Faith, Finance, and Philanthropy (Maria José Londoño) | Ep. 32

So, welcome to the podcast, the Walkout Podcast, Maria Landonio. Yes, Maria Jose, actually. Maria Jose Landonio. Yeah, correct. Okay, so we are here to talk about you, and you are very welcome to ask me questions at any point. If you want to make me, you know, put me on the spot, you can switch it over and say.

You can be the prosecutor, if you like. But we were connected through our friends, Felipe and Maria Claudia, and I have learned just beforehand, I only know about your non-profit work, but I also now know that you are also the CFO for KFC here in Bogota, or in Colombia. So, it is a lot of acronyms, CFO, KFC. You know, Colombia is not an acronym. So, tell us about your journey to get to that place. You were born here. Yes, I was.

And then you did some work in finance, and then did some traveling in the States, and found yourself back here in Bogota. Tell everyone how that happened. So, I was born and raised in Colombia. When I was like four to five years old, I moved to Florida for a couple of years. Columbia was not the safest place, so we decided to move. Then we came back, finished high school. You were in South Florida? Where were you in Florida? Yes, I was in Miami.

In Miami. The capital of Latin America. Exactly. You got it. I'm very aware. They all spoke Spanish. Oh, yeah, I know that. I'm challenged with my lack of Spanish skills when I visit. But, however, you know, in school, one of the teachers used to always say, don't speak Spanish in the classroom, because there was a girl from Mexico, and we became friends. Oh, yeah, well. So, she was kind of mad. Okay, yeah. So, there is like a Spanglish you have to goodbye with, at the least.

But I noticed, like, I went to like bodegas or a deli there, and they are just waiting for me to speak Spanish. I am like, that is a good point. They do not even understand you in English. It is crazy. I mean, that is great. I mean, that is well. Like, it is good to have a little, a piece of Latin America in. In the States. So, anyways, I cut you off. So, you're in Miami. I lived there, yeah, for just like a year or so.

Came back to Columbia, finished high school, and during my life in high school, I always felt I was so lucky. Like, I did nothing in life. To have been born in this family with all these opportunities, I got to go to, I don't know, Walt Disney World a hundred times, traveled the world with my parents, got all the toys I always wanted on Christmas, and I always say to my mom, I think you should always give back to people or be able to give to someone the smile that you have on your face all the time.

So, since high school, I was always involved in non-profit work. I launched a program to be able to build small libraries, So, I was in a neighborhood near my high school, and all this, I got an award for this or whatever, but the real satisfaction was actually helping all these children who were not able to learn how to read because they don't even have books at their little, let's say, daycare situation in Columbia. Then I graduated and decided to move to Boston.

For college. So, first, I did a one-year program in BU, so in Boston University. I did international business, like international business with English as well, so they sort of taught you like the business language and all this. It was super fun, met people from all around the world, experienced the dorms. I had a great roommate from Puerto Rico. We became such good friends. Oh, that's great. And then, I decided to do actually finance and management. So, I went formally to Bentley, where I did my major.

I loved it. Best experience ever. All my best friends are from college. I feel people from there become your family. And being there, I also got to do lots of non-profit work. So, I was involved in programs helping young immigrants who were reaching the U.S., helping them learn English and technology and just like being welcomed, especially children.

Also helped in different, I don't know, what's the name of that when you like sort of... Serve food to homeless people in shelters. So, I did that as well, like volunteering. Yeah, just volunteering in a homeless shelter, I guess. Yeah. So, I went there for, like, I don't know, 10 times, I guess. And then I actually graduated in 2020. So, it was COVID. And it's a fun story, because you know when you're in college, you're all about working on the summer, so I always worked at banks and small internships there and there.

I loved finance, and new numbers was my thing. And when COVID came in, it was... January 2020, I call my parents, and I'm like, hey, this is my last spring break in March. I'm going to Mexico with my friends, and I remember my dad said no. I'm like, how come no?

