Tag Archives: Rai Foundation

Global LifeVision Changing Lives in India

It’s seem like a month ago, yet it’s been less than a week since the Global LifeVision team entered the Rai Foundation school eager to empower 600 plus young women with confidence to fulfill their dreams.  The experience was amazing – beyond words. The girls were lovely, gracious and eager to learn with open hearts and minds.  Everything is “Yes ma’am” with a bobble-head like nod.  Students do not enter the classroom without permission and they stand to ask a question – they sit with laser focused eyes, with real intent, striving to cypher our English within a hot and humid room with very poor lighting.  Their excitement to learn does not fade as the clock ticks away the 90 minute class.

My friend and teaching partner, Laurie Olson and I team teach the Spiritual/My Purpose and the Relationships sections of Ideal LifeVision.  My favorite was teaching the students about “I am” statements.  We start them with five of our own: I AM Worthy, I AM Deserving, I AM Capable, I Trust Myself and I Forgive myself and others, then we filled up the white board with their own “I AM” affirmations …I AM Beautiful, I AM Honest, I AM Kind, I AM Precious, I AM Bold, I AM Giving, I AM a  Hard Worker, I AM Compassionate, I AM Smart, I CAN do anything! …the list goes on and on.  

Twenty-one countries are represented at the University of Rai, with diverse spiritual beliefs and backgrounds.   I emphasized that ALL religions are good  – anything that inspires you to be a better person and to serve others is  good and should be sought after.  We encouraged the students to grow stronger in their faith, to pray often to God and to listen for His whisperings of inspiration and guidance. And last, but not least, to love and serve others.

These girls are bright and their English skills allowed most to quickly grasp what we were teaching.  Many wrote and shared their beautiful Life Vision with us.  Agnes from Uganda is a born leader and caught on right away the vision of LifeVision., Agnes wants to become a certified LifeVision Coach to make a difference in her home community in Uganda. 

We captured Rai student Drishti’s testimonial on video of  what LifeVision has done for her belief in herself. Close friendships were made.  Tears and tight hugs were common place as we said good-bye with promises to return.

I am grateful to my Father in Heaven for this priceless opportunity to BE taught by these beautiful young women.  The students shared their burning desire to get an education to break the chain of poverty and to better the circumstance of their families and make a difference in their county and world.

To the girls of the Rai Foundation: “You Go Girls! You Rock!”

 

Update – Highlights of India 2011

Back again in 2012

 

Why India?

People get excited when I tell them I am going to India, some ask “Why the HECK India? Aren’t you scared?”  I say…Why NOT India?…. and NO, I am not one bit scared! I am overJOYed, thrilled, excited and humbled that in 11 days I will board a plane in Salt Lake City with six AMAZING women; Ann Webb, Laurie Olson, Wendi Coccimiglio, Patty Liston, Jamie Dalton, and Danielle Wright, to fly from SLC to Chicago where the rest of our group will meet up with us…..Lisa Walker from Texas and our professional video-augrapher Rand Snyderman from New York City. Together we fly 14 hours and 25 minutes to New Delhi, India. Once off the plane we are to look for two men holding signs with our names on them, yep just like the movies:)…along side our drivers we have designated guards who will accompany us throughout our travels. From there I will blog day by day, if internet connection allows me. I get goose bumps thinking about it. This has been a dream of mine since I was a young girl. I put it on my vision board over a year ago and wrote it in my LifeVision….and now I am about to live what has only been a dream! How cool is THAT! 🙂

How did all this come about? I’m still asking myself that question! On January 31, LifeVision Coach, Laurie Olson was coaching me through writing my own LifeVision  and as I would write each section I would email it to her to see if I was doing it right and to make sure I had not snuck in anything negative. In my personal development section, I wrote about my desire to go to to 3rd world countries to serve and to be an instrument in the Lord’s hand in helping others discover their passion and aspirations so they can find JOY in their Journey. What I didn’t know is that Laurie was working with Ann Webb and Lisa Walker in forming Global LifeVision to teach in 3rd world countries. When the opportunity presented itself to the three co-founders to go to India to teach LifeVision at a College for Women, Laurie Olson said my name popped into her head as someone that had to be a part of this. Tears filled my eyes when Laurie first told me it was a possibility. Then the official invite came via email from Laurie, Ann and Lisa….I was ecstatic…..I was about to live a life long dream.

The journey in preparation has been great and grand also…..immunizations, weekly conference calls, writing curriculum, handouts, contact cards, reading and watching India You Tube videos.

Okay so here’s the Plan: First day….shopping in New Delhi to buy  the India attire that we will wear….can’t wait! We will spend two nights in New Delhi and then travel two hours to the College where we will be teaching. We will stay in the dorms with the Young Women. How fabulous will that be, to be amongst these beautiful young women that come from all over the world? I expect to learn much more from them then they will learn from me.

We have each been assigned a LifeVision section to teach in a 90 minute workshop.  Laurie and I will team teach the Spirituality/My Purpose sections and Relationships.  You guessed it….more goosebumps when we were assigned those subjects!!  The graduating class of 600 young women will be divided into groups of 50-100 and will rotate for 2 days through our five workshops; learning, writing, sharing and recording their own LifeVision. Then the process starts again with another group of young women ages 17-22.

Vinay Rai, founder of the Rai Foundation and owner of the College where we will teach, has sent us an invitation to have dinner at his home of residence one evening. I’ve never eaten at a Billionaire’s home….the coolest thing about Vinay is his big heart and the 1000’s of lives he is changing. Every young women at the school is on full scholarship from Vinay.

Second Week; we will be walking the streets of Kolkata working with the Towards Life Foundation, here we will serve the 1000’s of  “street children”.    I know nothing can prepare me for what I will see and do in Kolkata, the slum of the world. It will be a life changing experience and for that I will be forever grateful.

In only 11 more days….I will never to be the same.

Here was last weeks Press Release: Press Release