Latest / We Are For Good Podcast - The Podcast for Nonprofits / 140. Love Has No Limits: Behind the Scenes of Mobilizing a Volunteer Army - Dominic Russo

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140. Love Has No Limits: Behind the Scenes of Mobilizing a Volunteer Army - Dominic Russo · We Are For Good Podcast - The Podcast for Nonprofits

• 0:01
  Jonathan McCoy: Hey, I'm john.
• 0:01
  Jonathan McCoy: And I'm Becky. And this is the we are for good podcast.
• 0:06
  Becky Endicott: nonprofits are faced with more challenges to accomplish their missions and the growing pressure to do more, raise more and be more for the causes that improve our
• 0:14
  Jonathan McCoy: world. We're here to learn with you from some of the best in the industry, bringing the most innovative ideas, inspirational stories, all to create an impact uprising.
• 0:23
  Becky Endicott: So welcome to the good community, where nonprofit professionals, philanthropist, world changers and rabid fans who are striving to bring a little more goodness into the world.
• 0:34
  Jonathan McCoy: So let's get started. Hey, Becky,
• 0:37
  Becky Endicott: welcome everybody. We've got a compassionate humanitarian in the house.
• 0:41
  Jonathan McCoy: So we have got an incredible guest with us today we are talking to Dominic Russo, you probably know him He is the founder of Love has no limits. He is a humanitarian, an innovator, an international missions, really. And this journey started for him at the age of 20. So think about what you were doing whenever you're 20. You think about the lens of this, but really strategic outreach and campaigns and cities across Latin America is where he started. One of the most prolific things was in 2011, he launched one nation one day, this was this vision for Honduras where you could attract the most amount of missions teams in one day to do this really incredible outreach across the community. And millions of people were touched that day. Even the president of Honduras declared a national holiday. This is the kind of organizing and brilliance of strategy and Dominic's mind here in Southern California in 2020.
• 1:31
  Jonathan McCoy: Dominic launched Love has no limits, which is a one year initiative across LA. And it really is this this what I love how you call it, calling all people to be part of the greatest display of love Southern California has ever experienced. So we're gonna unpack a little bit about that initiative. But Dominic's the type of guy that inspires hearts to dream bigger leaders to unite all around impact. He has an incredible family, three beautiful kids and his wife, Lindsay, who is also a philanthropist and humanitarian herself who founded the angel house, which is an organization that has built homes for children in Africa in India, excuse me, go and freedom campus that shelters and rehabilitates nearly 100 victims of human trafficking in Nepal. So this family, I just want to know you all this is you're such an incredible force. Thank you for being here. Today, Dominic.
• 2:23
  Dominic Russo: such a privilege john and Becky, so great to connect and to be a part of this important conversation and one on one a thrilled to be with you guys today.
• 2:32
  Jonathan McCoy: We appreciate Would you mind just kind of sharing a little bit of your journey with us, you know, what got you to where you at today, and would just love to kind of connect the dots that maybe I left out in that intro?
• 2:43
  Dominic Russo: Well, you you set it right, the journey really began in the dorm room as a junior in college, and really just convinced that this is what my life's purpose was about helping people in developing nations specifically. And as time would go on, I would discover that it was not just for people in developing nations, but even people here and our own nation in America, but you know, I experienced the severe needs across the world.
• 3:11
  Dominic Russo: As a teenager, I went on my first international missions Outreach at 13. to Guatemala for two weeks, that 14 I spent a month in Calcutta, India working in Mother Teresa's homes. 15, I spent a month in the African continent, and you can't have those experiences, witnessed that level of need and desperation and continue on with business as usual. And it became very apparent that this is what my life was going to be about.
