Friday, November 22, 2013

Gratitude: An Inexhaustible Resource That Keeps on Giving

By Dennis Carman, President & CEO
United Way of Greater Plymouth County

Many of us have lived through days, months and sometimes years where the money coming in didn’t cover even the basic costs for food, heat and housing.  And if we’ve been fortunate enough not to have had to worry about that, it’s hard to imagine that we do not know family, friends or neighbors who have struggled to get by or who have fallen under the wheel.  Times have been very hard for quite some time now.  In the midst of these hard times and the frustrations that accompany them, we often fail to see one of the more valuable and readily available resources:   gratitude.

The online Oxford Dictionary defines gratitude as “the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness”  But being grateful, showing appreciation or counting our blessings is certainly hard, if not impossible, in the face of our many troubles.   So, why do it?  Why be thankful?

Well, research conducted by Dr. Robert A. Emmons, PhD, Professor of Psychology at the University of California, and his associates clearly demonstrates the many powerful benefits of gratitude.  In 2010 they studied more than one thousand people, from ages eight to 80, and found that people who practice gratitude consistently report a host of physical, psychological and social benefits:
• Stronger immune systems
• Less bothered by aches and pains
• Lower blood pressure
• Exercise more and take better care of their health
• Sleep longer and feel more refreshed upon waking
• Higher levels of positive emotions
• More alert, alive, and awake
• More joy and pleasure
• More optimism and happiness
• More helpful, generous, and compassionate
• More forgiving
• More outgoing
• Feel less lonely and isolated.

Beyond these benefits, practicing gratitude has a number of additional pragmatic advantages.  First, it doesn’t really cost anything to be grateful, certainly not monetarily.  Nor is there any significant physical effort required to be thankful.  There may be time expended in thoughtfully counting our blessings, and some minimal effort expended in expressing our thanks to those who have either given us something or helped us in some way.  Certainly, for those who have received a great deal, there would be commensurately greater time and energy expended than someone who has not received as much, but still no strenuous effort is involved.

Second, being grateful or giving thanks for one thing does not in any way reduce our ability to be appreciative of other things.  For example, we can be thankful for a beautiful day without taking away our capacity to be grateful for a neighbor who helped us lift a heavy piece of furniture or who cooked us a meal when we were sick.  There is no finite or upper limit to gratitude.  If we are willing and able to count our blessings, we can be ever and endlessly thankful for them.

Finally, we respond very positively to someone who expresses gratitude to us, whether for just being who they are or for doing something good or generous.  People just plain like being thanked.  And whether or not it is the intention of the one offering their appreciation, very often receiving thanks encourages the giver to continue giving or helping, either in service of the person who just offered thanks or to others.  So good deeds done, kindnesses shone and generosities extended that are appreciated will tend to lead to more good deeds, kindnesses and generosity that will be appreciated.  Thus, there is a perpetual chain-reaction of good things happening.

So in spite of our individual and collective troubles, as we approach Thanksgiving, our other holidays and every day for that matter, we should seriously consider practicing and encouraging “gratitude”.  And to put into practice what I am preaching, let me say thank you to all who have made financial donations to our United Way and other charitable organizations, and thank you to our community partners and to all of our hundreds of volunteers for generously giving their time and talents to support our mission of “uniting people, ideas and resources to improve lives”.  And on a very personal note, thank you to my Lord and Savior for the gift of Creation, the gift of Forgiveness and the gift of His Grace and Love, thank you to my wife for her years of support and devotion, and thank you to my family and friends for putting up with all of my eccentrities!

Our times may be tough, and very likely many of us may not have all of what we need to have a good life, so we must keep working together to care for our family, our friends and our neighbors.  And in the meantime, we can express gratitude for what we do have!



Thursday, November 7, 2013

“EngaGED”: Youth Works and Brockton Area Workforce Investment Board (BAWIB)


By: Mike Lee, UWGPC Marketing Intern

“EngaGED” is an innovative jobs initiative of Youth Works, a branch underneath Brockton Area Workforce Investment Board (BAWIB), one of the United Way’s partner agencies, located on School Street in Brockton.    Youth Works helps unemployed young adults between the ages of 16-21, who have not yet completed school, and who are looking to get a job. The initiative serves youth in the city of Brockton, and the towns of Abington, Avon, Bridgewater, Easton, East Bridgewater, Hanson, Stoughton, West Bridgewater and Whitman.

BAWIB Executive Director Sheila Sullivan-Jardim and Youth Works Associate Andy Martin provided a tour of the Youth Works center and talked passionately about how they’re getting youth off the streets and getting them into their center to provide them with vital educational services.  Due to the national economic downturn, the job market in the greater Brockton area is poor causing problems even for youth who have graduated from high school.  Because of this, the EngaGED initiative is helping young adults who have not graduated from high school to get their GED (general equivalency diploma) and to find a job.  Without Youth Works many of these kids would never have a chance at having a well-paying job or a stable life at home.

EngaGED participants take an entrance exam to assess their current skill levels.  This allows the participants to improve in the areas where they are deficient and they can skip areas where they are already proficient.   Youth Works staff use a webserver to grade and post assignments, and to monitor the progress of students in the program.   EngaGED students and teachers can access one of Youth Work’s computer resources “remotely” from home or other locations making the education process incredibly convenient.


(BAWIB computer lab where kids complete assignments and apply for jobs)

The “Hot Jobs” board shows the young adults of Youth Works how to apply, skills required, wages, location, and any other information important to the applying process of a job.  Youth Works is able to measure results by how many youth and young adults utilize their computers, how many graduate from their programs, and ultimately how many of their participants get a job.

In fact, Youth Works and BAWIB are always actively searching for more entry-level jobs from local employers, so if your company has available positions, please contact them.


(Young adults find out how to apply for brand new jobs in the area)


In speaking with one of the male students from EngaGED, it was inspiring to see how thankful he was for the amazing opportunities that Youth Works and BAWIB has given him, a GED, a new job and a new outlook on life!   His favorite part of the program was the personal guidance and teaching that he received from the youth service associates, like Andy.   His greatest satisfaction is that now he can help support his family.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Opinion: Dan Pallota's TED talk

By: UWGPC Marketing Intern Mike Lee

The way that our society thinks about the Non-profit sector is all wrong.  In a world where everything in the business world is measured in terms of return on investment (ROI) how can you monetize the gratefulness a single battered mother when she gets a roof over her head, how can you monetize the happiness a disabled child that gets to spend a day at the water-park, or how can you monetize the appreciation a family has for having a dinner provided on thanksgiving?  Dan Pollata an activist and fundraiser gave a TED talk earlier this year on exactly this topic.  He tried to help the average person understand how difficult it can be to work in a non-profit.

The Dan Pallotta TED talk already has over 2.5 million views and it really helped me understand the non-profit sector in a way that I had never before.  The part of TED talk that most resonated with me the most was his comparisons between the two sectors.  The difference between the profit and non-profit sector are unfathomable.  A Stanford Grad with a masters made $400,000 while the CEO of a hunger charity made $84,000.  While our society encourages to strive to move up through the ranks of a perspective company there is absolutely no incentive for these non-profit people.  If a CEO in the hunger charity made $400,000 he/she would be crucified by the media and our society because he/she was dipping to much into charitable funds.  Pallotta lays our the 4 main differences between profits and non-profits and I encourage you to check it out.  It really made me think twice about the type of challenges that a non-profit has to deal with.



Check it out yourself! Here's a link the link to Dan Pallotta's TED talk:
http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pallotta_the_way_we_think_about_charity_is_dead_wrong.html