Over the past couple of weeks I've been working closely w The Center for Social Innovation's (C4SI)Training guru Ken Kraybill (pictured far left in the flick here) on a webcast that provides information on the spirit of Motivational Interviewing. I've had the distinct pleasure of working w Ken before; BigWillyC (not pictured - gone to get a bean sprout salad or something), myself, Heather Rippitoe (pictured far right here and who almost killed me for catching her in this position with this photo) and Ken all used to do trainings together for the National Healthcare for the Homeless Council, and before that, I met Ken through Will Connelly at an outreach training put on by Ken.What Ken touches turns to gold, no doubt about it, and the man is absolutely flawless when it comes to training, speaking to groups, and sharing his experience with others.
So we devoted considerable time to preparing for yesterday's webcast, since Ken is a perfectionist when it comes to having it right, and I think the end result paid off in spades, since the webcast had the most folks ever - 3,000 - sign on for a web training in the history of the Homelessness Resource Center's tenure of bringing these free trainings to the public. So many folks registered the web meeting room couldn't handle them all and we had to turn some folks away until next week! It was by far the largest audience I've spoken to, with 600+ folks listening in, and it was an amazing way to get information out around the country about the use of Motivational Interviewing and its impact on those it touches.
As I mentioned, demand was so high we'll be doing it again next Thursday at 12pm Central time, so if you'd like to check it out, please jump on over to the HRC website and register for the event. Heck, it's free, and as I understand it, we've received great reviews for the effort.
By the way, this is once again one of those things where I'd like to believe it was my debonair flair coupled with my incredibly cool and hip personality, that brought all these peeps together to listen to us speak, but the truth is, Ken and the team at the Center for Social Innovation deserve ALL the credit. They are amazing people to work for and with, top notch pros who take their work and their mission very seriously, and I am humbled to be a small part of their team.
At my day-job over at OSDN, we've made some personnel changes and re also getting ready to add some additional staff that will help ease some of the wait times clients have been experiencing as a result of the huge volume of folks seeking our services. We're busier than a one-armed paper hanger over there, but we've been doing amazing things in meeting the needs of veterans who've served their country honorably and fearlessly, only to find that we as a country seem to have forgotten the promises we made to them about services and resources when they return.
Unfortunately, what pays the heaviest toll in all of this, aside from my poor wife, who is getting quite used to passing me only in the night, is my writing and blogging here at yee ol Stone Soup Station. I've got so many writing assignments now that there simply isn't enough time in every day to devote to writing in the blog like I used to do.
I won't close this site; I considered it once several months ago but those few readers who do come here regularly were adamantly opposed to me shutting it down and going away, so I'll continue to keep it updated and current as much as possible. Apologies in advance if I miss a day or three but I think what I'm doing now, and where I'm writing now (change.org, Homelessness Resource Center, PATH), has more of an impact on what we're all trying to accomplish than simply posting it here.
Thanks to all of you who attended, or tried to attend, the webcast yesterday, and who stop by occasionally to catch up on my drivel. I'm honored that you give me a small part of your time and I try hard not to waste it....
