Supporting Literacy with LIFE on LIFE

Hi everyone!

Many of you have heard of the LIFE on LIFE initiative we have launched at the LIFE corp. I’m very excited about this and wanted to give you some insight on how I’m working it into my life. In 2007, when I became business partners with Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady I learned they had a charitable foundation called All Grace Outreach.

All Grace Outreach is a Christian charitable organization committed to helping those in need. Its main focus is spreading the gospel throughout the world, and helping abused, abandoned, and distressed children and widows.

When I first began donating, I did it in small amounts. At first, I just gave on Sunday mornings at the denominational services we have at our Leadership Conventions. As time went on, I became increasingly interested in giving and serving more. As I learned more about Orrin and Chris, I continued to believe in who they were and what they believed.

A few years ago, I was asked to sit on the board at AGO and take some responsibility for dispersing funds. I take this obligation seriously and am diligent about who I give money to. Recently the AGO board members realized that the AGO could do more and serve more if it had someone to drive it forward. At the time we were coming to this realization, Chris Swanson popped up. I will do another blog post just on Chris in the next few days, but in short, he is amazing and will do amazing things for AGO. I feel great being apart of the AGO and hope to continue to be allowed to serve on its board.

Over the years, I have given money to many different causes, with no rhyme or reason. Sometimes the right person asked, and other times my heart was feeling generous, whether it was sponsoring local hockey teams or slipping some cash to a teenage couple that was surprised with the news they were pregnant. Sometimes it was faith-based, like local churches or mission trips and sometimes it wasn’t faith based at all, like kids showing up at my door to be sponsored or to sell apples or cookies. I have a rule of thumb, if a kid knocks at my door, I buy everything they are selling!

As I sit here and write this, I’m actually remembering all the places people or causes I have given money to, and in a selfish prideful moment, I’m feeling kind of proud of it. I have never actually sat down and made a list or tried to remember them all, but as I sit here now and make a mental list, I am mildly impressed with myself. That said, I wasn’t very organized in how I gave—I just gave.

I also really developed a preference for giving anonymously. I don’t know why I took a fondness to it so much. It just feels great giving and not expecting any glory or anything in return. The second best is giving and only you and the people you’re giving to know. I like the feeling I get when I give and very few people know. It’s almost like its proof that I’m doing it for the right reasons. I’m in no way trying to highlight my charitable history, but instead am trying to outline how I’ve given in the past—with no real direction.

Every year, my wife, Lana, likes to participate in an Angel Tree program. The Angel Tree program is run across the globe, with many different local sponsors. Its aim is to supply gifts and food bank supplies to children and adults during the holiday season. When you select an “angel,” you are given the age and gender of the child or adult you have chosen to shop for, so you can try to make the gift as personal as possible. The Enfield Angel Tree Food Bank runs an Angel Tree program, if you’re in the Nova Scotia area in looking to find out more. 

Lana’s contribution to the Angel Tree program started when we were incredibly broke. We didn’t buy gifts for each other for many years, but she would take a couple of the Angel Tree angels and buy gifts for a few kids. It started with one, then a few, and I think this year she will do over one hundred children. She makes it a lot of fun and takes some of our friends along with her. They’re all so excited to buy gifts for children that they will never meet.

I envied the simplicity and impact of her effort, and I tried to do a few things like it. I wanted to buy turkeys and give them to families in need during the holidays, but you wouldn’t believe the red tape involved in that. Next, I decided I would roam the supermarkets the weeks before Christmas and buy groceries for people when they approached the till. (I was asked to leave a few stores.) Last year, while I was driving with Wyatt to buy gifts for his Mom, I saw people on the sidewalks asking for spare change. I looked at Wyatt and started pulling up beside anyone I saw begging and gave them each a 50-dollar bill. It was a rush, but I saw many leave their corner almost immediately. Hopefully they went for a meal or warmer clothing, but I suspect some of them went to buy drugs or alcohol.

Essentially, I haven’t been that organized when giving money away. I thought about starting my own charitable organization like my friend Tim Marks did in Haiti, but it seemed like a lot of work that someone could de better and more efficiently then I could. Plus, though Tim handles his charity with class and no ego and its his personal passion, I saw many other people who were seeking glory more for themselves than to really make a difference; I didn’t want that accusation ever leveled at me.

