Time To Face Fear

By Colin Peterson

Thursday evening I went to an event at the Historical Building to see a one act play about Eleanor Roosevelt. The actor, Elena Dodd, presented a monologue in the character of Roosevelt reflecting on her experience drafting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The play was well done and it started me thinking about the times Roosevelt lived in; the kind of leader she was; and how she inspired a generation.

For your sake and mine, I’m not going to explore all the similarities and differences between her time and ours’. However, there were two Roosevelt quotes that I want to share because of the relevance I think they have to how the staff at United Way of Central Iowa approaches our work.

First of all, we all know FDR was famous for saying, “…the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” What I didn’t know is that Eleanor Roosevelt also was famous for elaborating on FDR’s belief. In her own words, the First Lady said, “You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience by which you really stop to look fear in the face…” Our staff and our partners meet people confronting fear and adversity every day. We see it in calls for help that come into 2-1-1, people getting job training assistance, and parents working long hours to get their kids into quality care and education programs. These stories reinforce our dedication to our work. These stories reflect the strength and courage and tenacity of our neighbors.

The other Eleanor Roosevelt quote that I took away was, “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” The optimism of this quote fits perfectly in our culture. We know that change is possible. United Way of America has already established bold national goals and United Way of Central Iowa is doing research, consulting stakeholders, and formulating ambitious goals to achieve big improvements right here in our community. We’re aiming high because we know our community expects it of us and we know doing any less wouldn’t be enough.

So what is the point and why is this relevant to a blog about "Giving"? The point is that times are hard but our work is essential. The staff here is working harder than ever to analyze investments, respond to emergent needs, mobilize donors, advocates, volunteers and strategize for lasting change. Our community needs those of us fortunate enough to weather today’s economic storm and retain economic and job stability to step up and join the movement. That’s my opinion. What’s yours?

**photo courtesy of Mateusz Stachowski