Engaged Life

This is a story about my journey. Be patient with me, it’s still being written.

On a college trip to Germany in 2007

I went to college far from home, 1,248 miles from home to be exact. I knew I wanted an education, to experieince a new place far from home, and I wanted to do it all on my own. I had a crazy since of pride since I was the recipient of several scholarships and made the cheerleading squad for the small Lutheran school in the Piedmont of North Carolina. Before I accepted and went to register, I’d never even visited the school. In fact, I had never even been to North Carolina. I went sight unseen. I decided this would be my adventure.

I spent four glorious years in North Carolina. Going on trips with professors, attending sorority parties, making friends, falling in love, out of love, and back in again… It was everything everyone told me college would be, and more. By the time graduation came, I was ready to take on the world. I had my bachelors in electronic and corporate communications and was packing my bags to head to Nome, Alaska where I would spend a year working at a radio station.

Alaska was not just an adventure, it was my call.

Alaska was the best thing that ever happened to me. I rekindled my passion for technology in a way I never knew possible and learned all about communications in a hands on fashion. The teamwork I experienced was unparalleled. Teamwork in Alaska blew those small class projects (that took a semester to complete mind you) out of the water. However, I believe that everything you experience prepares you for the future. For better or worse, it prepares you.  ‘This is what college prepared me for,’ I thought ‘I wonder how life will top this.’ Well, it did.

The love of my life sent me a letter one day during the Christmas holidays in Alaska. He was writing from North Carolina and talked about his life, how he was, and how he missed me. In the days of email, text, IM, chat, and cell phones, he wrote a letter.

Who says the millienials don’t know how to communicate past TXT language?

Wedding day 2010

At the end of my service in Alaska, my love was moving to Minnesota to start seminary and I decided I was too. Another state, site unseen. Minnesota was my next adventure. This new(ish) relationship was the call.

A year and a half later, I was walking down the aisle, working in digital marketing where new things are popping up every day, and realized that I had ‘made it’. I was working in an area that I loved and was married to one awesome man. He was finishing up seminary and I was enjoying every minute of being married.

Then, a whole new adventure began. Nine months into marriage, we found out we were pregnant. Surprised? More like shocked… and excited.

Baby Henry Thomas | Born March 3, 2012

‘This is going to be ‘our’ adventure,’ I thought. We married and became one, but this was different.

Everything just happens so fast. One minute I was networking and building relationships in the business world to learn and grow. The next? I’m planning a wedding, then holding our baby in the hospital.

This generation is growing up. Don’t lose faith in us, God isn’t finished with us yet.

Engaged life was created as an experiment to share stories, art, pictures, and experiences. Along the way we’ve heard from bracelet makers, writers, entrepreneurs (here and here), and more. One thing they all have in common is a sense of community in the areas they are passionate about.

You don’t have to be a mayor of a city, or world renowned painter to live a life of engagement, but one thing is for sure – you need community. Living an engaged life requires you to reach out into the unknown and support and be supported by the people around you.

That brings up the question:

What does community mean to you?

Sometimes people think Lent is just a time for depriving yourself of chocolate, coffee, or (gasp!) Facebook. But what is Lent’s intention?

Engaged Life is here to share stories and experiences on how people are living with a purpose, making a difference, and answering the call. Now, that call can be in several forms. Some people have a sense of call to serve in a church or synagogue, while others have a call that has them raising children, growing vegetables, or mentoring.

One thing they all have in common, and what Engaged Life hopes to bring you, is a sense of community.

Lent does that.

We’re all called to something more. Some people are called to political office while others are called to flower bomb. It doesn’t matter the call, what matters is that we need community, and during the time of Lent, we come together to share together.

We share our sorrow, humility, give to others, and prayers knowing we can’t do everything alone.

The video below covers Lent in two minutes. By 1:52, you’ll see where community and Lent come together.

Lent in two minutes:

What are your community plans for Lent?

Church goer or not, participate. Take this time to reflect and look around and serve your community and how their support has had a direct impact on you.

