Pub Date: September 10, 2024
Genre: Memoir

Do you feel you are meant for more?

Many people feel a deep longing for something more, for richer meaning in their lives, but are unable to identify where that longing is coming from or how to come to terms with it. Many people seek happiness through acquiring material goods or achieving status, only to find a lack of fulfillment. At one time, Karen Olson, a successful marketing executive, felt the same.

Then, one fall day in 1981, as she hurried to a business meeting in New York City, she noticed an elderly, homeless woman outside Grand Central Station. Impulsively, Karen darted across the street and bought the woman a sandwich and an orange juice. She listened to the woman’s story and learned her name: Millie.

This small act of kindness changed the trajectory of Karen’s life. Karen dedicated her life to those in need and founded Family Promise, a national nonprofit organization that helps homeless and low-income families. Today, the organization boasts more than 200 affiliates across the country, with more than 180,0000 men, women, and children served each year. In Meant for More, Karen tells her story, from tragedy in childhood to an adulthood full of compassion and service, which has made her stronger, healthier, and more fulfilled than ever before.

With firsthand testimonials from Karen and other volunteers, Meant for More is an inspiring call to action: when you reach out beyond yourself and seek to make a difference in the lives of others, happiness will catch up with you.

Excerpt

Compassion is an incredibly powerful agent for healing and transformation. If someone has ever been kind to you when you were down then you know how intensely appreciated support can be. Just the simple act of having someone care for us or be present can touch us and warm our heart. Because it restores our spirit, kindness and compassion can lift us up and inspire us to change our lives.

Interestingly, some people are astonished to see how much their simple acts of generosity affect others. But when they do realize how big the impact they had was, it moves them. They discover immense empathy in themselves that they did not necessarily know they had.

Pace, a senior executive at Sandia National Laboratories, is a great example of a person who discovered a newfound sense of purpose and fulfillment when he became an overnight volunteer for Family Promise. His story is a testament to the transformative power of giving back and cultivating a more expansive heart. It’s stories like his that shine a light on the remarkable character and empathy of our volunteers.

Pace

In 1993, I was transferred to lead another organization within the laboratory. My associates were throwing me a going-away party. Several people, mainly scientists, stood up to give testimonials; however, I only remember one.

When the scientists had finished talking, a secretary, Alice, whom I did not know well, shyly raised her hand for permission to speak. Alice shared the story of a chance encounter with me several years earlier when I had come to her aid one wintry night when she got a flat tire that left her stranded.

Alice told everyone about the evening that she left work. There was a sudden cold snap, and it started sleeting. Before she reached the main road, she pulled over with a flat tire, but a stream of cars continued to pass by, causing her to panic. Alice noticed someone pull up behind her, get out of their car, and knock on her window. It was me. Ignoring the conditions, I went ahead and changed her tire. Alice recalled that I wasn’t dressed for the weather, but didn’t seem to mind. She said, at that point, I stopped being “just a suit” and became a human being to her.

Touched by her thoughtful words, their effect extended beyond that party. In the following days, I reflected on how my simple, automatic response to her situation had made such a lasting impact on her. It wasn’t significant to me because I’d done this before and had forgotten about the encounter with Alice. However, it was of importance to her. I concluded I could do more to make a difference in people’s lives. I didn’t want to be known as a “suit.” That began a more thorough search for meaningful ways to assist people. Unknowingly, Alice opened my heart to become more expansive.

I got involved with Family Promise when my church, First United Methodist, helped start the Albuquerque affiliate. Due to my hectic schedule, family, work, and church seemed to be the only things I had time for. However, the program appealed to me emotionally, and overnight hosting was something I could fit into my busy life because I had to sleep. So, in that position, I slept overnight at the church. Then, before I headed to work, I would prepare and serve breakfast.

Every quarter, at my church, they select a different coordinator to oversee the program. Very quickly, I recognized it was suffering from a lack of continuity, so I volunteered to coordinate. In addition, I wanted to contribute some management skills to the program, and I became the program coordinator for more than eleven years.

I have retired from my job at the laboratory and now conduct research on physics that might lead to new energy sources, so I’m working fewer hours. Consequently, that allowed me to devote more hours to Family Promise. I led our congregation’s hosting of homeless families by recruiting and coordinating the work of approximately fifty volunteers who provided families with essential respect and loving-kindness, as well as food, lodging, and transportation.

When I began helping on weekends, I got to know our guests personally. They would open up to me and, without asking, tell me their stories. Like Alice, I got to know them as “real people.”

On the weekends, I prepared breakfast for our guests and planned recreational activities for families. Our activities ranged from yoga sessions and mountain hikes to bowling, and my wife Nancy assisted me with the program. Hospitality isn’t just a word to use with Family Promise. We invited our guest families to our home. We had a zip line in our backyard that we invited them to try. Although it was only about fifteen feet high, it was high enough to provide our guests with the experience of tackling their fears and persevering. On weekends we began holding mock job interviews, and these have since been incorporated into the day program that our guests attend. As an experimental physicist, I can fix almost anything, so I helped our guests with car repairs and occasionally organized dinners for volunteers to facilitate training, and building rapport. After every hosting, I emailed an after-hosting report to volunteers, sharing significant milestones our guests had reached so that they can see how they had touched the lives of our guests.

I keep in touch with many of the families we’ve hosted. I remember one of the first families who graduated from our program. About a month after that hosting, I saw the family in a local restaurant. Their five-year-old son ran up to me and gave me a big hug, which surprised me because I didn’t think they would remember me. I deemed it another “Alice experience” —when we care and act, we make lasting changes in people’s lives.

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About the Author

Karen Olson, the founder and CEO emeritus of Family Promise has dedicated her life to transforming the present and futures of homeless and low-income families. Karen has rallied more than a million volunteers nationwide, fostering an extensive network of support for the vulnerable. Also, because of all the efforts of the volunteers, the organization has been able to assist over a million people experiencing homelessness.

Before her remarkable transition into the realm of social advocacy, Karen demonstrated her leadership prowess as a manager at Warner-Lambert. However, her leap into the world of nonprofits truly underscored her compassionate spirit and steadfast determination.

Karen’s efforts have been duly recognized, and she has received numerous awards. Some of them include President George H.W. Bush honoring her with the prestigious Annual Points of Light Award, and the New Jersey Governor’s Pride Award recognizing Karen’s remarkable social-service contributions. The American Institute of Public Service also bestowed upon her the Jefferson Award, acknowledging her tireless public-service efforts.

In 2019, Karen experienced a freak accident that left her in a wheelchair. While it has changed her life, Karen continues to be involved.