I've been living by myself for a long time now. I have my savings. And where were you going? Tulum? Yeah, absolutely. I figured, yeah. That's where I've gone. I'm guilty. I've gone myself, yeah. And it was fun, so I was like, I have my savings. It's just a part of New York City in Mexico. It's like one part Miami, one part lower Manhattan in Tulum. Oh, wow. That's all it is, yeah. And I was planning to move to New York, because I got an acceptance letter from a job, well, I got a job offer in New York after I graduated, I was graduating in May, so I was like, I'm all set.

What else could I ask for? And then I call my dad, and he says, no, and I'm like, I have my savings. I'm not even asking for money here. I'm just letting you know. And he says, no, there's a virus, and I'm like, that's in China. Yeah, it's not going to get here. You're all the way here in South America. And he's like, no, you should rather come here, bring some stuff, let's figure out that we're all going up to Massachusetts to see a graduate, blah, blah, blah.

And I'm like, okay, sure, whatever. So, he sends me the flight, and he's like, okay, you're traveling on a Tuesday. And I was like, okay, perfect. Tuesday in March, got on my plane, just brought a little carry-on with two jeans and, I don't know, a couple of jackets. Landed here. That Thursday was that initial quarantine in Colombia that never ended. Oh, my. So, I was trapped here until I graduated.

Yep. So, you had to kind of finish by whatever remote. I finished online, graduated online, so I'm the little picture of, like, the TV graduation vibe. Like a Zoom, something. Yeah, all the words, everything. But I got super close to my family when I left. My youngest sister was, like, nine when I came back. She was, like, 13, so it's kind of a different thing. Oh, sure. For, like, to, like, play with, like, Barbies, and then you do makeup. Yeah, no, I remember that phase for me.

It was, uh, I'm still in the Barbie phase myself. That's nice. So, yeah, it was nice to spend time with my sisters. We decided, like, my younger sister and I, we decided to be roommates during the quarantine, so I get to know her more and everything.

So, it was fine, and then I got a letter from the job offer I had saying they had to withdraw my offer due to COVID situation. They were no longer hiring, and I was like, what am I going to do? I had all my apartment back in Massachusetts, so I asked, like, my friends from there to pack my apartment. I paid them to pack them, send my stuff to Miami, to my aunt's house, and she will send it to Columbia. I was stranded in April.

I say stranded now, but it was, you know, it was not a big problem, but at the moment, for me, that's the end of the world. Of course, you feel trapped. You're ready to start your life. I know. You know, and like... And I said, I'm graduating in a month. No job. And I'm stuck in Colombia. So, it was a whole process of, I'm very Catholic, so I really just pray to God and say, please help me and show me the way.

Like, whenever you need me to serve, I'll be there, but just show me the way. So, then I started applying to jobs in Colombia because I said, the only thing I couldn't stand is to graduate without a job. That's like my number one priority.

And I got some job offers in Colombia, one at KFC, where I'm currently at, so I started working there as a financial analyst, then I grew up as a financial coordinator, then I decided to leave. So, I quit KFC and went to work. Well, at the same time I was working at KFC, I also worked for a startup, so I was a CFO for a startup for a while, like for six months, but having two jobs at the same time, I had no life.

Then, this opportunity at an investment banking firm from the UK with offices in New York and in Bogota came in, so I quit KFC. I just wanted, you know, I don't know if this sounds weird, but when you study finance, the sexy thing to do is Oh, totally, yeah. I have lived in New York long enough to know. You know the drill. I don't like to brag, but I know what is sexy in finance. Have you been to investment banks where the guys all wear the same vest?

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I have. Oh, you have the vest? Yeah, of course. Oh, okay. I didn't know there was a different version for women. Oh, no, no. Patagonia. Yeah, the Patagonia vest. And it is like, oh, we are being so casual. We are not wearing suits. I am like, you are still wearing a matching outfit. Yeah, yeah. Let us not pretend that like, oh, wow. No individuality. Why don't you be really reckless? I really liked it, actually, and I only left because my boss from KFC, my previous boss, he called me, and he offered me a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

I'm super young, but then he offered me this position, so I said, you know what, this is either you take it or you leave it. So, I quit it, went to work for KFC again, and I've been there since June.

