I didn't want to write this post, because it is something that is so important to me that I have a hard time expressing it. But, maybe by expressing it here it will become easier to talk about.
April 15, 2013 (the Boston Marathon Bombing) was a day that changed my life. It started watching the triumph of human feats and ended watching the despair of people losing loved ones. The Boston Marathon is one of the greatest days of the year, thousands of people train for months for the opportunity to run 26 miles from Hopkington to Boston. Lots of people watch along the course and it's a great community event.
In 2013, it was a warm sunny day and I went to the finish line to watch the looks of triumph as people met their goals. We stood behind a barricade that had the flags of every country that the runners were from displayed on, and I remember feeling so inspired. After a few hours of standing I joked that I was tired from watching people exercise, and we walked away to get coffee. We had made it one block when we heard two blasts that sounded like cannons. My friend thought that the bleachers had collapsed, but then we passed a bar with a television and found out that it was even worse. Two bombs had exploded, one right in front of the flags where we had just stood. Hundreds of people were injured and three people lost their lives. It was a time of trauma, and everyone wanted to do something to help.
Very soon, the Mayor announced the creation of The One Fund, a foundation that would disperse funds to all of those effected by the bombing. Instead of having competing funds for each person injured, everyone would give to one place and then the fund would distribute the money fairly and transparently. John Hancock Financial was the first to give, and presented a check for $1 Million, and served as the financial backer for the fund. All other businesses and individuals followed the example, and soon the One Fund had the resources needed to help everyone recover.
I remember thinking that I wanted to do that. I wanted to be the company that steps up and makes a difference when it really matters. I wanted to be part of the community in a different way. So, two years later, I enrolled in business school and got my MBA, and now I help a company do this very important work every day.