Our Founding
Over the last week, word has started getting around.
I’ve started getting quite a few inquiries from other nonprofits in Vermont asking whether I could replicate with them what I did for Shelburne Farms. The answer I’ve given has of course been an enthusiastic “yes!” But considering operating at a larger scale than just Shelburne Farms means I’ll need to take a different approach.
To learn what tack we might take, I’ve spent the last week setting up meetings with some of the nonprofits that Shelburne Farms could provide me an introduction to: Vermont Community Foundation, Burlington City Arts, the Governor’s Institutes of Vermont, Vermont Foodbank, and the Greater Burlington YMCA.
Hello, World!
If you ask someone about their experience living through the coronavirus pandemic, you are likely to hear about the isolation they felt from their communities, the worries they had about their health, the uncertainty they were thrown into when it all started.
But chances are, at least in my experience, you’ll also hear more uplifting sentiments, too. People will tell you how they came together, quarantining with family they hadn’t spent real time with in years. They’ll reveal the choices they made to keep others safe, like staying home from a small wedding when they got a sore throat. And they’ll show you how they responded to these unexpected times, making something meaningful out of their days while everything around them was falling apart.
For me, the story is the same. I’ve felt lonely, scared, and uncertain about the future. But those feelings have been crowded out by others. The belief that although we are apart we can be together. The hope that my family, friends, and neighbors will be safe and healthy. The inspiration that helps us navigate change.