Well...personally,
I feel this can be looked at in two ways. One, taking
things TOO personally is a negative. It pulls one back
from accomplishing a goal, and limits the joy of achieving
that goal, and the journey and process of getting there.
However, taking things personally, activated in a positive
way, has jet fuelled many an endeavor and put into action
dreams that others may have deemed if not...IMPOSSIBLE...at
the very least filled with insurmountable challenges and
pitfalls.
On
August 28, 2006 Hurricane Katrina and subsequence hurricanes
brought devastation to New Orleans and The Gulf Coast.
This
was equal opportunity devastation, young and old, rich
and poor, people of all ethnicities and religions were
dealt a vicious hand. They did not do anything to deserve
or cause it, and were, and are now, needful of help from
the rest of our country on a scale hitherto unknown before.
I decided that having given away a certain amount of money
was a good thing, but an even better, would be to connect
with a Paul Newman, or
Ben and Jerry's fundraising
sensibility, create a "product" and raise even
more money.
I checked in with ABC TV,
and after assuring them that I wasn't going to ask them
to do anything or give us any money (they and Disney
Corp. had already committed
millions to disaster relief efforts) got the nod that
this "idea" would not be distasteful or inconsistent
with my contractual deal with them.
So, I went to my fellow castmates and asked them to produce
their own tracks, (spoken word or song), and I'd put it
all together on a CD which we could sell our fans, and
donate the proceeds to help in re-building the disaster
affected regions.
THEY TOOK IT PERSONALLY! The 26 tracks are VERY
PERSONAL. My beloved castmates spent loads of time
and money, and individually came up with creative and
compelling stuff...quite a few are original, hit tunes
if I can trust my ears. Renee
Goldsberry,
Catherine Hickland,
and
Kathy Brier (who got hers in
first) even did TWO TRACKS each.
You can hear the love, and the
sense of sharing that love, and talent, on the CD. ALL
OF THEM WANTED TO HELP. ALL OF THEM WANTED TO SHOW THE
PEOPLE OF THE GULF COAST HOW MUCH WE CARED ABOUT THEM...AND
WOULD NOT EVER FORGET OR IGNORE THEM.
Michael Easton provided
his gift as a photographer, so our CD includes a 32 page
photo album (original portraits by Michael
of us) inside the cover. Paul
Glass,
our show's musical director,
put the tracks in a gorgeous sequence. The CD sounds like
we are putting on a PERSONAL concert just for YOU.
I am proud to tell you that now, 10 months after the CD's
initial release, we have raised over eighty thousand dollars.
Yes!
Over $80,000!!!
And
that's without ever having a plug, or even one of our
23 participants featured on a national network show to
promote the CD.
Please don't at this point, e-mail me re: "how about
Oprah, Ellen, The View" ...Yeah,
yeah, yeah...I've tried...believe me...I have tried...so
now, if you have a personal interest: IT'S UP TO YOU!
If you feel like e-mailing your favorite talk show host
and talking up this project...well, good on you and thanks!
Go for it! We are all in this together! and welcome to
our team!
I believe that one of our country's greatest attributes
is that we shoulder our responsibilities, and no matter
how big the task, roll up our sleeves and get the job
done. We don't fail to pay our bills, and we don't abandon
those in need.
THIS TIME, OUR EFFORTS ARE NEEDED RIGHT HERE AT HOME...
and if I am perceived of as "being in people's
faces" about this cause...well, I do not intend
to offend, but I will do what I feel must be done to help
contribute to a HUGE need. And being wimpy, whining, or
shy isn't going to make it happen...
More than seventy thousand people have perused our site...I
would like to ask...no implore...and beg... all of them
to re-visit...and PURCHASE.
SO HOW IS YOUR FACE FEELING NOW THAT I AM UP IN IT?
Are you smiling? Can you feel the love and gratitude
from all of us? Feel it...do it...NOW! Thank you!
www.onelifemanyvoices.com
