“Stories of personal struggle, relationship, and ultimate achievement need to be told.”
On a recent trip, I made all the arrangements online. Didn’t have to talk to a single person to book a flight, check-in or out of the hotel, or order a taxi. In the blink of an eye, it seemed, my travel was set. Amazingly efficient but also impersonal; I missed – a little – the old way!
That fast-paced, technology-driven world has arrived at PPL, especially in terms of the data we collect and report about program results. On the one hand, we embrace this means of accountability to those who provide resources in an era of tight funding and laser focus on results. But something is lost by describing our work over the internet with reams of numbers in an Excel spreadsheet. The individual stories of personal struggle, relationship, progress, and ultimate achievement also need to be told as examples of what the figures are really all about.
You’ll find such stories from the past year at PPL throughout the site. I hope you are as inspired and encouraged as I am in reading them. Here are some recent stories:
• Julie found a chance to turn her life around at a PPL job training program and will soon complete her college degree.
• Charles began a transformation as a student at MERC Alternative High School. Now, years later, he’s returned to MERC to tell his story and inspire a new generation.
• Ernestine has been overcoming homelessness, depression, and anxiety through PPL’s supportive housing, leading to better things for herself, and her family.
I tell our staff that PPL’s job is to do just the right thing for people in the right way and at the exact right time. Easy to say, but often hard to accomplish given the challenges individuals and families we serve face. But when this magic happens, as it frequently does, lives are changed in ways that make us all resolved to work that much harder to make it happen again and again.
Your support is an important part of what makes positive change for people in our community possible. For that we are deeply grateful. Happy holidays, and best wishes for the New Year.