Okay, so less than a year. Yeah, I think that was a very long story I just told, so if you want to tell me something else about yourself, that would be great. That's a dangerous proposition to ask me to talk about myself.

Yeah, so when you say, oh, I've always been Catholic, but I mean, what does that mean? It means like your parents... Catholic, they sent you to Catholic schools, but was it always something that was important to you, or did you go through any different periods?

I can say I'm very lucky or fortunate. I've never went through periods. If only I've been more Catholic, but never less. Yes, my parents are both very Catholic. Both my grandma is one of them. Rest in peace. She went to church every day. Very, very Catholic as well. My aunt, she's actually a nun, and she has her own non-profit of spreading God's love and God's word around the world.

So, yeah, I was baptized, of course. And I always went to church with my parents every Sunday. I learned how to pray the rosary when I was very little, so I prayed since then every single day. I actually do that every single day. Okay. Just for the record, there were some other things you told me before the interview that very quickly went from, I do this every day, to actually maybe four times a week. Well, I was going to the gym.

Okay. Everything is more aspirational when you go to the gym. I know, I know. Well, this is, I don't know, I don't think this is sex. I see, but... At my office, I have one of those standing desks, you know? That's so nice. Yeah, well, no, this is not the unsexy part. Oh, and then I have a treadmill underneath. Oh, my gosh, really? That's so cool. Wow. I always said I wanted one, because you get more steps during the day, you're more active.

Okay, then I'm cool, then. I've been tempted to buy one. I always have them on my wish list on Amazon. I just haven't done it yet. Well, it is a little awkward when I have some people working with me, because it is also like facing side, perpendicular to where the chair, so I am walking like this, and they are over there, and their eye level is like they are looking at me here. I feel like that is a little awkward for them, but you know what?

I got to get the steps in. They just have to deal with it. Yeah, it is awkward when you are on a Zoom call. And they're like, why are you going up and down like this? But yeah, but it keeps the energy level up.

So, I highly recommend. Do you have a standing desk? No, I don't. I want to buy one. Okay. I've been highly recommended. Now, you go to an office? Yeah, I go to the office every day. Even on Saturdays sometimes, because I have such a workload. Wow, okay. Yeah, I'm a bit workaholic. Yeah, no, I'm getting that vibe. Oh, yeah. So, yeah, I grew up being Catholic. So, maybe we should go for the what do you do for fun thing. I don't know.

Well, what I do for fun is I go into the office on Saturdays. Yes, I go to the foundation, visit the kids in their houses. Okay, well, we have to get to that. We have to define that first. But yeah, I was baptized, I did my first communion, like all the process, and I always felt this very close relationship with God. I always felt like He spoke to me. I don't know how to say this, but all my wishes always came true in a good way, let's say.

I always felt I could understand what his wishes were on me. When I was growing up, that was easier. Right now, it's harder. And being patient and God's timing, I feel when you're growing up, it becomes harder. Like, when is this going to happen? It's been 10 years, I don't know, five years. But then you understand the journey and everything, and if only I could tell you, being Catholic is my lifestyle.

I love going to church. I think also one of the connections I have is I love Catholic music. So, especially I like masses with good music, with good music in terms of what I like. So, what is it? Define for us good music. I don't know. I like some lyrics a lot.

Actually, in Boston, I chose one mass over another one, which was in English, not even in Spanish, because I like a lot of the music. Okay. I like the chorus. But you like this more traditional music, more modern music? No, traditional. I don't like dancing. No, not really. I'm more into like... I do a lot of liturgical dance myself. Oh, nice. That is good.

I glow sticks, the whole thing. Oh, okay. Nobody asked me to do it. Okay. I am not invited to do it, and I never get invited back to that church afterwards. But should we like a Gagorian chant kind of vibe?

Yeah, I don't know. You know the song, like, Sanctuary? Like, make me a sanctuary. Yeah, I do. You should keep singing it, though. I don't think. I like that vibe. Can we get the mic? We have the mic. No, no, no. We actually do have the mic. No, I don't think. I only dance because I was a cheerleader in high school. Okay, so now we're getting somewhere. Now we're getting to the real stuff. Some more fun. People, this is where it's at.