• 3:40
  Dominic Russo: And this was the mission I was I was feeling called to, to live out. And so incorporated the organization in between my junior and senior years in college and started telling any and everybody I knew about what what the next project was going to be. And those first five or six years, it was really copying and pasting a lot of what we seen traditional humanitarian orgs or, or even missions orgs do. But there was this dissatisfaction that there had to be something brand new that the world had never experienced, there had to be something more impactful. That wouldn't just touch a single community but could even touch a nation. And I think our organization really hit scale when we begin asking those questions. And at age 26, I found myself in the office of the president of Honduras. And just candidly to have Mr.
• 4:33
  Dominic Russo: President, I know your nation's in pain. They're calling this the world's murder capital highest homicide rate per capita than any other nation outside of a war zone. And there's been great division in the country but but what if in part, we could bring a nation together.
• 4:46
  Dominic Russo: And we could we could galvanize the soul of the nation through through this joint effort. And I said we have this vision called One Nation one day, but we will only proceed if you've agreed to form a partner. And to my great surprise after I made four bold asks, he said yes or excuse me five? And he said yes. And I know the team with me that day, we were all shocked that that he would be so open hearted. But to briefly walk you through them the first thing we asked, we said, Would you stand with us on Saturday July 20 2013, together from the nation's capital will speak to the entire country.
• 5:26
  Dominic Russo: Number two, would you pass legislation calling one nation one day and official national holiday? Number three, would you open up the ports and borders allow us to ship 18 shipping containers of humanitarian and without any taxes or hangups at the borders? For would you open up every public high school in the nation allow our teams to come and do a one hour school wide hope assembly? And then finally, would you give us the 18 largest stadiums and the capital cities of all 18 states for free, and help us call the nation for this day of celebration. And like I said we had no idea what he was going to say. But at the conclusion of the meeting, he signed a resolution six months later, the bill passed unanimously through the Honduran Congress. And one nation one day with all five of those provisions became law in the country was a pretty dramatic start to the new new chapter. Okay,
• 6:18
  Jonathan McCoy: we talk a lot about dreaming big. And I mean, at 26, you are dreaming so big and so organized of even what you would ask for if you had the space to sit with somebody in this position of power? I mean, how did you how did you have this vision? And how did you, you know, organize yourself around, I'm just blown away at the emotional intelligence of a 26 year old to do that.
• 6:43
  Dominic Russo: Thank you for the gracious words, I, I come from a faith background. So for me, I really felt it was God putting the dream and vision in my heart, I don't, I didn't feel like it came out of my own ideation or creativity. And so with that conviction, I felt a certain confidence to articulate the vision in the way that we did and to detail in the way that we did. And, you know, we, when you when you take a bold step, you force a response either 100% for 100% against early, so at least you know where everybody stands. And another thing I've learned in the journey is the clear my vision, the more magnetic my life becomes. So we didn't want to give the president an obscure target, we wanted to very clearly identify what the vision was what the project could look like, and paint a picture of what this collaboration could produce. And and he saw it, he believed in it, recognizing the desperate state of the nation.
• 7:48
  Dominic Russo: He went all in and, and we had an unbelievable result.
• 7:55
  Becky Endicott: It will of course you did. Because I mean, this is what we've been talking about this season on the podcast prompted by, you know, our season opening conversation with Dan pelada. It's like, however we're dreaming, you need to take it to the next level. Because our missions are worthy of that.
• 8:14
  Becky Endicott: And the movements that we create, create are worthy of that. And I pride myself on being a bit of a fearless person, but you my friend, you take it up a notch to where it's like we can't, we can't not do this. And you're able to cast a vision that someone at the highest level of government can sort of hitch their wagon to and say, yeah, we want to be a part of this. And then you like chick filleted it, you know, by input by mobilizing this army of young hungry talent to go out and empower, you know, community.
