Purpose Gone Right, Into a Legacy

She was a gift. She might not have known it at the time, but something special was transforming on her horizons. She embarked on a journey that eventually took her back to her roots. This is the story of one of many children saved by grace and the woman who created that through a single purpose anchored around living.

Tender Loving Care (TLC) Children’s Home was inspired out of devastation in a war-torn country, Sri Lanka. At that time, many young women had become pregnant—often not by their choosing—and then shamed and ousted from their homes by their own families. TLC’s Mission: Provide housing and care to those women and—where they couldn’t care for their newborns—adopt out those babies to parents with open arms.

Barbara Jean Fibelkorn, Founder and Chief Executive of TLC, was a pioneer in her own right and yet what she did was nothing more than execute on her purpose: To make vibrant life possible where otherwise death might have been the preferred option. TLC as a business eventually dissolved after successful achievement of its mission, and Barbara Jean was laid to rest a little less than a decade ago.

However, years later—one of those adopted babies has reached out. Now full grown—let’s call her Anna—she and her adopted parents had been searching for my mother for years. They wanted to thank Barbara Jean for making her new life possible. My sister, Christine—who Anastasia found recently on social media—was the honored recipient of their gratitude for our mother’s dedication to saving lives.

When I think of leadership legacy, I think of lasting impact. Anna is evidence of purpose gone right. At a time when horrendous things were happening to the lovely people of Sri Lanka, my mother’s leadership benefited Anna and so many others. Today, I am reminded that legacy begins with a single purpose put into action. My purpose, living The LAITHOS Way, is to build brilliant leaders who create positive impact in their world, perhaps like my mother has through her leadership legacy.

This Week: Consider a three-dimensional commitment to creating legacy.

• PAST: Where have you already created a legacy in the lives of those you’ve known?
• PRESENT: Where are you creating a potentially lasting impact, a legacy, based on your actions today?
• FUTURE: What legacy do you wish to create in your world?

In Next Week’s Post, we’ll reroute to the roots of The LAITHOS Way, to Strengthen Your Core through the power of clarity.