December 2020
The average human life lasts 650,000 hours. How will you spend yours?
Jane Karigo (third from right) and some of the women who grew up at Calvary Zion.
Who Is the Best Person You Know?
Jane Karigo is a foot and a half shorter than me, yet she’s the largest figure I know. For 22 years, since God told her in a dream to create the Calvary Zion Children’s Home, Jane has saved, raised, taught, fed, loved and sheltered orphans in Bamburi, Kenya. I wrote about Jane in my memoir, The Voluntourist, and for a Washington Post Magazine story that I’m THRILLED to say was selected for the 2020 edition of The Best American Travel Writing (available at bookstores if, you know, you’re looking for holiday gifts).
As we near the end of a dark year, I’d like to spotlight those who bring light to the world. If you’re in a giving mood this holiday season, here are eight extraordinary people and orgs I've profiled that deserve our support:
Former at-risk student Orrin Hudson uses chess to develop Georgia kids’ critical thinking skills and inspire them to new heights.
International teacher Susan Peattie created a trust to support Jane Karigo and her many, many children. Learn how you can sponsor a child.
While still in high school, Julia Warren started a nonprofit to celebrate the birthdays of disadvantaged kids in Richmond, Virginia.
Sixty-one percent of low-income families don’t have children’s books in their homes. Robin Ferst-Marhaver formed a Georgia-based nonprofit to change that.
Dana Marlowe’s org provides bras, underwear and hygiene products to D.C.-area homeless women. Another superb org is the Greater D.C. Diaper Bank, founded by Corrine Cannon, which has donated 12.7 million diapers to families.
I joined founders Abigail Hayo and Tammy Neblock-Beirne, MD in India and Mali, where their nonprofit educates children and performs surgeries for people with little access to health care.
From Houston to Haiti, founder John Alex and his construction crews rebuild homes in areas devastated by disasters.
I feel blessed to have so many generous people in my life. Who are the best people in your life? I’d love to hear about the people who have enriched your world. Please contact me at ken@650000hours.com. Happy holidays! —Ken Budd
Live Your Best Life
Wag is one of two dogs that keep me walking.
Less stress, lower blood pressure, more exercise — owning a dog is good for your body and soul (though not necessarily your carpet). Julia Zorthian explores the benefits in Time.
When you’re feeling turmoil and pain, it’s OK to not feel OK, as Vasundhara Sawhney explains in the Harvard Business Review (also check out an HBR story how to thrive when things feel terrible).
Plus: A psychiatrist’s secrets for easing her own stress and anxiety (Jessica Clemons and Margarita Bertsos, Thrive Global), ways to become more empathetic (Emma Pattee, The New York Times), and why being a selfish jerk doesn’t get you ahead (Laura Counts, Berkeley News).
Meet Amazing People
Since 2010, Paul Caccamo (above) and his nonprofit have placed nearly 3,000 coaches nationwide.
Paul Caccamo’s org Up2Us Sports trains coaches to work as mentors in underserved communities. I profiled him for my “Everyday Heroes” column in The Saturday Evening Post (where he shares a great Jackie O. story).
I admit it — this story made me cry. Don’t miss this beautiful as-told-to piece about a woman who adopted a baby from a drug-addicted mother (Susan Baer, Washingtonian).
Plus: A third-grade teacher donated a kidney to the school custodian (Kyle Melnick, The Washington Post); Cory Lee became the first traveler in a wheelchair to visit all seven continents (Genevieve Shaw Brown, ABC News); and a 102-year-old woman not only beat coronavirus twice, but she previously survived cancer and the 1918 flu pandemic (Minyvonne Burke, NBC News).
See the World
Working in impoverished countries makes his students more empathetic, Desai believes.
I spent a week in Guatemala with Dr. Gautam Desai and his Kansas City University med students as they ran clinics in rural areas where even aspirin is a rarity.
In a delightful National Geographic piece, Eric Weiner reveals why travel should be considered an essential human activity (and he laments that he’s currently using his passport as a coaster).
Plus: What the COVID-19 vaccine will mean for international travel (Adrian Esterman, CNN) and seven under-the-radar national parks for your post-pandemic bucket list (Jennifer Errick, National Parks Conservation Association).
Photo of the Month
Back in February, shortly before the world changed, I hiked through the Garden of the Gods in Colorado after an overnight snow.