Being here can’t help but bring back memories. I remember sitting in Dr. Buckles office (more years ago than I care to admit) and telling her how much I wanted to get my MSW at Loma Linda, but that there was no way I could afford the tuition. Dr. Buckles, although I didn’t recognize it at the time, began my social work education at that moment. She connected with me and my dream, and then personally went the extra mile to make an MSW possible for me. At that moment she became more than the teacher, she became the lesson. I will be forever grateful to her, and to Loma Linda, although I am certain that I didn’t quite appreciate at the time the full extent of the gift that she and the university had given me.

Each of you also has a story of how and why you came to get your education at LLU, and why you have chosen social work as your profession. You could have chosen other, less expensive, institutions, but you chose Loma Linda. Why? For many of you, I believe that you too saw, or sensed, that there is something that this university has to give that is beyond academic knowledge – a deep sense of mission, meaning, and purpose. My hope for you today is that your experience here will inspire you to embark upon your career with a servant’s heart.

Today you have the knowledge base to begin your careers. You know the history, the theories, and the methods. You are no longer social work students – you are colleagues.  We are here today to celebrate that you have reached a finish line, but this is also a starting line.

You are beginning your career in a time that is particularly challenging. Our country is involved in military action in several volatile areas of the world, with uncertain outcomes and no real end in sight. US unemployment is at its highest since 1983, with San Bernardino/Riverside area among the hardest hit, with nearly 13% unemployment. California led the nation in the number of home foreclosures in April, with the Inland Empire the 5^th highest in the country.  California’s budget crisis is forcing cuts to some basic social services, including access to healthcare and mental health services, at the time they are most in demand. Not since the great depression has this country seen so many in need, with so little resources to give. So you now begin your careers with much to do, and precious little with which to do it. It will not be easy.

You are about to find yourselves working in agencies and settings that are stretched to the max. In all likelihood you will have to work within budgets that are beyond tight and handle caseloads that are more than one person should have to carry. You will be asked to ‘make do’ with resources that can’t possibly stretch to meet the needs of your clients. Many of you will join teams where the fear of losing their job is palpable, morale is shaken and many are either burned out or, at best, complacent.  Staff will snap at one another, gossip, complain, or worse.  In these environments, you may find the type of care that is all too common, given the stresses of the times – where the focus is on a problem or diagnosis, instead of the person in pain.

You will hear people refer to their client or patient as “the broken hip in 214” or “the rape case that came in last night” or “the heroin addict.” The bones will be set, the forensic tests run, and the detox started.  Services will be rendered, treatments given, protocols followed, and notes taken. But somewhere in the process, a human being who is suffering and in pain, will be ignored.  I wish it wasn’t so. And I wish I could tell you that it never happens at the BMC, but I can’t.

Sometimes it’s the result of ‘compassion fatigue.’ Sometimes it is just the end result of having to too much to do, day in and day out, and seeing too much pain that seemingly can’t be fixed.  It some cases, though thankfully not here, it can be the result of an organization whose delicate balance of mission, quality, and margin has shifted to the financial bottom line at the expense of the people it serves. Whatever the cause, your social work profession carries with it the vulnerability to erode your compassion and the enthusiasm you now feel. My challenge to you today is to commit yourself to choose a different path.

My challenge to you is to embrace and preserve the unique gift that LLU has given you – a servant’s heart and the concept of Sacred Work. Erie Chapman, in his book Radical Loving Care, challenges us to plant cultures of Radical Loving Care through seeing our profession as sacred work and our interactions as sacred encounters. It is a challenge for which you are uniquely prepared.  Today I challenge you to meet each person, whether client, family, peer, or employee, with a servant’s heart. I challenge you to consider each and every interaction as a sacred encounter. I challenge you to embrace the parable of the Good Samaritan in a real and personal way, every day of your career. I challenge you to renew yourself often enough to have the courage to join with those who are suffering, the compassion to give when you are too busy, too overworked, and too tired, and to be vulnerable enough to never stop caring.

Today I challenge you to commit to bringing a servant’s heart to your every encounter.

·       To  HONOR the SACRED TRUST of those you serve
·       To be grounded in LOVING INTENTION with every action you take
·       To be PRESENT in each interaction
·       To  PAUSE before you respond to a negative encounter
·       To always ASSUME GOOD intentions
·       To FOCUS on STRENGTHS and to INSPIRE others
·       and To  CHOOSE your ATTITUDE

With this commitment you will create a wave of compassionate care that will wash over each person whose life you touch. You will also start, or strengthen, a culture of Radical Loving Care that will gain power within whatever organization you join.

