On March 31st 2016, the Hamlin School hosted a Changing The World Salon at the house of Wanda Holland Greene (Head of the Hamlin School). The evening brought together Hamlin students and special guests: Jennifer Dulski, President of change.org and Hamlin alumna; Etecia Brown, Community Organizer and Hamlin alumna; Julia Hartz, Co-founder and President of Eventbrite; Sammie Rayner, Co-founder of HandUp; and Stephanie Burrell, Co-founder of Thee Art Cave.
The five women introduced themselves and shared highlights of their work, then they were asked thoughtful questions from a group of eight middle school students. You may view this very special gathering by clicking on the YouTube link at the bottom of this blog.
Here are some key takeaways from the discourse:
Jennifer Dulski, change.org-
“I get to wake up every day and build a technology platform that empowers people everywhere to create the change on the issues that matter most to them.”
“There is no greater joy than helping other people.”
“Do as many things that scare you as soon as you can. The earlier in life that you do things that scare you, the easier it becomes to do other things that will scare you.”
Etecia Brown, Community Organizer-
“We plan marches and rallies (for people of color and others facing displacement in San Francisco); we talk to different city officials to work on policy changes.”
“Your network is your net worth.”
“It was awesome for me to be able to witness how creating a space for people to come together does make a difference.”
Julia Hartz, Co-founder and President of Eventbrite-
“Eventbrite is the world’s largest platform to bring people together. Last year we helped to power 2.5 million events around the world.”
“When I try to reconstruct the moment (when she decided to focus on creating Eventbrite) I know the elements were there – a fearlessness and a willingness to take risk.”
“It has been ingrained in you to be fearless. You are Hamlin women, you have no choice.”
Sammie Rayner, Co-founder of HandUp-
“HandUp provides a way to give directly to specific individuals experiencing homelessness and poverty here in the U.S.”
“Be right here in this day. What are you going to do in this day that’s going to take one step?”
“It’s not about me; it’s about the people and their stories.”
Stephanie Burrell, Co-founder of Thee Art Cave-
“I’m a designer, an educator, and an entrepreneur . . . I wanted to sell things that people feel good about wearing, feel good about saying about themselves and expressing about themselves, which is how I believe you change the world.”
“We were able to have organizations from the UN come into East New York and see what we were doing as a model for places like India.”
“Everyone is going to have an opinion of you, but it is important for you to know yourself . . . We are all unique in that we have our own stories . . . You can stand in your own power and know what is true for you.”
After the main conversation, Julia Hartz asked our Hamlin students to identify their “super power” as young women. The girls shared the following words: honesty, courage, persistence, drive, independence, compassion, organization, resiliency.
The “Changing the World Salon” was an eclectic gathering of powerful women who shared heartfelt stories of their challenges and successes. To watch the Salon please visit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zS0BX6x3qv0&feature=youtu.be
-Special thanks to videographer, Matthew Rome and editor, Jethro Patalinghug