Sending holiday greetings is a corporate tradition — as is giving to good causes. But this year, we did things a little differently.
Instead of the traditional holiday card, we created a custom “video card” celebrating L’Arche Harbor House, a local group whose goal is to be a sign of hope to the world. L’Arche communities are family-like homes where people with and without disabilities share their lives together, give witness to the reality that persons with disabilities possess special qualities of acceptance, wonderment, spirituality, friendship and joy.
Part of an international network of 126 communities in 30 countries, L’Arche Harbor House is the only L’Arche community in Florida.
The video highlights the “joy” of this special community as its members share in the ordinary things of everyday life. We created the video along with a microsite where it plays and can be shared with others.
The “Joy” video card is meant to remind us all that the happiness we seek is in the love we share daily. Henri Nouwen, an author and teacher who spent three years living in a L’Arche community in Canada, once said, “I’ve always thought what makes us human is our mind. But at L’Arche I’ve learned that what makes us human is our heart, the center of our being where God has hidden trust, hope and love.”
A lovely thought any time of year.