• 8:50
  Becky Endicott: And it's just a very inspiring story. And I have to just think, as a dreamer, and as an optimist, the ripples that are probably still being felt within that country, from young people who saw you standing up in your 26 year old self in a stadium or wherever the dominance of this community are. And seeing that modeled is a very powerful thing. So I just really commend you. And you imagine what Dominic's going to be like when he's like, if the like the movements that's going to happen that are going to come into fruition. So I want to dive into this movement a little bit, especially with love has no limits, because this was such a brilliant campaign. And it it was asking a super bold question, and I want to read this because I think the question that you pose is so simple and so profound, what can love do? So we talk about 2020 being the most divisive, the most. It was like a heart sick year for everyone, no matter where you are in the world.
• 9:58
  Becky Endicott: Whether you were facing pandemic, or whether you were trying to process through social justice movements that were happening online, but it but you all stood up and said in the face of these odds, we just want to ask what can love do. And not just any love, but love that stretches across the lines that divide us. It's a love with no limits. So I want you to talk to us about how this dream was created, the mission of it and how you created community to galvanize the support, you needed to make sure that this love was bigger than anybody could imagine.
• 10:33
  Dominic Russo: Now we, we stood in that first one nation one day moment, I'll never forget, the president of the nation was on one side in the stadium in the Olympic Stadium, and the co founder of the Los Angeles Dream Center was there on the other side, Tommy Barnett, and Tommy stood in that moment, watch the nation unite millions of people gather back in 2013. And he said, I want to invite you to come to Los Angeles and see what we've been building with the Dream Center. Well, six months later, February 2014, I toured the Los Angeles Dream Center, which is a converted hospital that would had been abandoned in the heart of Los Angeles that they've turned into a 24 seven rehabilitation program for the broken and hurting in the city.
• 11:19
  Dominic Russo: And I was blown away at the impact of the LA Dream Center and the lives change and the stories coming out of it from homeless to people, people are back on their feet again to addicted individuals being completely on steps towards freedom and was so blown away at what they'd done. And, and he he was actually the initial person to cast a vision for what if you could take a one nation one day level outreach, and translate it here in a first world nation like America? In the world's communications, Capitol, Los Angeles, what could that look like? And to be honest, like I had said earlier, I had thought most of my life would be about mobilizing people out of the United States to the nations.
• 11:59
  Dominic Russo: But I felt in that moment as he posed that question that there was something there. And so we really held it in our heart. A little did we know three years later, we'd be relocated, locating our global headquarters from Michigan, to Southern California, and that this conversation around Los Angeles would begin to escalate. In 2019, we felt without a doubt, 2020 was the year to launch it.
• 12:25
  Dominic Russo: And we knew we would be standing in perhaps the most divisive, contentious time in our nation's history, we knew that the election cycle would naturally produce animosity, that there would be people taking sides.
• 12:37
  Dominic Russo: And we said in the face of that backdrop, let's showcase the power of what love can do.
• 12:45
  Dominic Russo: Because we genuinely believe the only way to eradicate hate is to displace it with love that has no limits. And so that's that's the task we felt that this vision was supposed to emerge in that context from that environment. And, and it's it's turned into so much, you know, we initially thought the culminating initiative one de la would transpire in the summer of 2020. Obviously, with the global pandemic, it became apparent, it would have to be July 2021. But it gave us this incredible 18 month runway to launch seven strategic initiatives that we felt would help produce the greatest display of love la has ever experienced. And it's been an unbelievable journey. And it's not over yet. It's actually culminating in so many ways, or we're blown away at what's taking place.
• 13:38
  Becky Endicott: Hey, friends, we wanted to take a moment to thank our amazing sponsor give butter, the world's fastest growing online giving platform powering more than 35,000 causes. One of these is family reach a national nonprofit dedicated to eradicating the financial barriers that accompany a cancer diagnosis. Like many of us, they were unsure how they were going to replace their critical in person fundraising events during COVID. Family reach put give butters virtual fundraising tools to use by hosting a super fun and engaging celebrity chef cooking challenge where they raised more than $350,000. And if you think this was a one off success, think again. They just did it again and raised more than $600,000 family reach raves about give butters ability to livestream video alongside their real time supporter feed, and saw how the threaded comments engage their audience beyond what was possible on other platforms. It's buttery goodness at its finest. Don't miss the full success story in our show notes, ready to explore how give butter could help your organization take your online fundraising to the next level?