I was a cheerleader, so yeah, yeah, woo. So, that is what my liturgical dance looks like. That is very similar. You have seen my work. I have a very, very small YouTube following for liturgical dance. There is only about, was it up to six? Five. We lost one yesterday. I will be your number six. At this point, I think I am in violation of a lot of YouTube policies, but anyway, so you love Jesus, that is cool, but what… But, like, I think people who have the fortunate situation as you do, and as I have, of being born into a good Catholic family.

I mentioned you before we started recording that my oldest brother is a priest. You have an aunt who is a nun. These are, I highly recommend, if you're going to. A priest or a nun in the family, it's great. But I think life is always going to have suffering. It's never not going to happen, right? As much as we would like to try to avoid it as much as possible. So, has there been a moment where you've had to really confront some suffering and go, okay, where is God in all of this, or how do I understand this situation?

Yes, I have many moments like that. I believe my first encounter with a very strong faith moment was actually towards gratitude. It was more of, how come I have all of this, and not everyone has it? How come there are kids who suffer and cry and have nothing to eat, and they get to pick pancakes for dinner and have breakfast for a dinner party? That really got to me. Specifically, you have a problem with? The breakfast or dinner part. That is what felt indulgent.

No, really. Just want to be clear. I'm a high fan. Why do I get breakfast for dinner? I'm a high fan of breakfast for dinner. Clearly. It's a thing. Clearly. I'm a chocolate chip pancake guy myself. Oh, nice. Yeah. See, you got it. I'm more like a Minnie Mouse kind of waffle. Okay, you like the shape. Well, this is because you're going to Disney World. Yeah, and more like, I even like like evil waffles, like the frozen ones.

Well, we say ego, because ego waffles, I eat ego waffles every day. That's a problem. I don't know why you said that. No, no, it's fine. It's fine. I just want to make sure people weren't confused that there's a different thing called ego waffles, because everyone would agree that I'm eating way too many of those. My mom will be so ashamed. Like, what happened with your English? What you're looking for, what we all need is the humility pancakes. Oh, yeah, true.

I have declined those every time they've been offered. But no, really, I used to feel, I felt the suffering from others. I don't know if that makes any sense. No, I mean, some people are just born more compassionate. I have a cold, dark soul, so I don't feel other people's pain. No, it's weird. My friends used to tell me all the time, I'm like a little ice cube, because I'm not very huggy or touchy or romantically, let's say. Okay, so you're like just...

Are you avoiding your entire Latin American heritage? A bit. I am a bit cold. Are you not secretly Irish? Welcome to my culture. Welcome to my culture, where I think I saw my parents hold hands one time. Not that much, but I am a bit colder, like the natural thing. But when it comes to people suffering, or even kids extremely happy, when it gets to seem extremely happy, I cry of happiness. When I feel them. Okay. So, I always felt God was in those moments with me, so I realized gratitude was just giving God anything I could, and I truly believe that the only thing he really asked for is to love others as much as you love yourself.

So, I figured I always need to give back to people as much as I can, and if only that will, let's say I get rewarded with one smile, I'm happy with it, but then I have to be a good person as well so I can give to others. Like, goodness, and not, like, bad stuff, and mistakes, and whatever. And then, I did have a moment which I'm 100% sure had a miracle happen to me. Cool. We're pro-miracle on this podcast. That's nice.

I know there's a lot of podcasts that are anti-miracle. We're pro-miracle. Okay, that's good. My father almost died. Oh, my gosh. Yeah. So, now I feel very awful for joking before. Yeah, he... Yeah, he, I don't, I don't, I think I've never told this story before out loud. Okay. But he started vomiting blood. Oh, wow. Just to tell the short story, he fainted. I literally grabbed him and yelled, please don't go. Stay, stay. And he always had himself with, like, the cross and some medals and everything.

So, I hauled them in, and when we called the ambulance, he had no vital signs. He got to the hospital. He was in this CPR kind of situation for a day or two, and then he was passed to the ICU.

