Maggie Vilvang and Richard Faucher – What We Are Skating Towards.

This is Richard and Maggie's response to What are you skating towards in 2012?

What are we skating toward?  The net, always the net!  Sometimes on a breakaway, sometimes receiving a pass, sometimes offering an assist, but always, we are crossing the blue line with others who share our passion to achieve the goal.  And what about passion?   In our family our passion lives in each other, our work, and quite honestly, in horses, and hockey.  We are at our best when we live in our passion.  Our passions help us to be strong alone, and to belong with others.

We wonder about people with developmental disabilities and their passions.  Have their passions been denied, considered frivolous or perhaps eclipsed by their perceived deficits?  By denying, or at least not recognizing their passions have we stolen their ability to be strong, and to belong?  We wonder if passion is not, in fact the spice of life, rather a staple that nourishes and sustains us as individuals and as community.

We see the desolation of a life defined by deficit.  We yearn for the abundance of a life defined by asset.  We struggle with how to get from one to the other.  We suspect that passion is the lever to move us from desolation to abundance. 

So, yes, we are skating towards the net; our goals.  But this year we will skate with a passion that ignites and unites the passions in others.

Maggie Vilvang and Richard Faucher are creative entrepreneurial leaders in the community living sector.  They have just been appointed co – Executive Directors of PLAN and PLAN Institute.

Note: I am releasing individual essays from the collection, What are you skating towards in 2012?  on a regular basis. Upcoming contributions are by Kathy Bromley, Jack Pearpoint, Adam Kahane, Colleen McCormick and John Stapleton . You can access the accumulated essays here.

Related Posts:

Adapting the Social Finance to the Disability Sector

Becoming Visible 2011- Leveraging Our Collective Assets