World Voice: Teaching Our Children to be Givers

LaShaun Martin at the Mom + Social Summit on May 8th, 2013 in New York City.

This past May I was honored to be a speaker for the very first Mom+Social Summit hosted by the United Nations Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Johnson & Johnson, Huffington Post, Baby Center and 92Y Tribeca in New York City.

I shared several experiences as a Global Mom, but the most difficult one was that of my sweet daughter.

On June 9^th, 2012, I happened to be awake on a Saturday morning when I heard something down the hall towards my girls’ rooms. When I went to investigate, I saw my oldest daughter having a grand mal seizure.

This experience shook me to the core with heart-wrenching FEAR I had never experience before. I thought my daughter was dying in front of me!

Instead of going into immediate action, it felt like I stood there for hours watching a movie I had no power to control. When I came out from the fog, I grabbed her, screamed her name, and did everything I could to get her to answer me. When she didn’t, my youngest daughter and I just knew it was the end.

Fortunately, this story has a very happy ending.

With the best doctors and medical care possible, my daughter has been seizure-free since that day.

I am eternally grateful that God saw fit to save MY child that day. But what about all of the other children who suffer with nowhere to turn? No one to rescue them. Parents who can’t afford medical care of even the basic necessities.

My heart bleeds for those children and their future. I want them to have the same experiences and opportunities that my girls have. This is why my goal as a mother is to raise children who think of others and not just themselves. It is my greatest gift to see my girls as “givers” and not “takers.” They have designed t-shirts for Shot@Life – a campaign that raises money for vaccines for children in developing countries, they save their change to donate to several causes, and participate in walks and fundraising for Children’s Hospital. They are the next generation of givers!

Check out my talk at Mom+Social:

How can you teach your children to be givers?

This is an original post to World Moms Blog by our contributor, LaShaun Martin of Shootie Girl in the Washington, DC Metro Area.

Photo credit to Stuart Ramson, UN Foundation.

shootiegirl

LaShaun Martin is National Director of Social Media and Community Service for Mocha Moms, Inc. a national 501(c)(3) support group for stay-at-home mothers of color. LaShaun currently works to manage and promote community service programs for the organization to include teen mentoring, Boys Booked on Barbershops literacy program, America’s Promise, MomsRising, Moms Clean Air Force, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and U.S. Department of Education. She is a frequent guest of the White House for events focused on women and girls including tea with First Lady Michelle Obama. LaShaun holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. LaShaun spent 20 years with the State of California, the State of Maryland Department of Corrections managing public education, research, FBI programs and later Hewlett Packard. LaShaun now serves as CEO and Designer of her own company, Shootie Girl™ Custom Rhinestone Apparel and Shootie Girl™ Blog – Positive Messages for Women and Girls. Shootie Girl™ designs have been featured with CNN’s Soledad O’Brien, Sherri Shepherd of The View, Carol’s Daughter, Clinique Cosmetics, Jack and Jill of America, Inc., Still Standing Movie, Dr. Sherry Blake of Essence Magazine and Aja Dantzler of R&B singing couple Kindred and the Family Soul and Blogalicious. LaShaun is passionate about giving back and ensures her company reflects a heart for service by donating many “t-shirts for a cause” to Heart of Haiti, the women of Zimbabwe and The United Nations Foundation Shot@Life Campaign. She also serves on the Advisory Board of MOMentumNation and the Epilepsy Foundation. LaShaun’s greatest passions are her husband, two lovely daughters and music. Blog: http://www.shootiegirl.net Custom Rhinestone Apparel: http://www.shootiegirl.com

Jennifer Burden on July 9, 2013 at 9:18 pm

LaShaun,

I loved watching you speak on the day! Your story is powerful, and I never realized that you’ve been through so much with your daughter. Thank you for sharing your story!

Jen 🙂
- LaShaun Martin on July 9, 2013 at 9:38 pm
  
  Thanks Jen. Tough times build strength and character!
Jennifer Prestholdt on July 9, 2013 at 10:16 pm

Wow! Thanks for sharing your story, LaShaun!
- LaShaun Martin on July 11, 2013 at 5:44 pm
  
  It was a tough one to share. But, thank you.
Eva Fannon (USA) on July 24, 2013 at 1:46 am

Wow – I can’t even imagine witnessing your own child go through that! I would feel so powerless 🙁

I agree with your goal of raising kids to think of others and not themselves…sometimes easier said than done! But, we keep at it by always talking about sharing what we have with others…whether it be a snack at the playground with a new made friend, to giving gently used clothes and toys to others in need, or donations to worthy causes like Shot@Life.

Thanks for sharing your story LaShaun!
- LaShaun Martin on July 27, 2013 at 3:23 pm
  
  Thank you, Eva! We must first be the example.
Amie Newman on July 27, 2013 at 2:17 pm

LaShaun, I was there when you shared this deeply personal and scary experience. Thank you. I am especially moved by your desire to turn this into something positive for all the mothers and children of the world!
- LaShaun Martin on July 27, 2013 at 3:25 pm
  
  It was certainly a scary and life-changing experience. We HAD to turn it into good somehow! Thank you for listening and reading ;-).