• 14:34
  Becky Endicott: Check them out at gift butter.com?
• 14:41
  Jonathan McCoy: Well, Dominic, I know to be a visionary like this and feel like you've gotten this direction of what you're called to do. And then something like 2020 happens. What was that?
• 14:52
  Jonathan McCoy: Like? I mean, you were looking forward to this year and thought that it would play out a certain way. I mean, none of us can even imagine what California looked like last year, compared to Any other year in history? You know, what were those first weeks?
• 15:03
  Jonathan McCoy: Like, as you're trying to wrestle through? How are we going to shift our efforts and get, you know, reorganized around navigating this amidst a pandemic? Yeah,
• 15:12
  Dominic Russo: I think like any any nonprofit executive that might be watching today or any of your audience that are trying to position their lives for greater impact and greater good.
• 15:24
  Dominic Russo: We have to never run from crisis. I think what attracted us to Honduras initially was the nation was in crisis. And in really, in every nation, we've worked, there's always been a unifying narrative, a crisis, the whole country was facing together, that regardless of our differences, we could all agree this has to change. And when, when Los Angeles, and America and the world all went through the same thing, at the same time, we felt like in some ways, that was an invitation for the city to unite the nation to unite. We can all agree that, that that severe shutdown and global pain and disease, these were all things that the world was facing together. And that was an opportunity for us to all inject hope and life and a new narrative together. So we really felt like the the pandemic was an opportunity for us not to draw back but actually lean in further. So our vision actually expanded through the through the pandemic, our initiatives expanded, our approach got more comprehensive and more far reaching. And and I think that's the invitation that every nonprofit leader that every person seeking to do good has to has right now in this time of great crisis. This is this is our moment for for people that bring hope and bring help and bring and bring an opportunity for people to make a difference.
• 16:53
  Dominic Russo: It's it's in this these moments that we have the greatest opportunities to stand up.
• 16:59
  Becky Endicott: I agree. And I mean, clearly Your heart is such in the right place. And I and I love that all of this just activated within you activated the empathy within you, when you went to the crisis to the problem first, as you know, a child or as a teenager, and the fact that you felt compelled, I mean, tells me a lot about how we can go and be a light to others. And I love that that's where your story started. And it's been threaded, through every movement that you've made.
• 17:32
  Becky Endicott: And I want to talk a little bit about these seven initiatives that are found within Love has no limits. And I have to just say, personally, when I read them, I was I was smiling, because I felt like you've you found the most last among us.
• 17:52
  Becky Endicott: And you lifted them up to the top. And I mean, we're talking about, you know, foster children, we're talking about those experiencing homelessness, we're talking about addicts, and how do we empower men to be an active part of the family? So can you walk through those seven initiatives and talk about how they're serving your community?
• 18:47
  Dominic Russo: Absolutely, and, and I'll say, for all these initiatives, there's a couple sentence statement, that's the front end, but there's hours of unpacking all of the back end, and the sustainability behind them all. For us, this summer, is running to a starting line. A lot of these initiatives are causes for for some people today, but they'll be a part of their culture forever. And so it's all these initiatives, maybe with the exception of number two, are are going to continue in perpetuity. So we're so thrilled about them. But the first one is we're transforming local churches, local faith communities, I should say, because it's not just Christian churches, in the serve centers, what we found is so many houses of worship, had reduced their engagement with the community to their weekly service. And we said it's time for these houses of worship, it's time for these great communities to re engage with their communities. And to not just be known as saving agents, or our spiritual guides, but serving and solving agents that are helping to solve the problems that are facing society. And so little did we know a pandemic would happen.