I see you sitting there. Yeah, yeah, intensive care unit. Yeah, and he was there for a week, and all the time, I just grabbed his medals and his cross, and he was starting saying, like, the, what's the name of that in English? Like, when you're at church, when you say, I believe in God. Oh, the profession of faith. The profession of faith. I just said it non-stop, and then he recovered, and he had no, like, any secondary effect of anything. So, he's, first, his charts were, like, There's no way this guy's leaving, or in no way, and then, out of nowhere, after the five days in the ICU, he was like, you're perfect.

No sequel, no secondary effects, no nothing. Yes. Even his friends who were doctors, they came in and they said, you have something out there, because we haven't seen this. And I'm pretty sure that's a miracle. I think it's the first time I've said it out loud, but I'm pretty sure that really happened to us and my family, so I'm extremely grateful. And you were how old when this happened? No, this was a year ago. Oh, okay. This is very fresh. It was life-changing, I can say.

Well, thanks be to God. Yeah. And before that, I just thought many things happened. Like, I used to write letters to Santa Teresa, and just leave it to the... Santa Teresa of the zoo, or Avila? No, of Jesus. Yeah, Santa Teresa of the zoo, the little flower. The little flower, yeah. So, I always left her letters, and they always disappeared.

I never found the papers again. Oh, wow. Okay. Yeah, I was telling our friend Will here that we often pray the Novena to St. Therese that roses will appear on the next day, so give it a shot. Have you tried again? No. I haven't done the full Novena. Okay, gotcha. And tell her about the rally. Oh, I have, yeah. I don't like to brag.

That's not true. So, I have a St. Therese relic. We had our own miracle witch body part. I didn't ask. They didn't give me a diagram. But what do you have? I wouldn't know anything. It's not on me right now. She's not with me right now. So, no, my brother, you know, when your brother's a priest. You get hooked up. So, yeah, he just felt like I needed her, you know, I was maybe going through a difficult time, and so he wanted me to have her, but we already had a miracle in our family, because my sister and her husband, they were just not able to have children.

She had endometriosis, and so it was just really difficult getting pregnant, and so my brother gave them the The Relic, and they have twins. So, we got a two-for-one. So, boy and a girl. If you're going to do twins, might as well.

Get one of the two. I know that nowadays people think there are more than two genders, but in this case, we're old school. We think there are only two. So, yeah. So, that was a little miracle in our family. Well, thank you for sharing. That's such a beautiful story. Yeah. So, yeah. So, Saint-Jeraz is very... Although, you know what I just found out recently, which was very unfortunate?

What? No. Disappointing for me to learn. I didn't know that... Usually, when you think of the relics, you think of a little piece of bone, right? Yeah, that is what I think of. Yeah. Apparently, in the more recent saints, they are not doing that anymore. How come?

I do not know all the reasons, but even St. Pope John Paul II, you will not find any relics of him. It's all, but it's like different types of relics. It's like hair, or like actual blood, and, but they don't have the bone, and I think it's, I'm guessing it's because maybe they want to give an opportunity to see if they will be incorrupt. Oh, yeah. Maybe? I don't know. Okay. Or maybe the church felt like we were getting a little too eager to just...

Chop up pieces and send them all around. I don't know. But I'll go with the incorrupt story. I think that's a better story, which always, that's like a, I want to freak people out about how Catholic I am, or what Catholicism is all about, and they think they know stuff about it, and then you mention incorrupt saints, and they're like, all right, come on, really? Enough with this. They don't decompose. This is crazy. But I find that people, the more mystical, the more people are intrigued.

They like, give me the incorruptible saints, the exorcisms. I think everyone just sort of increases their faith in their own way. My mom is a lot of knowing everything, so she reads books, reads about the saints, their stories, how everything happened, which is amazing, because you get to ask her lots of stuff. She just does a little research for you. Yeah, I know, which is so nice. I used to do that sometimes as well, so I feel also knowing helps you sort of have a stronger faith.

But yeah, I have the fortune of having very faithful parents who always took me to church growing up, and then I just kept it going, and I feel like going to church is just amazing, and I always feel like when you walk out of confession, you feel like, woohoo! Oh, no, that's good. You know what I mean? That's fantastic. Instead of going to a hair appointment. Yeah, well, okay. We'll edit that part out, and I'll say something really virtuous about confession.