Second chances aren’t just for people. OrthoPets in Denver, Colorado is working to give animals a second chance at mobility.

Amy and Martin Kaufmann started OrthoPets inadvertantly in 2003 in response to a plea from their cousin. Their cousin’s dog had a stroke and lost control of one of his legs. Normal protocol is to amputate, but before surgery, they tried physical therapy and saw that their dog still had control of some of the muscles in the leg. When physical therapy wasn’t working, Martin used his background in human Orthotics and Prosthetics and offered to make a brace similar to what they could use for a pediatric patient.

(From left to right) Amy & Martin Kaufman - Founders of OrthoPets

“It really snowballed from there,” said Amy, now President of OrthoPets, moving from their cousin’s dog, to working 2-3 cases a month. By 2006, this new venture had started to take over the house. With Amy and Martin both working full-time jobs, Amy teaching and Martin in orthopedics, schedules and workloads were getting heavy. They sat down and said ‘are we going to stop OrthoPets or will one of us stop our full-time job work and do OrthoPets full-time?’

The Kaufmanns prayed and consulted with family, who poured out complete support in the OrthoPets venture. Amy ended up quitting her teaching job, and started working full-time on the growth and development of OrthoPets. Since then, they’ve gone from working in a 400 square foot garage to a 5,000 square foot facility with 16 employees.

“Today, people’s animals are their kids,” explains Amy “OrthoPets has been able to help communities by giving animals what they need while the owners don’t go bankrupt [from surgery]… If you’re a vet and you have a client that can’t afford surgery, the only option wold be to put the dog down or deal with the injury. [OrthoPets] offers another option to help with that process. Most vets see us as a good friend since we’re offering services to help their patient.”

Naki'o, the 1st four-legged prosthetic dog in the world!

OrthoPets isn’t just a business. They take on pro bono cases, work with with rescue centers in Colorado and Colorado State University (CSU) by donating and giving time for research. They partake in research to help and improve solutions for animals.

When asked what OrthoPets story really tells the story of what OrthoPets is about, the first animal that comes into Amy’s head is ‘Naki’o’.

Naki’o was a dog from Nebraska that had been found as a puppy frozen in a puddle. He was adopted by Christine Pace and was nurtured back to health. Even with Christine’s tender care, Naki’o had problems walking since he lost all his paws when he was a puppy. By the time Naki’o was a year old, Christine realized that something had to be done.

OrthoPets came to the rescue. Over $1,000 was raised and Naki’o was able to get donations to cover the rest of the costs, to be the first 4-legged prosthetic dog in the world.

‘Here’s a dog that could hardly walk, and now he’s able to get around and have a fully functional life,’ said Amy.

To learn more about OrthoPets, you can find them on Twitter, Facebook, and follow their blog.

Ira (left) Nick (right)

Bitters: Liquor that is flavored with the sharp pungent taste of plant extracts

Nick Kosevich: I grew up in Faribault, MN. I lived in Minneapolis for 11 years before moving to Milwaukee where I’ve been for the last year and a half developing the Bittercube brand with Ira. I’ll be moving back to Minneapolis in July.  Bittercube not only creates a line of small batch hand crafted bitters but also consults on beverage programs throughout the Midwest as well as plans and facilitates events with the emphasis of cocktails.  We plan small intimate seminars with thirty or so people and give them techniques and recipes to create cocktails at home as well as create cocktails for thousands of people at expos around the Midwest.

Ira Koplowitz: I grew up in Norman, OK.   I worked in a college bar in Norman before moving to Chicago, where I  worked in just about every capacity in a restaurant/bar environment.  I worked in Boston as well for a couple of years, and Nick basically covered the rest.

“…local spirits support the local economy by utilizing local grains and fruits, as well as supplying jobs.  Beyond that, spirits give a drinker a glimpse into communities around the world.”

What is the story behind bittercube?