The rewards of meeting this challenge are amazing.  When you make yourself vulnerable enough to truly connect with a servant’s heart to those you serve, you will discover incredible people and joy. In my work with children, when I got to know Jenny, an oppositional, cursing, angry 14 year old girl, I discovered within her a sensitive, wonderful poet. Alex, the withdrawn, abused and untrusting 9 year old boy, gradually morphed into a funny, vibrant, great kid. Within Jenna, a 16 year old girl who seemed hopelessly lost to compulsively cutting herself I found a courageous and talented young lady. These kids never cease to amaze me. Whenever I have taken the time to connect, especially with those who were trying the hardest to push me away, I have found an endless supply of wonderful, strong, inspirational, incredible people.

And in the process they have given me profound blessings, never ending fun, and heartfelt joy. They too become our teachers. The connections you will find in these encounters will feed your soul and provide the ultimate protection from ever becoming ‘burned out.’ Simply stated, I love what I do, and those I work with, every day…even 30 years later. As I have said, many times, I can’t believe they pay me to do this. This is my wish for you.

To the friends and family that are here today to support and celebrate with these graduates, I extend a challenge you too. In making themselves vulnerable in their connection with those they will serve, there is a toll to pay. In and around the great moments of joy and fulfillment, will be days of deep sadness, loss, and frustration at times when every effort doesn’t seem to be enough. In those moments and on those days, I challenge you to be present with them with your own servant’s heart. Those of us in the helping profession at times are not so skilled when we are the ones who need the help. So I challenge you to reach out to them in those moments in those special ways that only you who love them know. As Dr. Phil would say, give them a soft place to fall.

So, today I challenge each one of you to find and understand what it means to have a servant’s heart, and to honor the sacred trust that you have been given.

I congratulate you and welcome you as colleagues.

Paso Robles Balloon Festival – April 24th, 25th, & 26th. (Paso Robles) This is a new event for us, but sounds like a blast, with beautiful flying. Call us for details.

SCBA Event; Estrogen Ascent and Testosterone Tailgate – May 3rd (Apple Valley) Powder-puff balloon competition. We are the hosts for this event.

SCBA Event – May 29th, 30th, 31st. (Lone Pine)- Just a casual weekend flying with friends. Crew welcome & appreciated

Temecula Balloon & Wine Festival – (Temecula) June 5th, 6th, & 7th. We will be providing tether rides for the event, so no flights but lots of concerts, balloon glows, and wine tasting. We will be camping at Lake Skinner for the weekend.

Bear Valley July 4th – July 2nd, 3rd, & 4th (Bear Valley Springs) A camping weekend with great flying, pancake breakfast, car show, and community events. Bear Valley Springs is near Tehachipi and is some of the most beautiful flying we’ve done. This one is a fundraiser, so we will be flying paid passengers, but we usually find time to fly the crew! We get the whole campground for balloon crews, so the tailgate party goes on and on.

Beach Camp Out – July 9th, 10th, 11th & 12th. (Emma Wood State Beach) No flying, just a group of us camping at the beach. No tents allowed, so space in the trailer is limited.

Great Reno Balloon Race - Sept 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th (Reno) Jam-packed flying, balloon glows, and community events. 150 balloons. Sign up early so we can get you a room!

Balloon-A-Palooza – September 18th, 19th & 20th (Las Vegas) 35-40 balloons,Weekend flying and glows, carnival atmosphere, some Vegas-style activities.

South Calrlsbad State Beach – Sept 30 – Mon, Oct 5 (Carlsbad) No flying, no event, just David and I camping at the beach. Hopefully some family to join the campfire & excusions.

Beyond these events is Gallup in December and a few more that I’m sure I am forgetting or havent’ decided on yet. We ALWAYS welcome friends and family to join us, so pick your event & c’mon along!

Snowy morning bliss. We sleep in a little, awakening to the sight of a snow-blanketed world. After 20 years of mountain living, it still awes me. Lingering over our coffee, we  watch the snow and set out a morning feast for the birds. Later we get all suited up for a hike in the snow, then make a last minute decision to shovel instead while the snow is soft & fluffy. For folks ‘down the hill,’ I think it is hard to comprehend the beauty of the silence that accompanies snow. The quiet seems to foster a deep sense of peace and contentment   After clearing our trucks and a path, we head out for a short walk around the neighborhood. Midway along our route the snow starts again – big fluffy flakes drifting lazily to the earth. We arrive home to the warmth of the fire and soup for lunch. Not eager to break the silence, we opt for reading and computers, while the cats cuddle up. The crackle of the fire, David turning the pages of his book, and the clock ticking are the only sounds. As a refugee from a chaotic week, this snowy Sabbath morning provides a perfect retreat.

Lauren & David - ballooning from the inside out!

*Laugh when you can, apologize when you should, let go of what you can’t change, kiss slowly, play hard, forgive quickly, take chances, give everything, have no regrets. Life’s too short to be anything but happy.*