• 19:58
  Dominic Russo: And that would be the only way we could legally gather in our in our faith communities would be to serve. So that became a very foundational initiative to the next seven. And today we have 692 faith communities and nonprofits that have united in this movement. And it's incredible to see it continue to gain traction and more groups come in millions of dollars in aid have been distributed. And volunteers have been produced from these service centers already. So Tomic you're
• 20:27
  Jonathan McCoy: talking about the physical space to have just opening up the doors to the community but also activating the members. I mean, both sides Gotta love
• 20:34
  Dominic Russo: totally. Our second initiative was us just really wanting to start with an injection of, of hope and goodwill into the city. And we had this idea what if we could buy all of the purchasable medical debt in Los Angeles County. So this would be medical debt sitting with a third party creditor, the candidates would people be people living in no more than twice the poverty line. And what we discovered was that 23,000 families fit into those categories, there's $47 million available for purchase.
• 21:06
  Dominic Russo: And we've already purchased the first 29 million, and we're pacing to buy July 24, purchase the rest. And people are getting a letter in the mail, all across Los Angeles County that says no strings attached. Your debt has been abolished, you can now start your financial future. And the stories we're getting back are so incredible people that had lingering debt from a decade ago, being able to literally start with credit restoration and start starting new beginnings. So it's been a really kind of incredible part of of the story in the journey.
• 21:44
  Dominic Russo: so far. Our third initiative is really for us was eye opening as we began to do the research, I think so many times as nonprofits and even faith communities we're doing. We're doing outreach, we're doing philanthropy or humanitarian work out of great ideas, not always great information. And when we when we did the data dive, what we discovered was some a lot of nonprofits are are trying to address the homelessness crisis or trying to address human trafficking crisis or violence or incarceration issues. And what they realize what they're doing is they're trying to attack the worst of the fruit without identifying the root what is what is causing some of the greatest challenges for for the most vulnerable in our communities. And what we discovered is so many roads lead back to the foster care system into our most vulnerable kids.
• 22:41
  Dominic Russo: And I'm sure you guys are well aware of, of the plight of those who come out after aging out of the system. But when we discovered that 40% of people that age out of the foster care system, will be homeless within the first two years. And we discovered that 56% of girls that age out when they turn 21, they will be a single parent with no partner. When we discovered that, some some statistics, some data proves that 70% of all incarcerated individuals spent time in foster care, we begin to recognize that these vulnerable kids are are facing the greatest challenge.
• 23:24
  Dominic Russo: In our nation in our society, we said we've got to run to the space and Los Angeles County happens to have the greatest foster crisis in America. It's the most overburdened system in America, more kids in the system than any other state, just Los Angeles County. We recognize that we've got to unleash the community to this need fast and and especially the faith community and to this need. And there are 7000, legal orphans, really in LA County, these are kids that have been legally separated from their parents, and 700 of those 7000 said, we're willing to be adopted. So they took the vulnerable step.
• 24:03
  Dominic Russo: And so they're willing to be adopted. And the county was interviewing by zoom one to two prospective families a month to the pandemic. And we said this is this has got to change. And we're so thrilled that today, over 1200 families have taken the first step towards pursuing fostering or adopting these vulnerable kids. And our goal is to bring 5000 leads to Los Angeles County, and the movements actually spread. Now this love has no limits. Foster initiative is living in three other neighboring counties, Riverside, San Bernardino, and orange counties. And we're seeing such an incredible response. And we believe it's just the beginning, as many people didn't even know the level of the crisis there in the community.
• 24:48
  Jonathan McCoy: But I think it's a it's such a calling to dig in and be led by this information and pairing that with what's the calling and passion put on your heart. But we could find those stats wherever you're at and start to look locally of where of where you want to move the needle in your community. I love it. This approach so much.