Bittercube as a company began with a focus on consulting.  We originally moved Milwaukee to open up a craft cocktail bar but soon realized that we could effect a larger demographic by consulting on other people’s bars and  by facilitating larger events.  Our first consulting client as Bittercube was Bacchus, a Bartolotta Restaurant in Milwaukee, WI.  This is where we started to finalize what would become the lineup of Bittercube Bitters and when our contract expired in June of 2010, it was time to put our full efforts into producing larger batches of our slow-crafted bitters for distribution.  Since the launch of the brand at the end of August 2010 Bittercube has distributed the bitters around the country and consulted on bars and restaurants throughout the Midwest.

How did you become engaged in ‘spirits’?

Spirits are obviously an important part of crafting cocktails. When we train a bar staff we focus on the importance of understanding everything that goes into the cocktails. It’s important to know where you’re ingredients are from, their history, and their flavor profile. We’ve been crafting balanced, thoughtful cocktails for a number of years, so that information starts to build up and become more and more a part of the story of the bar.  Now we take that information on the road through cocktail seminars and spirit classes, of course with a bit of humor.

What exactly is a ‘spirit’?

A spirit is distilled beer or wine.  Okay, that’s not entirely true, but it gets to the basics.  Basically, fermented grains (beer) or fermented fruits (wine) is put into a big pot and heated.  Alcohol boils at a lower temperature than water so alcohol turns to vapor faster than water, and once those majestic alcoholic vapors are condensed they are much higher in proof.  Those condensed vapors become a spirit of some form or another.  The spirit produced will depend on what (fruit, grain, sugar cane, agave) was distilled (put in a pot and heated).

Who do you look to for inspiration?

It’s not always ‘who’, but what, how, where, and why as well.  Sometimes a cocktail becomes solidified simply from a memory, or a smell, or a previous cocktail, or a classic that we’ve tweaked.  We also look to our colleagues for inspiration.  There are so many great bartenders throughout the Midwest creating amazing libations, and sipping something fresh can be extremely inspiring.

How do spirits serve a community (when used responsibly)?

First of all, they get the community drunk!  But seriously, local spirits support the local economy by utilizing local grains and fruits, as well as supplying jobs.  Beyond that, spirits give a drinker a glimpse into communities around the world.

What is your favorite spirit or drink?

Bourbon is the quintessential American spirit and one we both love.  Its history is long, its story is perplexing, its flavor is unmatched, and it makes for amazing cocktails… and shots.

If you weren’t engaged in spirits, what do you think you’d be active in today?

We both love to teach and to entertain.  So we’d probably be high school History teachers, or in rehab…

Photo credit: (Flickr) chippenziedeutch’s photostream

Guest post by Jocelyn Stone

You know when you’re a kid and somebody asks you what you want to be when you grow up? I probably had a different answer every time I was asked that question. Depending on the day of the week and my mood, I aspired to be a doctor, a lawyer, a photographer and, sometimes, a writer.

I loved writing as a child. I filled notebooks with my stories and rhyming poems. But, while my mother didn’t exactly discourage my writing, she made it clear that she looked at it as a cute hobby of mine. Real people like us didn’t make a living writing; it’s what we did for fun.

My career indecision followed me into college, where I found myself unable to focus and repeatedly changing my major. After five aimless semesters, I finally dropped out and spent my time working a string of retail and customer service jobs.

In my mid-twenties, I stumbled into the salon industry and immediately felt at home. I loved the atmosphere — energetic, social and always changing. I couldn’t believe that I had found something that excited and challenged me so much.

I spent 17 years building my clientele and training other colorists both in my company and around the country. But eventually I found that the introvert in me could no longer sustain the lifestyle. The job had made me physically and mentally tired, and I dreaded going to the salon each day. I threw myself into a myriad of hobbies, including writing, to take my mind off the dissatisfaction of work.

Three years ago, at the age of 40, I decided to do something, not because I should do it or because it was considered a “good move,” but because I wanted to: I went back to school to major in professional writing. And last December, in the same week I completed my degree and became an associate editor at an outstanding magazine.