With AGO, I feel like I am doing the Lord’s work. That said, I feel as I’ve been blessed so much that I still have more privilege to give. My sons are two and four, and they will grow up with a blessed life, but I want to teach them to work, not to earn, but to work to learn and to work to serve.

By setting this as an example, and by serving others, it teaches the principles I want them to learn. The only problem was, though I knew I wanted to serve and contribute, I didn’t yet have a cause that stirred my soul.

I sit in my office, surrounded by all the books I have read. I don’t like putting books on my shelf I haven’t read. So if you see it on my shelf, I have read that book. I humbly acknowledge the impact that associating myself with all these magnificent authors has had on me. I know that I get to live the lifestyle I have today, and provide for my family the way I can because of what I have learned reading over the years.

I always believed that a man who can read and doesn’t is as disadvantaged as the man who cannot read. With that thought, my heart began to stir and I realized I had found a cause I could pour my heart and soul (and effort and money) into.

I quickly called Chris and Orrin and began asking them questions about how to go about chasing this new dream. To my surprise, the same thoughts had been brewing in their minds. LIFE helps a small hard working group of focused people create financial freedom. We help the majority of people get debt free and lead better lives, but we were missing the disenfranchised and disadvantaged. After discussing this, the founders decided the literacy cause lined up with our core values and also was in line with what we do at LIFE. We want to give back in the markets we operate in, not just with AGO, but also in a way that helped anyone from any belief system, race, ethnic group, etc.

We started taking a portion of the profit from each LIFE subscription and putting it towards supporting LIFE on LIFE. The first organization we supported was in North Carolina where our head office is located. Now we are ready to branch out.

I am excited to support this as a LIFE founder, of course. I’m ready to collaborate with organizations and utilize LIFE resources to serve and make the biggest impact possible. I am also excited to personally contribute my time, money, and influence to support this cause.

In the Nova Scotia area, we are thrilled to announce that we’ll be contributing and supporting Literacy Nova Scotia.

The goal of Literacy Nova Scotia is to “work to ensure that all Nova Scotians have equal access to quality literacy, essential skills, and lifelong learning opportunities.”

Literacy Nova Scotia has a respect for all its members of learning communities. They are actively moving forward to help these learners reach their goals and fulfill their potential. They’re ready to help all learners, and they respect individuality, culture, and diversity.

They’re responsible with their funds, and I feel confident that by donating to Literacy Nova Scotia, we can help to make a difference in our local area.

This week, November 1-7, is Literacy Action Week. During this week, there are information sessions and other activities held across NS. In addition, literacy-related meetings are held with government officials. The goal of this week is to share information and support adult literacy across our province and local communities.

CTDwTThUkAA8d8bYou can find out more information about Literacy Action Week on Literacy Nova Scotia’s website.

In addition, you can contribute to Literacy Action Week’s social media awareness by posting a selfie with the Literacy Action Week poster.

Don’t forget to use the hashtag #LIFEonLIFE, #LiteracyChangesLives, and #LAW2015 so that we can see your pictures! You can tag me on Twitter and Facebook, and be sure to tag and follow Literacy Nova Scotia, as well.

I’ll be posting another blog in the coming days, which will give you more information on Literacy Nova Scotia and the awesome impact they’ve had in NS.

Claude

18 thoughts on “Supporting Literacy with LIFE on LIFE

  1. What a fabulous article to encourage others to become involved in helping anybody learn to read. I once worked with a young lad who wanted to learn to read before his daughter started school so that she could learn from her dad and listen to him read her books!
    There are not really very many venues available for the general public to have a place for learning to read without it costing money. I am so excited that Life has chosen literacy to be a focus to help our fellow man, woman, child, or elder have support systems so they can learn to read! I want to help succeed in this mission as much as possible!
    Thanks for helping LIFE to embrace this goal at this time!