• 25:06
  Dominic Russo: Yeah, our number four is is so significant of launching this hope community in all 35 state prisons in California, they're what we recognize were convicts in Los Angeles gets sent all across the state there's actually no state prison in LA. So this is a Los Angeles issue. And and we recognize that there's this incredible pilot program launched in four The state presents late early last year.
• 25:37
  Dominic Russo: And it was living so well, that the community champion said I have a he actually came to us said, I have a dream that this would live in all 35 state presidents already been approved by the wardens board in Sacramento, their sentence reducing rat classes Incorporated. And it connects these inmates with community while they're in incarceration.
• 25:57
  Dominic Russo: So when they get out, they'll have community afterwards as well. And that the holistic approach was so powerful, we said, we've got to bring scope and scale to this. And as of this spring, this whole community is now living in all 35 state prisons across the state of California, an average of 100 inmates and every presence of 3500 inmates are participating already. And this is just the first couple of months literally at the beginning of the journey. And so, so meaningful, a fifth initiative, obviously, you can't go into Los Angeles and not touch this crisis outside of COVID. This is the headline that LA is leading in so many ways with that with the homelessness crisis. And so we're working with some of the great historical community champions in the city, Fred Jordan mission, the Los Angeles dream centered union rescue mission.
• 26:50
  Dominic Russo: And we're leveraging the the impact of our 1000s of volunteers to, to create relationships and start people on a journey towards rehabilitation. And in the tragedy of the crisis is there are hundreds of empty beds every night in in our cities, and people often times not wanting to trust or not wanting to take that first step towards hope and help. And so that will be a key part of how the team moves in our homeless initiatives, it will be building relationship and helping to bridge that gap.
• 27:26
  Dominic Russo: And our goal, of course, is to see 1000s of people take that step through the course of the year. Wow.
• 27:32
  Becky Endicott: Yeah. And I feel like as you're unpacking these, it's like the initiative, the initiatives above are going to help serve each other, you know, as you're building infrastructure, and all these things, because these issues are so systemic, and they're so intertwined. And it's like, if you start to peel back the layers, and create some resources around all of them, you're gonna see global impact either way, and all of them. So, Alright, number six, maybe my favorite.
• 28:00
  Dominic Russo: Yeah. Number six, as we began to look at the problems facing our cities, we discovered that fatherlessness was often at the heart of it.
• 28:07
  Dominic Russo: And it's just a statistical fact that when the father is absent, it it gives way to greater probabilities of, of crime with the kids of poverty with the family of mental health challenges. And it's just on and on and on, as we started to look at the stats, and we said, we've got to ignite a movement of men committed to their families, and a new generation of husbands and fathers that would stand with and, and even replatform the dignity and in the role and the power of, of a man committed to their families. And so this is going to be launched at a catalytic event at the actually at the bank of California Stadium, Saturday, June the 12th. We're bringing together 1000s of men, some of the great speakers of our generation athletes and influencers will all be a part of that moment.
• 29:03
  Dominic Russo: And there'll be next steps like a 30 day challenge and all kinds of ways we're gonna try to continue this conversation with the men but we really believe that we have to, to bring the father back into his position in the home and and to stand with his wife to stand with his kids.
• 29:27
  Dominic Russo: We feel like it's so critical.
• 29:27
  Dominic Russo: So we're excited about this one.
• 29:31
  Becky Endicott: Oh, man, what an event that will be I'm going to follow that one and just see that I may, I can't even imagine what the impact is. And I love that you have threaded it back to just even mental health crisis and poverty. You're right, just having a commitment to the family is going to be groundbreaking.
• 29:46
  Jonathan McCoy: The theme to that you've talked about I've never running from a crisis. I mean, instilling that value in fathers, you know, and families that when things get hard, how do we not run away from it, but how do we know how to process and walk through it with our families. So I love that you're focusing on that.
• 30:01
  Becky Endicott: Okay, last one.
