The balancing act

Balance. We all try so hard to balance work with personal goals and round ourselves out. Balance makes life better because it puts life in perspective, helps us realize that the end of the world has never been the end of the world and we aren't able to obsess about meaningless things. I have been learning balance as a new mom who works, while still trying to reach my potential in all areas of life.

HALO began with a beautiful spark of interest, collaboration, and fervor. Our plan was simple: raise as much as we can and we will support as many kids as we can with those funds. Reliance on volunteer team members in the beginning was unspoken, understood, and much appreciated. The outcome of the hours of work put in has been direct and extreme but also unpredictable and we have been lucky to have had so much success.

We have gotten pretty far by operating on these loose-terms, but we are now at a point where pretty far is not enough. We must meet our full potential because it is our duty to the children we meet who are in the greatest need imaginable and are not yet supported, waiting for us, waiting for a home. We also have far too much responsibility to operate on loose terms. Supporting over 1000 children around the world cannot be done without organization, deadlines, and accountability. Our mission to best serve the children we currently support while bringing in additional youth will only be met by sticking to strict time lines and goals. 

At HALO, we are working toward finding the balance between being a fun organization to volunteer with and one fiercely committed to the success of our programs. We rely on volunteers who are also trying to find balance in their lives. We firmly believe in the empowerment of the volunteer but we also must have a structure of open communication that helps us reach our goals. Open communication includes both sides - committing to a task and communicating when an overcommitment is realized. Our staff appreciates a volunteer commitment as much as when someone calls to say they have overcommitted. That way they don't get burnt out and we are able to ask for help from another volunteer, still reaching our goals. I personally feel combining fun with clear communication and a clear plan makes us closer to reaching our potential every day.

HALO will continue to strive toward being an invigorating organization while seeking out the best team of  volunteers, because that is what we have always had - volunteers who are excited to set and meet deadlines, raise their hand to help, follow through on ideas, make a profound impact, are positive, and say no if they are unable to do something. We have been blessed with many of these incredible volunteers, but we always need more.

If we all do what we say we will do, when we say we will do it, the outcome is direct and extreme. For HALO, it will mean the world to the additional children we will be able to support. Actually, it will mean their whole world. The balancing act becomes a cinch if we all keep that in mind, putting life in perspective for all of us.

If you are interested in making a profound impact, click here. Being part of bringing in children in the most need to a safe-haven of support is quite rewarding, no matter what is the task at hand.

Making time for greatness

We all say it. I would love to do that, but I just don't have the time. Have? Or make? Its getting up a half hour earlier, its turning off the TV, not being afraid of accountability, pushing ourselves just a little further, setting priorities and following them. Eminem makes time to read the dictionary and has since he was a child. Mother Teresa made time to ask thousands of people for help. The Beatles performed over 270 times in a year and a half before they were famous.

Its easy to place the blame for mediocrity on not having time. That's a cop out. We are all capable of greatness, we just need to make the time for it. It all comes down to self-discipline. No matter what we are doing in our lives, helping others is one of those things that makes us great and can't be ignored. 

There are people in need on every block and across the world - elderly people dying of loneliness, abandoned children who are terrified of their next night on the streets without a meal, people who are sick or loosing a loved one. Making time for one person in need is making the time for greatness, whether its volunteering for 20 minutes a week, making small donation, or just stopping by. No matter how much work we have to do, we can all do that. 

I have the pleasure of working with people who make time to do great things in all aspects of their lives.  They are proof that we are all capable of greatness, we just need to make the time for it. 

The year of vibrance

I went to high school in Jefferson City, MO. Most of my family still lives there and over the holidays, I basically do too. Jeff is a quaint town with a vibrant group of people who are excited about getting involved and giving back. I had the pleasure of meeting with a few of these people during my most recent visit and have to say I was inspired.

HALO has had a branch in Jefferson City for the past 4 years which has been extremely successful in raising funds and awareness for their sister orphanage, the Mengo Home in Uganda. More recently, local needs for at-risk and homeless youth have been coming to our attention.

Mengo Girls in Kampala, Uganda

During 2011, we committed time to researching these needs and how HALO may be able to help. According to the 2009 census, the population was around 40,000 in Jeff and about 11.5% of the population were below the poverty line. We've met with multiple potential partner agencies who take care of the children in the community who are in the harshest of situations. This includes a homeless shelter which has 15-20 youth per night who have nothing to do but sit among the adult homeless people.  I never knew there were homeless youth living in Jefferson City. It also includes agencies that serve at-risk youth who come from unstable families and children who are in the foster care system and there are a lot of them.

All of these agencies expressed a profound need for a safe haven that provides educational, future-focused opportunities for these children. They need a place where they are able to grow and flourish while building relationships with mentors who will invest in their future. These are things most of us grew up with every day. These are things every child deserves. 


After careful consideration, HALO is opening our third HALO Learning Center in Jefferson City. The faces that pass through those doors will be the vibrant group of people I mentioned committed to investing in youth who deserve to succeed. The children who are staying at the homeless shelter will have someone to turn to and help them dream beyond their situations. We will open our arms to foster and at-risk youth who are the in the most need to give them hope, opportunities, and a bright outlook.