No, I agree. I think, especially when you really need a good confession, or a retreat or something. I've been on these retreats where they also... Offer you the opportunity to go through your entire life like a general confession?

It's not necessary, of course, because God forgives everything, right? But, like, when I was five years old, I didn't play, I don't know, I didn't share my little Barbie card with the other girl. That was actually my exact one. That's what I had. It's weird.

I know. I read minds. So, yeah, it was a lot of that. That was actually the worst sin I had, so it was not that hard. Oh, my. You're a saint. It was a very easy confession. But, yeah, actually, we'll write it all down. Okay. And then you meet with the priest, and this is, again, this is kind of like an unnecessary, over-the-top thing. And then you kind of like literally burn it afterwards. It's like, okay, it's behind me now.

After you feel awful about all the things you've done. And then, you know, of course you go to confession. So, what about college? Because, you know, college in the States, you weren't going, I mean, BU is a Catholic university.

Sort of. I don't know, Bentley is not... No, it's not, but I joined the Catholic community. Okay, and... So, once I got in, like in both schools, like in BU, first, literally first week, I researched, like, is there a Catholic community? Went to meet them, super nice. They told me when they did rosaries, when they prayed, especially because, you know, seasons like Lentil or all this, like you want to have more people to share it with, and you're just far away from home.

So, that was nice. And also, in Bentley, I was... Like, a high part of the Catholic community. With them, I joined, like, going to the homeless shelters, and giving food, and supplies, and everything. So, it was really nice. So, let us say, for Ash Wednesday, you have, like, a group of people who always go to church, and it is really nice. Actually, I think I even grew stronger in my faith in college, because I realized it was actually my thing. Yeah, you took more ownership.

Yeah, so it was like, I did not have to wait for my parents on a Sunday to say, hey, let us go to church. It was me. So, A, some of my friends were like, oh, let's do brunch on Sunday. So, I'll research which mass schedule worked, and went to that one. You don't have to choose. You can still do brunch. I know, exactly. I could say I've been to masses in very different languages in lots of places in the world, because if you're traveling, you just have to go.

Yeah, that's good. Wherever it catches you. You can kind of figure out, you know, whatever language it's in, you can kind of more or less figure out where people sit, stand, kneel. But, sorry, but... What's been fun for me is when I'm in a place where I can't find somebody, a priest that speaks English, and I need to go to confession. That's always fun, because I'm like reading off the translating thing, like, forgive me, Father, and then there's a lot of non-verbals.

I'm not going to show you the non-verbals, but you can tell they're kind of like... I don't really understand what you're saying, but I'm just going to go ahead and forgive you anyways. We're just going to assume that God's got it figured out. So, you're doing charitable things, and then eventually, at some point, you decide to get involved in your own non-profit here. In Bogota. So, how did that happen? So, when I decided to stay here, some of my friends who knew me from before, they knew I've always done volunteer work involved in many, many different foundations.

I know many people that say, like, on the I don't know how to say it. The non-profit circuit? Yeah. Like the philanthropy kind of passion thing. One of my friends, she says, hey Maria, are you going to stay in Colombia for long? And I said, well, you know, I guess. We'll see. This is still during COVID? Yeah.

April of, no, like end of March of 2020. So, it was like pure COVID. So, I was like, I have no idea. I am wearing my mask. I don't know what to say. And she is like, I have something I would like you to meet. And I am like, okay, who is this person? And she says, no, this is my friend Camila. Her name is Camila Morales. She is from Bogota. She graduated with me from high school. I would love you to meet her.

She has this foundation. So, we have a lot of kids who suffer from cancer and are from the poorest, let's say, neighborhoods or communities in Colombia, and I think you'll, too, get along. And say, oh, of course, I would love to. So then, she texted me, and she's like, oh, we're meeting up, oh, I didn't know what all meant, in this park.

Like, yeah, this part, like, in some place in Bogota, you meet us there, we all had our masks, sitting, like, one there, one there, we all brought something to eat, like, 10 in the morning on a Saturday, and she basically tells us this group of, like, five women at the moment, and she goes, well, I have this foundation, this is what we do.