• 30:03
  Dominic Russo: Our culminating initiative is uniting this team of 20,000 volunteers to serve Los Angeles for a week are our dreams that it would be part of the greatest display of love la has ever experienced. And there's multiple different ways to engage. So obviously, our listening community in Southern California, we invite you to be a part of this moment. We actually have a couple of 1000 people from across America flying in as well to be part of the team. So it's not just reduced to Southern California.
• 30:32
  Dominic Russo: Yeah, it's always been part of our our kind of operating system that people unite from around the world and join these moments. Obviously, with the pandemic, internationals not going to happen. But, but nationally, we're inviting America to be a part, to roll up your sleeves and to be a part of solution driven service projects all week. And then that final day will be called one de la Saturday, July 24. We'll celebrate with a live broadcast.
• 31:01
  Dominic Russo: And we're going to be unpacking those details very soon, you can follow the story, but it's going to be, we believe, unlike anything in terms of a broadcast celebrating this year of service, and we're so excited about about what what's about to be showcased, even in that moment.
• 31:18
  Becky Endicott: Oh, my gosh, I am so excited for you, Dominic, and to just have allow you to have the culmination of all your efforts, kind of just crystallize and an apex and that day,
• 31:29
  Jonathan McCoy: all the details will be in our show notes. Yeah, we'll include it involved in this event. So awesome. Okay, it's impossible not to hear your story from the very beginning through your what you're working on today, just to not miss that you are such a collaborator. And obviously, the way you speak to people and see people has allowed you to just get people together to have a bigger vision for getting and setting aside some of the things that maybe we disagree on small details, but seeing the bigger picture that you're trying to advance. What's some of your advice? For those of us that are trying to collaborate with others to make a bigger impact? What are some of the tools in your tool belt
• 32:06
  Dominic Russo: the cheese? Yeah, I'll say, john, you guys have been so kind and so gracious with your with your words. But I will say, it is definitely not my great ideas that brought this vision to come into existence or even executed. It's been, it's been the collaboration of our talented team and hundreds of community champions across Southern California and America, that that develop divisions been able to come together, and then ultimately, it's being able to be executed. And, and we've just been lucky to be a part of it, we always say, when we go into a city or a nation, we're not the hope, or just the help. And it's really the sustainable impacts going to happen from the people that live there. And the people that serve that place, week in and week out. And so that's been part of our, our secret. And part of our our philosophy is we've got to find the people that are doing good and stand beside beneath and and and around them and bring scope and scale to what they're doing. And and we feel like that's the way you not only get them a force multiplier in terms of impact, but also a sustainability piece as well. You've referenced briefly my wife, Lindsay, she's, she's been able to facilitate the construction of 265. I think now children's homes across India for just over 5500 street children. So these are kids with no father, no mother living as orphans. And the way we've been able to do it as we come around community champions there that will oversee the home long term, but we come in with that initial injection of capital to build the home to do the part that maybe they couldn't do. And that's been part of our model.
• 33:50
  Dominic Russo: And I think that's for every every philanthropist, humanitarian nonprofit, or just person wanting to do good. If you can find the people that are already doing something and not think, you know, you have to reinvent all of it. And just bring those pieces together and bring scale to it. It's it's incredible the impact you can make.
• 34:11
  Becky Endicott: As you're talking Dominic, I just keep thinking like as Disney has created this magical experience for you to come in and have this Disney experience, you have created this experience for people who have a heart to serve. And you have found all these ways for them to plug in.
• 34:27
  Becky Endicott: And it is an experience. And you're able to bring in the creativity, the engineering, the almost like the infrastructure.
• 34:37
  Becky Endicott: And in you allow people to show up in a way that works for them.
• 34:41
  Becky Endicott: They can pour into a mission in a way that matches their skill set. And I just have to think we got to get Dominic on some sort of global platform where he just teaches people how to do this.
