Our Mom passed away last week,
and since then I have been reflecting on her amazing life. We will have a memorial service for her in a
few weeks at which we will hear wonderful stories from others about the
difference she made on the planet during her eighty-six years here.
To me, a good part of her legacy
can be summed up in two important words: Love & Duty.
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| Mom was also a Pittsburgh Pirates fan! |
Mom had great Love for her family
– her parents, brother, kids, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and more. She had great Love for her friends, for her
Church & God, for various organizations she belonged to (e.g., PEO), for
the community, and for her fellow man/woman.
Mom expressed her Love in a wide
variety of ways. But one thing is for
sure. To Mom, once you have Love for
someone or some thing, then there is a Duty involved in carrying out that Love.
For my three siblings and me this
meant the kind of devotion that many other kids have also been blessed to
experience. Her active participation
with Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, swim meets, softball games, baseball games, etc.,
etc., etc. meant a lot to us. She
demonstrated that same devotion to her extended family and friends.
But Mom also took it a step
further. Once she retired as a Nurse,
she carried out her Love for others with a Duty to serve. This turned her into an amazing volunteer. Locally she was active in
Hospice and the Church and the Red Cross and more. Her Red Cross Duty also took her across the
country. She served others during
floods, after terrible airline crashes, helped rebuild homes after Katrina, and
went twice to Ground Zero after 9/11.
And for Mom, Duty is all about
doing what you say you are going to do, doing it well, and doing it on
time. It sounds simple, but what would
our organizations look like if every person actually did what they said they
were going to do, did it well, and did it on time? Transformational!
Just Do It – carry out your Duty
like Mom!
Thanks for the great example Mom
– we love you and miss you.
For more ideas on how you can lead breakthroughs in your
organization, follow this blog and check out my web site at
www.SheehanNonprofitConsulting.com You
will find free resources you can download, including a Breakthrough Strategy
Workbook that you can download at no cost.
You can also check out my book, Mission Impact: Breakthrough Strategies for Nonprofits, and
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