Agape in Action

by Nicole Hsiang

Today is my 25th birthday. I love birthdays. Everyone gets a day dedicated to them.  Birthdays entitle one to receive love, celebration, and gifts for the sole purpose of being born.

Birthdays motivate giving.  It’s a tradition that’s lasted so long that it’s ingrained in our social psyche.  Birthdays invite your friends and family to do something for you because they want to make you feel special, and in return, they feel special as well.  I have been brought to tears by some of the thoughtful gifts people have given or made me. A mix tape, a handmade scarf, and a home-cooked meal are among my most cherished presents.

Unfortunately, the gift-giving tradition can stifle our goodwill if the gift doesn’t come from the heart. Gifts lose their meaning when you have no idea what to get your cousin Mary in Maine - the one you see every 5 years. You don’t even remember what she looks like.  When Mary opens the over-sized ugly sweater, all she can say is “Well, it’s the thought that counts.”

This year, I’m making it easy for my family and friends, especially for those who have no idea what to get me. For my birthday, I wish to contribute to a world of peace and justice, and I’m inviting my community to share that vision.  I’m asking everyone to make a donation to the Agape Foundation in my honor.  The Foundation is having a bowlathon fundraiser tonight, where me and my friends will bowl and raise money for grassroots social justice activism.

Raising money for a cause I care about from the people who care about me conveys a beautiful message about the power of community.  The spiritual impact of such a gift for me is in letting go of the greed and selfishness that creates a society ridden with having too much “stuff” and never enough satisfaction.  It is a gift that keeps on giving; if I inspire one or more people to ask their friends for donations as gifts, my one act creates a wave of change. It’s about understanding my life as not just my own accomplishment, but a product of labor (especially that of my mother!), care, and the generosity of others.  This year, my birthday will be a time to give back.  My community is the gift I’m most grateful for.

By Nicole Hsiang

Yesterday morning, Agape Foundation Board of Trustee Members Winnie Chu and Gwyn Kirk hosted a houseparty fundraiser to benefit our work that supports grassroots social change. On this lovely morning, we enjoyed a delicious brunch, made new connections, and learned about what can be accomplished by small groups of people who are committed to seeking justice. (more…)

By Karen Topakian

In a 24-hour period this week, I experienced the double whammy of democracy. I voted and was called for jury duty. Two activities at the cornerstone of our society. And I had no one to blame or credit but myself. I picked this week to serve knowing it included a federal election. (more…)

Agape Foundation Executive Director Karen Topakian with Enduring Visionary Prize Winner Madeline Duckles and Rising Peacemaker Prize Winner Elizabeth Sy at the 4th Annual Peace Prize Awards Ceremony. Photo by Bob Hsiang

To view a photo album of pictures from the event, click here

By Karen Topakian

Amidst a crowd of 150+ people Madeline Duckles took the podium by storm last night to accept the Agape Foundation’s 2008 Enduring Visionary Prize at its 4th Annual Peace Prize. Without referring to any written notes, the 92-year old winner inspired and captivated the audience with her views on war and her experiences with peacemaking. She even dispensed two pieces of practical information:

If you are ever sprayed with tear gas, have someone repeatedly pour cold water in your eyes. It will help the blindness but not the pain. Apparently she knows from what she speaks. (more…)

by Karen Topakian

That’s what I saw when I exited the bus at 7th and Market the other day. Small gnawed bones. Picked clean of meat. Not yet brittle. Looking very new. The memory of those bird remnants haunted me for days until today, when they made complete sense.

Why today?

Because today is August 6th. And 63 years ago today, in 1945, Hiroshima was transformed into a landscape of charred bodies, human shadows burned into the sidewalk and bones. 140,000 died that day and afterwards. (more…)

Members of ANAKBAYAN-East Bay, Agape Spring 2008 Grant Recipient with Agape Board of Trustee Members Gwyn Kirk and Susan Fang.

The Agape Foundation is once again casting its net out for emerging grassroots organizations that are ready and willing to change the world. We aim to fund community-based efforts towards creating systemic change for social justice. We value self-determination, in which leadership is taken from the communities most affected by the social problems they are working to change. Since our formation in 1969, the Agape Foundation is proud to have awarded more than 12.5 million dollars in the form of grants, loans and fiscal sponsorship to more than 800 grassroots organizations!

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