Earlier today, in honor of Giving Tuesday, I sent out a tweet promoting the Jane Addams Resources Corporation (JARC), a nonprofit that teaches welding to people in order to help them not only get well-paying jobs but also to develop capacity-building skills. This was the first organization that gave me a chance when I first moved to Chicago in order to scale the nonprofit I established.
A brief timeline: Within two weeks of moving to Chicago in 2103, the job that I had been promised fell through. While the company had paid for my moving expenses, I had no signing bonus or other cash flow that would support me in this new stage of my life. Immediately, I began scrambling, picking up writing assignments and short-term project work, but it was slow going.
I mention this, because when I first met with the staff at JARC, they really were taking a chance on me. I had no fully-formed nonprofit backing me. The organization was still building its board. There was no cash in the coffers. The organization rested largely on my personal force of will, experiences as a former single mother on welfare, and my almost moral obstinance as its fuel source.
If you’ve ever been around me in person, you can attest to my intensity. This organization wasn’t a hobby for me. I had risked my own money, my future, my retirement, my savings—everything—on this venture. I was in a strange new city, alone, with no reliable source of income. This organization was the reason I existed.
After multiple meetings and tours of the JARC facilities, we began the process of selecting an applicant. As I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts, despite living in a major urban center that has an efficient and widespread public transportation system, private vehicles are needed for a number of occupations. Welding was one. Because of the car the organization awarded, the first recipient became the first female welder in her union.
I remember reading her application.
She had been orphaned in her teens. Without the ballast of a mother and father, she drifted into some circles of acquaintances who did not have her best interests at heart. She ultimately landed in jail for a small amount of time. One sentence in her essay stood out in particular, “As I sat in my cell, I thought of my mom and dad. They would have wanted and expected more of me. I expected more of myself. I knew that I was in the wrong place. ” (emphasis mine)
When I read that, I knew that we had found the right person.
I heard her. I knew her. I had been in her shoes.
There have been SO MANY times in my life when the intercession, intervention of or investment from an outside force has provided the impetus for my forward movement. My being named one of the CNN 10 Visionary Women in 2014 was one such example. Someone else saw something in me and took a chance on shining a light on the work I was doing.
Much in the same way, I could see that this recipient was ready to level up. The car the organization provided was her literal and figurative vehicle to a new life.
Giving Tuesday is a yearly occasion to pay our blessings forward, but it’s also a reminder to maintain a focus of generosity all year long.
Take the time to extend a hand to help lift someone else up when you can. Your help can come in the form of a referral, a donation, an introduction, volunteering, mentorship…the list really is endless.
One of the things I like to say is, “the best way to thank someone for giving you a chance is to take it.”
Because the folks at JARC took a chance on me, women received cars. Trajectories were altered.
Practice generosity—today and every day.
P.S. Every Sunday, I publish a free weekly newsletter called the 3 Minute Reset, which includes life lessons, life hacks and treats. To subscribe, click here.
