Barbara
R. Metzler, a board member at several nonprofit groups and founder of
a fruit by-product company called the Farmer's Wife, compiles stories
of noted philanthropists, activists, and charity leaders, including Nancy
Brinker, former president George H.W. Bush, Betty Ford, and Paul Newman — all "passionaries," a
word of Ms. Metzler's creation. She defines such a person as "one
inspired passionately through vision and compassion to change the world
for the better: visionary in action on a mission."
The book describes how individuals grew interested in
charity work, where they began, and what has come of their efforts. Several
chapters include a section called "Ripples," an essay about someone
who has been personally influenced by the work of a "passionary."
Betty
Ford, a former first lady who founded an addiction-rehabilitation center
in California, recalls her own struggles with drugs and alcohol, her
recovery, and her work bringing treatment for substance abuse out in
the open. Cathey Brown, who founded a counseling program for the
children of alcoholics, says Ms. Ford was an inspiration.
"I began to think for the first time that
if a former first lady could have this problem and be so public about it,
that maybe I wasn't so bad, maybe I could do something about my problem," she
writes. The book also discusses founders and leaders of the Ronald McDonald
House Charities, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and the Make-a-Wish Foundation,
among other groups.
Publisher:
Templeton Foundation Press
300 Conshohocken
State Road, Suite 670
West Conshohocken, Pa. 19428
(484) 531-8380;
fax (484) 531-8382
http://www.templetonpress.org
233 pages; $19.95;
ISBN 1-59947-105-1. |
