today too written by Nirvan Mullick, an amazing guy who went to high school with me and has since founded the 1 Second Film project, about micro-collaboration, a phrase which he seems to have coined. According to Nirvan’s website, micro-collaboration is the process by which “many people to work together in lots of little ways to collectively create something bigger than we could alone.” It’s the process by which each of you has contributed to making sure that, as of March 3rd when the landlord will evict the school from its current rented premises, 170 children will have a new facility in which to continue their education.

“Creative fearlessness” yields audacious ideas and “micro-collaboration” makes them possible. When these two concepts collide, Epic Change occurs.

Welcome to the collision. Thankfully, it’s not due to my broken tail light :)

Posted: February 28th, 2008 under The Foundry.
Comments: none

For the astute observers among you, yes, it is 4:30AM, and yes, we are posting to the blog. My dog thinks it’s time to go to bed.

It’s a good thing we’re awake, though, because Parade Magazine just published the winners of America’s Giving Challenge. Guess what?

That’s right . . . we won $1,000!!! Now granted, it’s not the $50,000, but we’re in the top 5% of nearly 500 nonprofits who competed in the competition for US-based charities. For an organization that’s had our 501(c)3 status for just about 5 months, it’s not too shabby. Wanna check out the results for yourself? Go to http://agc.casefoundation.org/winners.

You’re probably asleep, but when you wake up and see the good news, I hope you’ll post a comment here to let us know how you feel about collaborating with over 275 other donors to raise over $7000 in just 3 weeks for an effort that’s producing results like those shared in an email that I was fortunate enough receive at 3:15AM yesterday morning. Thank goodness I was awake then too to receive it immediately.

That probably sounded sarcastic; actually, though, when I got this note, I literally got goosebumps and cried tears of joy (maybe mixed with a little sleep deprivation, but definitely predominantly pure glee). The news is that good: it’s currently planned that the students will begin to transition to their new facility on March 3rd. That’s right, after making a loan of $30,000 less than 2 months ago, Mama Lucy is now putting the final touches on the first 4 classrooms of the new Shepherds Junior school.

Gidori is the father of Gideon, a 9-year-old in Class 4 at Shepherds Junior. He’s a welder by trade who’s generously volunteered his services to create the windows for the new school. He’s also personally absorbed the cost of electricity and transport related to their construction, quite a high cost given the corruption related to energy supply in the country right now, especially for a family of minimal means. Read his incredible news and check out his amazing photos of their progress below:

Jambo Stacey,

I just wanted to tell you the progress of our school, Shepherds Junior Academy, for this month of February. I was at the site yesterday evening on my way back home from work. I found people on the site working like ants! Everybody was so busy to make sure that the job is complete and perfect! We expect the pupils to be on the new site on March 3rd.

We had a school committee meeting on the 9th and the parent meeting on the 16th, oh it was so wonderful how everyone is so excited with the new location of our school and how positive they are toward the progress of the school by contribution of their finances, time and energy!

Yesterday, as I was going to my home, on the way I found some of my former schoolmates and students in Moivaro village who were not aware of what is really happening there. After telling them the real story of what is there, they were so excited as well and thought of transferring their children from other English medium schools to Shepherds Junior! “Don’t tell me that this is a school….” my friends were amazed and happy…I really don’t know how Mama Lucy is going to accommodate this great demand from the villagers!

Lastly but not least: Your president G.W. Bush was in town this week. He was so positive with the development of our country and the way our president is dealing with corruption. I believe Tanzania will never be the same! I feel that this generation of Gideon, Leah, Gloria, Vicky and all others are the ones who are going to deliver this nation from the hands of the corrupt ones.

Once again I say, thanks so much for joining us in this battle of fighting against ignorance. What I know for sure is that our other enemies, poverty and sickness, will automatically be dismissed after winning against ignorance!

