Gina JaberMaking a Difference


By Gina Jaber


It didn't take a hurricane, an earthquake or a tsunami for Oral Lee Brown to do something good. All it took was a brief encounter with a young child asking for a quarter for food.

Many of you may have heard of the East Bay's Oral Lee Brown. Until very recently, I had not. I have since read her book (The Promise: How One Woman Made Good on Her Extraordinary Pact to Send a Classroom of 1st Graders to College), met her and felt changed ever since.

In 1987, this amazing woman walked into an Oakland classroom looking for the nameless little girl who had asked her for money. Struck by the beauty and hope in each child's face, Brown found herself promising every student in the classroom that she would pay for his college education. Through personal savings, an annual banquet, bake sales and donations, Brown kept her promise--and keeps making more of the same.

Those who give of themselves so grandly move and impress me. There are definitely many people out there who are extremely charitable. And, after seeing the worldwide outpouring of support in the aftermaths of the recent natural disasters, I am reminded of how giving and caring human beings really are at their core.

While all charitable deeds are admirable, what Brown did is different. Her motivation sprang from a quiet, under-publicized disaster, a tragedy far removed from the nightly news headlines: the endless cycles of poverty and despair.

On an otherwise ordinary day, Brown was compelled to give underprivileged kids in her own community the chance to flourish. Through personal sacrifices, small and large, she made up her mind to singlehandedly make a difference.

When I asked her what advice she would give to someone who wants to make a difference, but doesn't know how or where to start, her reply was simple: "Search your heart. None of us got where we are without someone making a sacrifice for us. Direct your passion for the good of someone else."

Most of us give when and where we can, though I always wish I could do more. I now know for certain that I could do way more. Brown didn't say this to me, but I'm guessing she believes that there are lots of quiet disasters right underneath our noses that could use our help. What elephants in the room are we missing?

Brown calls the little girl who sought the money--a child she has never seen again-- an angel. I think she is one too.

E-mail Gina Jaber at ginajab@yahoo.com.