#Day7 and the Palmer Award

Day 7 is all about Staying in Action. So this month we are eager to highlight someone who has embraced the idea of “Staying in Action”, this year’s Palmer Award recipient and the work she has done moving her vision forward. We are so excited to introduce you to Carolina Ruggero, Institute graduate from the 2014 Florida State University session of the Institute.

“When I attended the Institute, I was a marketing major with dreams of learning the craft of video production.” Carolina Ruggera, Palmer Award Application

The Vision

To use film as a medium to give people the chance for their voice to be heard, to serve as a resource for those who feel alone, and to promote a society in which we accept and understand one another.

“With every story I share, I become more convinced that a single story has the potential to change how someone sees the world.”

The Inspiration

After staying up late one night reflecting on the kind of videographer she wanted to be, Carolina made the connection between her goals of video production and the value she places on relationships. The very next day she took her camera equipment to campus to begin filming.

“I have been able to able to further develop my personal identity and values because of experiences working on this project.”

The Results

Tell Your Story: Tallahassee (TYST) is Carolina’s vision in action. It is a video project series that allows the people of Tallahassee to tell their stories. It sounds simple, but the impact is tremendous.

Additionally, this experience has solidified Carolina’s commitment to story-telling in a documentary style fashion. This clarity has also provided the space for Carolina to invite others in this journey and has created an organization to support the project and engage the skills and talents of others in the FSU community.

Watch and Learn More
The Tell Your Story: Tallahassee project can be found on Facebook and YouTube. You can also find Carolina on the Florida State University Day 7 tumblr.

Thank You Notes

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.

William A. Ward

We believe, as many of you do, in the power of gratitude. A sincere and hearty “thanks” is good for those giving it and for those receiving it. At LeaderShape, we encourage this practice in different ways, one of which is during the national sessions of The LeaderShape Institute. We ask each participant to write a note of appreciation that also shares a bit about his or her experience at the Institute to a program donor.

This summer something different happened.

Each LeaderShape staff member received a note of gratitude from a participant from Florida State University’s session of the Institute. Beautiful, thoughtful, handwritten notes from LeaderShape graduates. Talk about a good mail day! These letters were a terrific reminder of the power of the program and of the work that we and the rest of our community is committed to. It is the people and their work that helps make it possible for participants like the ones who wrote to us from FSU, to engage and be challenged and learn and teach and grow during the six days of The LeaderShape Institute.

In the US it is the season of Thanksgiving. We so appreciate the kind words that were shared by Tatiana, Edwin, Marie-Claire, Caylin, and Kristin from FSU. We are also unbelievably thankful for the opportunity to do the work that we do with such wonderful and talented people.

We hope that you take a moment to share a bit of appreciation with someone who has helped you in some way, whether it has been through participation in a LeaderShape program, with your academic or professional endeavors, or in a matter that is personal in nature. Give thanks. Be generous with gratitude. And not just when there is a holiday focusing on it, but all year long.