Over 98 Good Leadership Breakfasts, it would seem as if we’d uncovered most of the surprises. At the September 2022 breakfast, we hosted the CEO of NBC Sports, Pete Bevaqua. No surprise…Pete was awesome, but the winner of the Bucket of Good Will stole show.
Charity game of chance
Kristin Larson (center) posed with Pete Bevaqua (right) and me, to celebrate her donation to the Legacy Star Foundation, on behalf of her stillborn daughter, Blakeley.
The Bucket of Good Will is a fundraising technique created by the inventor of the Handy Paint Pail, Mark Bergman. Since 2013, guests of the Good Leadership Breakfast have donated more than $360,000 to charities.
“I’ve been attending this breakfast for years, putting my money into the Bucket of Good Will, knowing that someday I would win the money, and I’d get to tell my story,” Kristin Larson said. She is a Program Manager at Health Source Solutions. Here comes the surpise:
“Our first born daughter Blakeley was stillborn at 38 ½ weeks, We discovered she had a hyper coiled umbilical cord which could have played a role in how her heart stop beating on October 20, 2016. After a healthy pregnancy and no warning signs we advocate for all parents to be aware of movement changes of your baby during all trimesters and if you question anything to into your clinic or emergency room…we now have two sons after losing our daughter Blakeley, but our family never stops saying her name or celebrating her Birthday. I knew winning the Bucket of Good Will someday would allow me to share her story, and bring awareness to all expecting mothers and fathers.”
Her story produced stunned silence, tears…and an instantaneous standing ovation. That was a surprise!
Lisa Wright, CEO of Community Health Choice, is the speaker on October 21, 2022.
“So, I’m giving my donation to the Star Legacy Foundation, to increase awareness, support research, promote education, and encourage advocacy and family support regarding stillbirth, pregnancy loss, and neonatal health,” she said to thunderous applause.
Investing in infant wellbeing, Texas-style
The speaker next week at the October Good Leadership Breakfast is empathetic and determined in the light of stories like Blakeley. Lisa Wright is the CEO of Community Health Choice, in Houston, Texas. Her organization is the second largest health plan in the state of Texas, and their mission is to increase the wellness, and well-being of the poorest of the poor in Texas.
Get your tickets here. And when you attend, be thinking and praying about where you will send your donation when you win the Bucket of Good Will.