“The world needs your gifts”
A year ago this weekend a chance encounter in a Denver hotel gym with Hollywood entertainer Jamie Foxx helped create national awareness for the delivering compassion campaign in Edmonton.
Ever so accommodating, Foxx recorded a short video clip (keep reading to watch it) encouraging people to “get those donations going” toward the Santa YEG delivering compassion campaign. The video went viral and the rest, as they say, is history.
All told, the buzz that Jamie Foxx helped create resulted in almost 8000 meals being served to Edmonton’s less fortunate over a ten-week period from November 2017 to January 2018.
The encounter with Foxx made me realize two important things;
1- Celebrities have enormous power to create awareness and influence. I didn’t realize just how powerful this was until I was caught up in the vortex of media interest and public fascination in the days following the Foxx social media shoutout.
2- Courage is found when your purpose is strong. When I first realized that Foxx was “pumping iron” 3 feet away from me in the hotel gym (I was doing my best to “pump iron” as well but it looked more like “nudging small weights”) my first inclination was to leave him alone mostly based on how nervous I felt to approach him and the belief that you show more strength if you don’t get caught up in the celebrity selfie popularity contest.
My thinking soon changed when it dawned on me that this was a rare opportunity to shine a light on our charitable campaign. In that instant, provided Foxx cooperated, I knew this moment would hit big, helping thousands in the process.
I quickly rehearsed my pitch, approached Foxx with my request to help our charity and the video below was the outcome.
Jamie Foxx gives Santa YEG a shoutout in Denver on Nov 11, 2017
Why did I write this article? Besides being a sentimental soul who likes to reminisce, I believe there’s voice inside us all that’s just dying to be heard but we make up all kinds of excuses not to express it. “I won’t be accepted”, “people will hate the idea”, “I’ll be publicly exposed” are just a few of the self-defeating things we say to ourselves.
But the truth is, the world needs your gifts. The world needs you to take action on the crazy idea you’ve been sitting on that might have the power to make our world just a little bit better.
If you’re struggling to find the courage, like I was, stop thinking about yourself and remind yourself of your purpose, remind yourself of the people you’ll be helping if you take that first courageous step. You won’t regret it, I promise.
Jeff Tetz for Santa YEG
To get involved with our delivering compassion campaign please email us at santayeg@outlook.com
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