Our $100,000 grant to support kids on the border generates more funding

Our decision to grant $100,000 to support children on the border has had an incredible response from our board, staff and donors. An additional $20,000 has already come in, unsolicited. More is expected and will be allocated the same way.

I'm grateful to the Share Our Strength staff and community of stakeholders for the critical role they played. By early last week it was clear from numerous informal communications with colleagues that the plight of children at the border was weighing heavy on the heart. Such emotion grounded in genuine empathy for the most vulnerable families among us is impossible to ignore. It stands in glaring contrast to the cynical calculations of political Washington. 

Most decisions we make at Share Our Strength fit neatly into our long-term strategic plan. But the instincts and impulses of our team and supporters are an equal and sometimes even more reliable compass.  Our organization’s leadership trusts those instincts and impulses. You should too.  When you believe an emerging issue merits a response from Share Our Strength, please raise it. Consider this an invitation. Finite resources won’t allow us to respond as often as we’d like to. But the only rules that constrain us are the rules we’ve written together and can re-write. The hallmark of moral leadership is fidelity to values even above strategy and budgets. Those values don’t come from a plan or mission statement. They come from you.

The crisis for children at the border is far from over. And because the vulnerable and voiceless are so often exploited for political gain, it won’t be the only such crisis to be addressed. If you remain vigilant and outspoken, we will remain vigilant and outspoken. Thank you.