    Janice

  2. Great points Claude, you underline the importance of being deliberate in our intentions. In your blog you have a plan to become deliberate in refining your competence in giving effectively. The Life on Life initiative is a practical opportunity to developing a giving literacy if you will by serving those who will benefit from developing their functional literacy…! Many people I meet as clients need financial literacy and the Life product offerings certainly provide the tools to develop those life skills. Our task is significant and quite broad, supporting those struggling with functional literacy, financial literacy, not to mention political and social literacy…all which require each individual to learn, do and teach and you sir are an example I am proud to follow and serve with! Give on and Live on my Brother and thank you for sharing how you are processing the learning curve of a new area of effectiveness in your life of giving.

  3. Hey Claude,
    Great Blog! I have been a lover of books and reading, since I was a child (a gift and discipline from my mother) and so appreciate that you are taking up the cause of Literacy!
    I believe that your passion, your influence, your Leadership and Vision will be so incredibly effective and productive, toward increasing Awareness of the Necessity of Literacy.
    Reading changes lives, and increases one’s own personal power, to change their own lives.
    Thank you, Claude, for leading from the front, as always!

  4. Awesome Claude, We are so proud to be part of your endeavours helping people through Life Leadership. I have met many high school students who cannot read or even spell correctly. Phonics should be back in our schools as this is the way older generations learned. We were taught and could spell much better at much younger ages using that system. I do not understand how a child can graduate high school and can not do math without a calculator or spell correctly! What you are doing is absolutely wonderful! You are a great role model for many of all ages!

  5. I love the thought of giving anonymously., where you can give from the heart, with having right motives. Lana’s example with the angel tree is a great way to incorporate in Ontario as well as Nova Scotia., just to make a difference in somebodies life

  6. Great Blog Claude can’t believe the difference that reading can make wish I read more when I was younger but am very thankful for the oppertunity and the ability to read more now.

  7. Hi Claude, great article. I can still remember when I argued with someone years ago about reading not being as important as learning to add !!! Like wow was I wrong , reading has completely changed my life and you have been the leading example for me to follow. Thank you for all you do. Love ya pal.

  8. Claude,
    I think it’s just awesome the LIFE leaders are so much behind the LIFE on LIFE movement, and literacy in particular. Reading is so essential to modern life and opens so many doors for people.
    My mother always told stories of me coming home the first day of kindergarten in tears because they’d not taught me to read there. With me not accepting it would be a lengthy process there, my mother finally agreed to teach me daily. She took this on despite me having an older sibling in 2nd grade, 2 younger siblings at home, and her advancing pregnancy with my final sibling (she delivered the following February).
    Never shirking her wifely or motherly duties, my mother taught me to read by Christmas break. She launched me years ahead of my classmates and gave me a fascination with and appreciation for the printed word I cherish to this day. I sincerely hope the LIFE on LIFE literacy work creates such a love in others, too.

  9. Thanks for sharing Claude. We are so blessed to be in business with you and the other great leaders. Thanks for setting the example and always leading the way

  10. Thanks Claude for leading at this time in the area of literacy. Nothing may be more important than reading in order to know the truth for one’s self. Many lives will be changed through acquiring the gift of reading. Our school just started a new explicit phonics writing and reading program and I only wish we had adopted it earlier.

  11. I love your heart Claude and I am super proud of the thought process you have on humility and pride!! Your cds and talks have blessed our lives and our children’s in ways you will never know! Thanks for planting trees who’s leaves will fall in areas you will never know!!

  12. Thanks for sharing Claude! True happiness is achieved through loving and serving others. Thank you LIFE Leadership for making a difference in so many individuals, families, communities, Provinces/States and Countries!! A true testament to what LIFE is all about!

  13. Thank you Claude! As the daughter of a Grade One teacher I am delighted to see your action on this….especially as it is here at home in Nova Scotia! Literacy is imperative to our growth as individuals, as a community, as a nation, and this contribution will affect even our civilization! Gratitude!

  14. It’s awesome to be part of an organization that has leaders with service at their foundation. I’m proud to call you a friend Claude! PEI is planning our first Life On Life event as we speak!

    Keep leading the charge!
    Jeff & Detry

  15. Hey Claude, this is such a great cause to take part in. Literacy is something most people take for granted and are not aware of the amount of people who are illiterate. Great job of shearing light on this issue that effects so many people.

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