Every once in a while, it’s nice to take a step back from the doom and gloom of news and complaints about high taxes, bad roads and governments, and focus on some of the positive things happening in the community and the people that are making a difference.
Every community has people who fly under the radar and don’t always get the headlines they deserve.
I spoke with two of those people last week. Both are local business owners that remind us about the importance of character, leadership and community.
One is Jason Mosher.
Of course, Mosher is well-known for years of organizing and participating in the annual New Year’s Day P.E.I. polar bear dip. Mosher, who owns Naturally Fit PEI, passed on the reins for this year’s event.
Even so, what I didn’t know was that Mosher also founded a group two years ago, Guys Who Give a $hit. Recently, the group donated $9,300 to KidSport P.E.I.
I didn’t learn about this donation through a press release, phone call or email. I happened to stumble onto it in a Facebook post.
I was surprised to learn that very little had been written about this group, especially since they’ve donated more than $50,000 to local charities since forming. In fact, the article I wrote may be the only one done on them by The Guardian.
I spoke with Mosher last week, who filled me in on the group and what it does. He also told me that most of the group’s estimated 105 members aren’t looking for the spotlight.
Really? I thought I’d test that claim and contacted someone I know that is in the group. And, again to my surprise, the member said he would speak to me, but on the condition that his name stay out of the paper.
It’s easy to see the impact Mosher’s leadership and the group’s efforts have had on the community and the Island’s charitable organizations.
More specifically, it doesn’t take much imagination to see how $9,300 to KidSport P.E.I. will help financially strapped families get their kids playing sports.
That’s called making a difference in the community.
The other business leader I recently interviewed is Amber Jadis, the owner of Bricks 4 Kidz. Every couple of weeks, I do a ‘Q&A’ with members of the business community.
Jadis recently spoke on a Greater Charlottetown Area Chamber of Commerce panel on education. Plus, Lego is cool. So, I gave her a call to see if she was available and interested in chatting.
She immediately said yes. Then a couple of hours later, I received an email from her asking if we could adjust the plan a bit for the Q&A.
Her reason involved a recent cancer diagnosis. Of course, we could, I said. No problem.
I had no idea she had cancer. The next day I also learned a Gofundme page was set up for her and her family.
We did the interview a few days later and spoke for about 20 minutes. It was inspiring to hear her passion for science, technology, engineering and math as well as the kids in the program that are learning valuable life skills, such as critical thinking and problem solving, while expressing their creativity by building neat things with Lego.
Clearly her job is a labour of love for the kids in the program. It’ll be interesting to see as the years go on how many of those kids grow up to be the next science and community leaders. I suspect many of them, if not all.
Another note about the interview. Jadis also had the option not to talk about her cancer diagnosis since, as I explained, it was a personal matter. She chose to speak.
In the days leading up to the interview, I wondered what most people would have done if they were going through cancer treatment and were asked by a reporter to be interviewed about themselves and their business. I suspect many people would politely say that they are going through a personal matter, and respectfully decline. And, who could blame them?
But not Jadis. Even with cancer weighing on her mind, she still made the time to speak with me and tell her story. That’s what it means to have character.
So, two business owners with different stories, and both quietly making an impact on the lives of others in the community. We should take a moment and celebrate that.
Twitter.com/Terry_mcn