HALO Learning Center, Kansas City

HALO Jefferson City will continue to support the Mengo Home. They have just made a huge leap and will also be supporting their local center. Everyone at HALO Headquarters feels this will be their year. We know it will be. Stay tuned for more updates. They are only getting started.

To get involved or learn more about how you may support HALO JC, email halojc@haloworldwide.org
Like HALO JC on Facebook here.

The most wonderful time of the year

Imagine 200 people in Kansas City without a home. Now imagine them without warm coats in the freezing weather. I get bent out of shape when I am cold for a few minutes walking from my car to my house. Think about being cold to the bone ALL NIGHT. These 200 people have now been given coats by a few 10 year old boys with an idea. My nephew Mikey and his friend Jack had an idea to do a coat drive for homeless people. A few weeks later, they were passing them out to 200 people in need. How inspiring.

I love this time of the year. It is always full of surprises like that. People get in the giving spirit and very interested in what they can do for others, including HALO kids in need around the world. We get excited to check the mail every day. Our volunteers have worked hours on end preparing for these few weeks. The orphanages have sent in their requests for the kids, ranging from food to new clothes and the HALO office becomes like Santa's workshop. Its a beautiful thing to feel that giving spirit and to know that the kids who receive are so incredibly grateful. 

Click here to read more.

Their warm meals, Christmas parties, new clothes, and opportunities to go to school light up their lives and make them feel loved. We have our built in Santas who are our supporters. If you are interested in giving a gift to HALO children, check out our gift catalog. All the opportunities are listed. Its especially great for that unique person you can't find a thing for... making a donation in their name is always a wonderful idea. Click here to learn more, view our catalog, and become a HALO Santa. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

The Impact of ONE

HALO was started with a group of 10 volunteers who had an extreme commitment to making a difference in lives of children in need. These individuals each took on a responsibility and assured that HALO’s potential was reached in that arena. By structuring HALO this way, we were able to support over 120 children at 4 large orphanages. This means each person was supporting 12 children with their efforts.

This is still the case today. As we have grown, it has become necessary that we have 2.5 paid employees in the HALO office since we are supporting 13 programs around the world.

Our Ambassador Board currently accounts for at least 4 full-time paid positions, which at $30,000 would be $120,000. That amount supports 5 orphanages, or 120 children. This means that the average HALO KC Volunteer Ambassador is supporting 8 children. 


Our structure sets us apart from other non-profits, which is why we are able to stretch our dollars so far. It also gives volunteers a true opportunity to make a profound impact with their skills, grow, and be part of a team or family of like-minded people committed to doing good.

Businesses are run with departments. These departments collectively make the business a success. Without accounting, bills don’t get paid. Without marketing, nobody knows what the company does.  This is why our volunteers are important. Our theory has always been if we are helping just one child, just one life, all our work is worth it. Each of our Ambassadors help us reach that one more child on the horizon.

When thinking about what a volunteer truly is to HALO, I think about the children. Our volunteers give a family to children around the world.  

Resilience

I took a hiatus from my posting as I have been reveling in the new addition to our family, Klaebel James Welsh. We adopted him 9 weeks ago and are thrilled to have him with us every minute.

Motherhood has shifted my paradigm quite a bit. I have always had compassion for children but now that I understand the daily, hour to hour, minute to minute needs of a child, my capacity for this compassion has grown. I have always known that our youth have been through incredible trials. It is evident to me now more than ever that the trials they face are more than we could possibly imagine. The mere fact that they have experienced the loss of their parents breaks my heart.It makes me realize just how resilient they are. When I hear stories of our youth succeeding in school, becoming a carpenter, or serving their community, I feel I sometimes take it for granted.

These are children who have experienced great loss and risen above extreme challenges to change their own paths. Take Kennedy for example:

"I have always dreamed of being a carpenter," says 18-year-old Kennedy Kiiru. "I believe I can be a very good mason and maybe one day I would become a contractor. I wish to be a reliable person in the future who will be able to assist my family, whatever the cost." When he was only five years old, his mother became paralyzed. Kennedy was unable to attend school because he had to begin working to support his mother and siblings. Think about that. No school, working in fields to dig for food, worried sick about your mom and eventually loosing her at such a young age. That's more pressure than I have ever experienced. 

Since being placed in the HALO Kenya Home, Kennedy has been a role model for the other boys. He has become a natural caretaker and a humble example to others. Kennedy is a Woodland Scholarship recipient, attending school to become a carpenter. Thanks to our HALO Heroes, Kennedy is capitalizing on an opportunity for a brighter future. He is a brilliant example of resilience, as are many of the children in this video.


These children put life in perspective for me. The next time I am frustrated or feel sorry for myself, I will think of Kennedy.

Through my lens

Art has always been an integral part of our programming. It is a vehicle that provides healing and freedom of expression. Thanks to our volunteers, HALO Youth attended a photography workshop recently during HALO Summer Camp. Featured are a few unique photos of life through their lenses.