Emily Jackson
Emily Jackson’s favorite quotes comes from Ghandi, "You must be the change you want to see in the world." That’s inspirational but not unusual. Here’s what is. Emily is 19, married, has two dogs, an awesome house on the lake in Tenessee, is the current World Champion Freestyle Kayaker, and she’s a philanthropist.
Here’s Emily in her own words. "I am doing my best daily to try and be the change I see. Four years ago I had just won two major kayaking events and because I was only 15, I had no real need for the money. Many things crossed my mind, like how many shoes you can buy with $5,000! But then I sat down with a great family friend, Jessie Stone, and she told me what an impact my money could make in a place like Uganda. My parents were supportive of me donating it all along, but now I had the door and the key! It was time to go to Africa. I divided the money between Soft Power Health and Soft Power Education. $2,500 went into paying a doctor to work at the Health Clinic and the other $2,500 went into refurbishing a school. When I got to Uganda and saw how much change I was able to make simply by doing what I love, I was sold. Now four years later and a total of $25,000 raised personally, I am always thinking of how I can apply a soft change. Nothing huge, nothing dramatic, just what can I do slowly, softly and effectively, to help provide people in Uganda with a better life."
Emily is not only a world-class athlete for whom every day is an adventure, she’s living proof that doing what you love is directly connected to making the world a better place. We look forward to seeing what she does next. Check her out at: http://worldkayakblogs.com/emilyjackson. Rock on Emily.