• 34:52
  Becky Endicott: He teaches a man to fish. And we just find all because I think of the do gooders who are listening right now on our podcast. Some of them don't even work in nonprofit, they just want to be a light to somebody else. So please, I just want to encourage anyone to go on to Dominic's site, learn about this follow him on social because they have an incredible social following.
• 35:13
  Becky Endicott: And learn how to do this figure out if there's a way to pour into these movements in your community. Okay, so Dominic, we like to ask all of our guests about a story of philanthropy that has deeply touched them in their lives. I cannot imagine what you're about to say and which event this moment is going to come from. So we're We're ready.
• 35:34
  Dominic Russo: I think my my moment that was was marking was the month I spent in Calcutta when I was 14. I think having stood just six months after Mother Teresa had died, actually. So we worked with the lady who was with Mother Teresa, all those decades, and standing beside the Sisters of Charity there and and standing beside, in those, those incredible heroes in the houses of the sick and dying, the destitute the lepers, and seeing the severity of need, as as a teenager, left an impression that still stays To this day, I would say that whole month really was was the was the life changing, marking moment for me. And that's part of the reason why we want to create these missions and outreach opportunities is because we know when when people roll up their sleeves and do the work, it is impossible to be the same. And so I'd say I'd say that month is as a teenager in India is what marked me, for sure. I can
• 36:43
  Jonathan McCoy: tell you, I'm sure their sisters would be rooting for you. If they could see what's going on. Now,
• 36:47
  Becky Endicott: they wouldn't be so proud of you. They're going to print off this information about what's going to happen in July and put it on their fridges. So it's a wonderful,
• 36:57
  Jonathan McCoy: okay, well, Dominic, we ask all of our guests, you're one good thing.
• 36:59
  Jonathan McCoy: And to us, that's just something that's maybe a personal mantra or something that that you think that if we do it today, it's a habit that can really change your life, or it's something that stuck with you.
• 37:11
  Dominic Russo: Yeah, I would, I would say to everybody watching and listening today that I believe that every single purse person was was sent to the earth, that I life's not an accident. And we were sent to the earth with a unique purpose that only you can fulfill. And, and I would encourage everybody to pursue to pursue that unique purpose with everything that they have. Because when you unlock your purpose, you'll make an impact on the world that nobody else could have made. And so that'd be my challenge to everybody.
• 37:44
  Becky Endicott: I mean, Dominic is like, massive movement maker, kind, humanitarian, Rockstar, father, husband and doing all the things I hope you sleep my friend, because you've got a lot on your plate. But I am seriously rooting for you and just feel like we need to amplify all the good work that is surrounding you.
• 38:04
  Jonathan McCoy: So what is the best way for people to connect with you?
• 38:07
  Dominic Russo: Yeah, absolutely.
• 38:07
  Dominic Russo: Like, like Becky had mentioned, you can jump on to love has no limits calm or you can follow us on social at Love has no limits.
• 38:14
  Dominic Russo: My Instagram is at Dominic J.
• 38:19
  Dominic Russo: Russo. That's where I spend most of my time in terms of social.
• 38:23
  Dominic Russo: And we'd love to take the journey with each and every one of you.
• 38:26
  Becky Endicott: Thank you dominate. Awesome. Thank you guys. Thanks for listening to today's conversation with Dominic. We hope you feel inspired to lean into your community and dream bigger to collaborate for the greater good. You probably hear it in our voices, but we love connecting you with the most innovative people to help you do more for your mission. That's why we'd love for you to join our good community. It's our own social network and it's free.
• 38:47
  Becky Endicott: Sign up today. We're for good.
• 38:47
  Becky Endicott: COMM backslash Hello. One more thing if you love what you heard today, would you mind leaving us a podcast rating a review? It means the world to us and helps more friends find our community.
• 38:57
  Becky Endicott: Our production hero is someone who has been an activated volunteer for years, Julie Confer and our theme song is sunray by Remy bourse boom go rock this week do gooders