Alma Lorraine Bone Constable and I first met at during our orientation retreat as we began a similar path of learning at Bainbridge Graduate Institute. Calling it an orientation is an understatement. On the west coast of a small island in between British Columbiaâs mainland and the idyllic Vancouver Island, hides a sanctuary called Channel Rockâan eco-village surrounded by permaculture gardens and completely off the grid.
I had the fortune of landing in a student group of four with Alma. A key component of the schoolâs curricula, and what has proved to be the most invaluable, was a series of Leadership and Personal Development classes that spanned over two of my 2.5-year MBA program. The student group was coined a âLearning Circleâ, and following the nature of a retreat you all know and love: you reflect, explore your thoughts and feelings, and then embrace that awkward discomfort when you share them with your peers. Then, rather mysteriously, we connect through this uncomfortable vulnerability and are reminded how similar we all are. Of course, Alma and I look pretty similar anyway so no surprise there.
Our Leadership Mentor John Koriath (Aikido Master and likely Jedi) asked us to draw our âRiver of Life,â chronicling our lives with colored pencils on a sheet of paper. I, in all of my glorious linearity, drew a river (blue, of course) that meandered around little âeventsâ of my lifeâit was vanilla, really. When we shared our rivers in our learning circle, Alma busted out her masterpiece.
âWHAT?! THEREâS NO RIVER ON THAT PAGE!â I didnât say it out loud, but you can be damn sure I was wondering. Her life was expressed vivaciously with brilliant yellows, oranges, greens, and browns. Itâs funny now that I think about it, her work is clearer in my memory than my own. Each color carried a story, and each story was woven together so vividly. She talked about her social work in Kenya, and her deepest hopes for humanity. I quickly learned that I was in the company of someone quite remarkableâa beautiful soul, confident in her resolve.
To our relief, we both made it out of grad school somewhat unscathed (loan debt in tow). As expected, Alma steadfastly followed her dreams and is now in the final throes of her IndieGoGo Campaign. She is bringing one of the greatest gifts to Kenyan rural villages: the gift of light in the form a solar lantern. Currently, families living in rural villages are forced to use dangerous kerosene lamps, and regularly purchasing the costly fuel ensures they remain in a poverty trap. LED technology creates light utilizing very little energy, and can be recharged in sunlight. With a renewable source of light that costs nothing, parents are able to get more done, and children can study at night.
The only thing that stands between this technology and this desperate need, is the movers and shakers who make it happen. Alma is that mover (and the woman can shake, let me tell you).
Please take a look at her Campaign, give what you can, and share it with others. She needs your help! Best of luck to you, Alma! Thank you for teaching me that rivers arenât always blue.
