Recently, on a visit to one of our cybersecurity peers in Boston, I had an occasion to stop and reflect. I was overcome with feelings of connectedness, gratitude, sadness, and optimism at once.

 

 

Recent census numbers from my home city, Cleveland, represented a sad truth: a large percentage, albeit falling, of Cleveland school children live in poverty, a marked second place in the nation. Cleveland comes up high in many lists these days, and there is much excitement regarding its renaissance, reinvention, SO much good, it’s hard to know where to start the list and stop. Most especially, we are blessed with bright, new leadership in Mayor Justin Bibb’s Administration. Multiple neighborhood improvements and building, and the attention of various major sports teams. I am proud of that. However, this poverty statistic and standing make me more connected to my Community and continue to take action.

 

 

In Boston, on Park Street by the famous Park Street Church at the corner of the Boston Common, I was reminded of theologian Thomas Merton’s connection experience at the corner of Fourth and Walnut in Louisville, Ky., where he experienced and then scribed, on March 19, 1958:
“In Louisville, at the corner of Fourth and Walnut, in the center of the shopping district, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I loved all those people, that they were mine and I theirs, that we could not be alien to one another even though we were total strangers. It was like waking from a dream of separateness, of spurious self-isolation in a special world, the world of renunciation and supposed holiness. … This sense of liberation from an illusory difference was such a relief and such a joy to me that I almost laughed out loud. … I have the immense joy of being a man, a member of a race in which God Himself became incarnate. As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.”

 

 

Merton, like I, often experienced the terrific realization that comes simply from being human and from being united with, not separated from, ALL others, especially those who seemingly have less in common with us or who do not agree with or stand with us. Added Merton: “Then it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths of their hearts, where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God’s eyes. If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time.”
I am always reminded that there is so much I can do to be there for others, wherever they stand or sit. Those in need, such as the homeless, are indeed my brothers and sisters, and I can surely feed them and serve them in many ways. Yes, challenging to serve and make a difference.  We all can. We can all volunteer at breadlines and shower programs, teach life skills and tutor, serve at hospices for the dying poor, and donate money and time to food banks, detox, and mental health centers and groups, and donate clothes, for example.
This year, I have chosen to support Stella Mari https://www.stellamariscleveland.com/. It is a strong commitment, personally and professionally, by my company and me to participate in building blocks to an improved community and quality of life. Mental Health and Addiction Recovery are key to the building blocks of health and recovery. Health is the focus, and Cleveland is better for it, while poverty can be addressed and its impact reduced over time.
I have connected to and continue to connect with our community in many ways. I would not encourage or ask others to do things I have not done myself or in which I have not included my family, friends, and business. The rewards and payback are amazing. We can write about our experiences and encourage others to do the same. Take the risk to speak of the value of being connected to others. Answer the call to connect and thrive. Live in a mindset of prosperity for all.
Business can help drive America’s Health.
During the 1990s, I volunteered for five consecutive years at the bread line at St. Malachi’s in Cleveland. I spent practically every Wednesday from noon to 3 p.m. there, even sleeping one Saturday night each month at the hospice to relieve caregivers. I learned many life lessons while serving there, most of which were taught by Father Paul Hritz. I was honored and privileged in that time to have served under his guidance in the bread line, at the Monday night meal, the clothing center, the shower program for the homeless, the detox center, and Malachi House.

 

 

 

”The people we serve at Malachi House are not patients; they are residents,” Father Hritz would say. This helped remind me and affirm the idea of knowing who you serve in life and holding dignity and respect high for all. Yet another big one was, “You are not serving and feeding, you are being fed. You are being served.” These were such life-giving experiences that gave my life meaning. It is impactful in an amazing way to be empowered to serve in a very particular way and to live it out.
Merton wrote, “Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether they are worthy. That is not our business, and, in fact, it is nobody’s business. What we are asked to do is to love, and this love itself will render both ourselves and our neighbors worthy if anything can.”