Thanks and blessings!
Gidori

We’ve only just begun, but we’ve come so far. To say that I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished together in just 5 short months since Epic Change received our 501(c)(3) status is a vast understatement. I think when you’re directly participating in something like this, you lose some of it’s surreality. Trust me, though, this has been an utter miracle. Two women who live half a world a part met by coincidence fate in a third world country; with the help of people on both sides of the globe, we’re about to create a truly Epic Change, one that will make a real difference for 170 children and many more who will follow in their footsteps through the doors of Shepherds Junior School for years to come.

Today, you’ve participated in a miracle, and a crisis has been averted. But the work continues: first, to pay back the local credit Mama Lucy’s undertaken to make this spectacular progress so far, then to build a robust facility that will serve these children over the long-term, including several more classrooms, a playground and the school’s first library and cafeteria, as well as solar power and plumbing. We’ll also need a technology classroom to put the 12 laptops that have recently been donated to the school!!!

If you’re inspired to give (or give more!) by the results so far, we hope you’ll consider doing so today. In particular, we’re really trying to build a continuous, predictable source of funding by encouraging our donors to make a monthly commitment of $10 or more. To do so, please go to http://www.epicchange.org/donate and click on the “subscribe” button. Of course, on our donation page, you may also make a one-time donation in whatever amount you choose.

Likewise, if you’re inspired to volunteer, from an hour a week to a few days each month, I hope you’ll check out our opportunities at VolunteerMatch, and will submit your background and preferences here. We’re working on planning a potential trip to Africa this summer; perhaps you could even join us there!

We look forward to hearing from you,
Stacey & Sanjay

Posted: February 21st, 2008 under The Foundry.
Comments: none

This week, we received a note from Mama Lucy describing some recent turmoil in her government. She mentioned that the Prime Minister had resigned and that the entire Cabinet of the Tanzanian government was dismissed last week due to charges of corruption related to the country’s electricity supply. I found this BBC.com article that describes the shakeup.

I remember when I was there that Lucy and our cab driver, Mr. Limo, both expressed concerns at the rising cost of electricity; I’m guessing now if it’s somehow connected to the scandal. Mr. Limo, a taxi driver who was on some days lucky to get a single fare of Tsh 5,000 (roughly $5 USD), said his bill was over $300 USD during the previous month (in a country where most people live off less than $2 per day!). Since our apartment was next door to the TANESCO electricity company downtown, I also remember seeing the lines to pay electricity bills that it now seems were likely inflated due to political greed.

President Bush leaves today for Africa, only the third sitting US president to visit the continent. According to this Reuters report published yesterday:

“the centerpiece and longest stop of the tour will be Tanzania, whose leader, President Jakaya Kikwete, is seen by Washington as a poster boy for progressive African government.

Bush, accompanied by his wife Laura, will visit hospitals, schools, AIDS and malaria projects. In Tanzania he will sign the biggest ever grant, of $698 million, under his Millennium Challenge Corp, to fund water, energy and infrastructure.

The MCC is intended to reward good governance and sound economic policies.

Kikwete named a new cabinet this week after the previous prime minister resigned over a corruption probe but Washington sees this as confirmation of the president’s anti-graft credentials rather than an embarrassment.”

For the sake of all of Tanzania’s children, I truly hope he’s right. I hope too that the violence that continues in neighboring Kenya comes quickly to an end.

Most of all, I hope for a day in the not too distant future when Gideon, Leah and Glory – some of the students in Class 4 – take on leadership roles in their country. At Shepherds Junior, the children already tackle some of the most difficult political topics in their country; I’ve seen them perform compelling skits about women’s rights and corruption in politics and even sing incredible songs about the HIV/AIDS crisis in their country like this one:

One of my other favorites is a poem that the preschoolers’ recited in the performance that concluded our most recent trip:

“We are little soldiers.
We shall fight ignorance!
We shall fight poverty!
We shall fight disease!
We shall win! “

Yes, they shall.

With their intelligence, kindness, and the incredible education these young people are receiving both in terms of academics and their character, I can only imagine the bright days that lie ahead for this beautiful country . . .

Posted: February 16th, 2008 under The Foundry.
Comments: 1