Last night I attended a benefit for the World Education and Development Fund (Worldfund) in New York. It was an elegant affair, honoring Jeff Immelt, the CEO of GE, and Roger Agnelli, the CEO of CVRD. It was also a happy reunion, as I was able to visit with many of my former Wall Street colleagues.
The event, held at the Mandarin Oriental, was all the more impressive when I consider what Luanne Zurlo, the Executive Director and founder of WorldFund, has accomplished in less than five years.
You see, Luanne and I started on Wall Street at about the same time; she went on to become an Insitutional Investor-ranked analyst at Goldman, Sachs covering the telecommunications sector.
But, in 2001, our paths diverged.
During a business trip to Mexico City, as Luanne visited schools there, she became aware of the generally poor quality of education in Latin America. Because she knew what education had done for the quality of her life, notwithstanding her parents' sacrifices to make this education happen, she felt something needed to be done - but what?
Her definitive call to adventure coincided with 9/11, a time when so many of us reevaluated our priorities. And in mid-2002, she left Wall Street, determined to make a difference for education in Latin America.
In undertaking this hero's journey, Luanne left a comfortable and secure, albeit stressful, lifestyle, to do something she didn't know how to do -- the starting and running of a non-profit -- including the herculean task of raising, dare I say, pleading, for money.
In her quieter moments, she will tell you this has been tremendously difficult, from the personal sacrifice, especially financial, to the responsibility she feels for her employees, to the generally tough task of building something. But she will also tell you that she is neither desperate nor depressed, that "4 1/2 years, c. $5 million raised, and 30,000 children educated" later, she is content, fulfilled even.
Yes, last night was about raising money for WorldFund, but it was also a tribute to Luanne, and a visible, tangible reminder to each of us, of what can happen when we dare to dream.
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Whitney,
This seems to be a popular topic and one that many people are supporting. I am working with our enrichment committee to do something for one a program in Guatemala called Camino Seguro - This program specifically helps children who live and work in the Guatemala City Dump. The children sort through the garbage to find food or recyclable items to sell or barter. Children as young as four work in the dump and never have the opportunity to get any sort of education.
http://www.safepassage.org/welcome-to-safe-passage/welcome-to-safe-passage/
Another woman in our ward is vice president for Humanity Corps. They all served as missionaries in Ecuador.
http://www.humanitycorps.org
I hope that all of these groups continue to get the recognition and support from others as we look beyond ourselves.
Posted by: Emily | June 12, 2007 at 12:46 PM
Emily --
Thank you for sharing both of these sites.
I don't know if you saw the article on Yahoo discussing titled "Brain gets a thrill from charity".
Here's the link.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070614/hl_nm/brain_altruism_dc
Posted by: Whitney Johnson | June 15, 2007 at 11:03 PM