I’ve found a peace with writing and editing, and am happier than I’ve been in years. Although the learning curve sometimes makes me uncomfortable, the sense of accomplishment from gaining new skills can’t be beat.

Sometimes I regret all the years I spent finding my way, but then quickly push the thoughts away. Every step I’ve taken has been part of the journey to get me where I am today. The experiences I’ve had so far could not have been created any other way, and, hopefully, they’ve shaped me to be a better writer — and person — for the future.

[ Jocelyn Stone is an associate editor at Experience Life magazine, handling daily maintenance of Web site and social media operations. She enjoys personal development projects, international travel and blogging when the mood strikes. Jocelyn lives in Minneapolis with her beagle, Plato.]

Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lloydcrew/

A Year of Food Life

When I accepted a role with Engaged Life, I went searching for books, articles, people, and organizations that represented living a life of engagement. What I found was an overwhelming plethora of content. So, I did what anyone would do, instead of trying to figure it out for myself, I crowd-sourced.

I asked Twitter, Facebook friends, and other various networks. It wasn’t until I began getting engaged in spring life (my new love is planning my garden), that my husband recommend that I read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver.

This book (written by a talented author) is a great example of living a life of engagement.

In the book, Barbara, her husband, and their two girls pack up their home in Tuscon, AZ and trek across America to the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia.

Here’s why:

“This is the story of a year in which we made every attempt to feed ourselves animals and vegetables whose provenance we really knew . . . and of how our family was changed by our first year of deliberately eating food produced from the same place where we worked, went to school, loved our neighbors, drank the water, and breathed the air.”

As I read the book, I realized that the family was giving up lots ‘luxuries’ that we all take for granted, or we sometimes label as ’staples’. You know that bananas really don’t grow in Minnesota in January right?

They passed on pop tarts, cereal, cheap milk, dried fruit, and all the artificially sweetened wrapped candy bars that we all know and love (Snickers anyone?). The family of four went all out- with small exceptions like spices and coffee- to replace the life of convenience for a sustainable one. They shopped at local farmers markets, traded with neighbors, had their own garden, and what they couldn’t get locally, they went without or went the fair trade route. They replaced the drive-thru with dirt and a garden, and processed sugars for strawberries and rhubarb. They were engaged with the earth, with what the world could provide them in their surroundings.

Reading all this I couldn’t help but to think about my great-grandmother Ma. You know the one. She ‘didn’t have a pot or a window to throw it out of’ when she was ‘my age’.

When Ma heard about these ‘hippies’ ‘going local’ a number of years back, I could hear her say ‘Why do it yourself when you can get it all at Wal-Mart?’ This coming from the woman that made her own soap and didn’t shop for groceries at the store because she always went to the farmers nearby  for local produce. Why? Not because it was cheaper, but Ma wanted to support the people around her. She grew up in a community that valued and understood that it’s hard work to grow food. And hard work needs support, locally. She first taught me what it was like to lead a life of engagement in your community and this book reminded me of her wisdom. Thanks Ma.

Back to Barbara.

Her family didn’t live a life of convenience, they were searching for more. They were living. Digging into the earth. They got engaged with the earth and community around them.

How are you getting engaged with food and local farmers? Are there organizations and groups in your area that support local farming?

To learn more about Animal, Vegetable, Miracle watch this video:

[Guest post by Sean Johnson, a church musician whose focus has been on congregational song since 2006. He just recently graduated from Luther Seminary with the Master of Sacred Music degree and currently blogs over at Old Worship New. You can read more about Sean here.]

Living an engaged life is not easy, sometimes it’s hard to keep going on when things get tough. I’ve found that having mentors is a way that I get inspired. The unfortunate thing is that even the best mentor is still human and cannot live up to the expectations that we set before them.

As a young person, I looked up to a lot of my pastors, and to a great extent I still do. Something happened as I grew in faith; I started heaping on them an idea that they had to be perfect. Needless to say, they all failed. Oddly enough, every single mentor from my childhood failed, except one: my church choir director Ralph. He had weathered my “perfection storm” and came out on the other side. (Not that he had any clue that this was going on!)

From Flickr : http://www.flickr.com/photos/livenature/

My quest for a perfect mentor ended in high school. There, I came to the realization that if I sought a mentor that was perfect, I would be searching far and wide. So I put away my pedestal and started to realize that all people, even awesome people, are fallible. I started searching out mentors with qualities I strove for. This is how Ralph continues to be one of my mentors (though I still haven’t found his shortcoming!)

Being a musician, there are many musicians that are better than me and I look to them for inspiration on being engaged. I have looked to a lot of my high school teachers and college professors for guidance and some I still keep in my contact list. However, the people I keep closest to me, my friends, are my greatest sources of inspiration. My friend Kari is an Elementary music teacher and her constant engagement with little ones is an inspiration. Nearly weekly, I come to her asking advice for teaching my little ones. Travis, Dan, Luke, & Mark are colleagues from seminary who I attempt to engage with regularly. We don’t get together much, but when we do, I am always inspired and encouraged. Then there are my coworkers who I engage with regularly. They provide me with the spiritual guidance that I need daily. Though my space is running out, I cannot forget my family, most of whom I live within a few miles. They help keep me in check and guide me on the right path.

You know, amazing things happen when you seek out mentors with amazing qualities. It’s much easier to forget their failings when you only focus on the best qualities. It might be something to remember about yourself…forgive your own failings, because each of us has some amazing qualities.

God’s blessings to you as you live an engaged life. Seek out people with qualities you admire and who will keep you engaged, and you will be engaged in all things.

By Casey Fuerst

Casey Fuerst, at right with a camera, talks to campers at Christo Roi de Corail, outside of Leogone, Haiti.(photo credit: Allison Shelley for Lutheran World Relief)

[Casey Fuerst is currently serving as the Director/Marketing & Communications for Nebraska Lutheran Outdoor Ministries. Casey, and her husband Dave, have two children and recently moved to Savage, MN. She continues her employment from her home office.]

I have always felt on the fringes of the people who really make a difference. You know the type – the ones who work directly with kids, go on mission trips, build houses for Habitat for Humanity and on and on. Those are the people who have real impact, right? I’m just a communicator. The one who employs words and images to get people involved in these efforts and share their stories.

Well, this past month, I saw and embraced my communications role in a new way. The organization I work for, Nebraska Lutheran Outdoor Ministries, is wrapping up a big project with Lutheran World Relief.  The campers at our summer programs put together 32,000 health kits for the people of Haiti. This project was a response to the January 12, 2010 earthquake, but was completed on the heals of the cholera epidemic in Haiti.

Since the beginning of the project, a trip was planned to document the delivery of the health kits and see the project to its completion. I wasn’t the first choice to go, as there were others who had a much more hands-on role that needed to be involved. However, because of some changes in staffing, I landed a secretly hoped for spot on this trip. I can’t tell you what a blessing that gift has been.

From the day I was assigned to go on this trip, I was anxious. The fact that I wasn’t a first choice for the trip, plus the fiscal value of such an experience weighed heavily on me, and I wanted to make sure that I provided value for the organizations I was representing.  In the end, I feel great about the work I did. We’ve garnered media attention, capitalized on social media opportunities and engaged many of the campers, parents, donors and congregations that were involved in this project.

The lessons I’ve learned are too numerous to write about here. But, there is one lesson that I seem to need regular reminders of. It’s true of most of us, I think. We downplay the impact that we can have because our role isn’t the one we see as instrumental in the success of whatever our project is.

1 Corinthians 12 has always been one of my favorite chapters of the Bible. Go read it, so I don’t have to type it all out! The point of it is that we all have a role in the kingdom of God. And, each of us is uniquely qualified to do our part. No part is more important than another.  Further, by coveting the roles of others, we decrease our own ability to have impact.

I am not JUST a communicator. I am the link between the story and the people who need to hear it. That is how I make a difference.