And I was like, I want to know more. And just to tell a short version of it, she tells us, I founded this foundation called Fundación Abrazón Sueño. Translated for our... So, it's Hug a Dream. Her dream in there somewhere. Hug a Dream. Hug a Dream. Hug a Dream. Got it.

And I founded it in 2018, like middle of 2018, and she says, I would like to grow it to make it more of... Let's say, more structured, more organized, have a group of volunteers, really be able to have more children, get more resources and everything. She had done an amazing work up until the moment, and we all, in there, we all said, yes, let's do this. So, we sort of got our own jobs within the foundation, so I was more of an administrative slash fundraising part, so I'm currently the co-director of fundraising.

And we started sort of attracting volunteers, so we each had a group of like 10 volunteers under us having children, but it was COVID at the moment, so we did virtual events. So, we got the moms of the little kids and their phones to connect to, like, Google Meet, and we did these activities. We sent them activities to do at home. We sort of understood if we were having a hard time, can you imagine them? So, just to back up, so these are...

Children who have been diagnosed with some form of cancer. Yeah, most of them have cancer, and then some of them also have, let's say, I don't know, what's the name of that in English? Orphan diseases. So, let's say, with no cure or really hard diagnosed diseases. So, let's say we have people with Duchenne syndrome. We have people with different type of tumors, which is like one in the world. So, we do have a group of that. The majority of them do have cancer, and some of them also may have something like, let us say, Down syndrome or other related illnesses.

And how was Camila, how was she finding these children, or how are you guys now finding? It was voice to voice. So, when she was in college, she was part of a program in, well, she is a... Psychologist, and in college, her internship was in a hospital with kids, and walking them through those moments in which there is nothing else you could do, so they are just like in this terminal. So, the last term of care.

So, she started meeting them, and she started by herself. So, she is actually a hero. If she says this, I really love her, and she is one of my best friends at the moment. And she started making the wishes for these kids come true. So, this little girl would be like, oh, I really want to go to Disney World, or I really like to have a Barbie, or I really want to try McDonald's for the first time, or go to the movies, or meet this famous actor or actress.

And she was able to pick people together to do this, like through social media and texting people, like, hey, do you know someone who knows this football player or this actress? I have a kid in the hospital dying, who lives under $2 a day, extreme poverty in Colombia.

Help us. And she started doing all this research, finding out that when children are happier, they respond better to the treatment. Oh, yeah, because they have hope. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, sure. So, actually, the mission of our foundation is to revive the hope of the children and their families who are going through this process.

So, afterwards, she met a girl who always said to her, you should have a foundation like a little girl at the hospital, which her leg has just been amputated. And she was like, you should do this for more kids, please do this for more kids, and before, sadly, well, unfortunately, she died, and before she left, she told her, you should do this, you should really have this foundation. Camilla is very Catholic as well, and then... Because at this point, there's no foundation, there's no non-profit, she's just...

No, no, it's just her, her and the hospital, word of mouth, helping people. Like, making the kids' dreams come true. That was it. That was all she did. And, like, finding research, like, out of nowhere. So, if a girl was like, I need, let's say, a transplant, she will text everyone and find the resources and have her transplant. It was by herself. She was in college, like, doing her internship. That was it.

And then, she sort of develops this bond with this girl from Venezuela, who then sadly died, and then Camila has a dream when she was graduating. Well, she graduated, she's She started working at this company of people with autism, or this foundation of people with autism, and she has this dream of the Virgin Mary carrying... I've heard of her, yeah. Yeah, carrying Jesus.

I know, she is popular. She should have devotions to her or something. So, she has this dream of the Virgin Mary carrying Jesus, and then she figures that will be the foundation logo. So, that's our logo up until the moment, then she came up with the name, and since all these kids told her to build a foundation, and she also started having dreams with the little girl who died, then she realized this was her mission. This was God's mission for her, and she was a huge heart, so she decided to found the foundation.

Still working out the autism company. It is also amazing what they do. They sort of autism people from all ages and try to make them have a normal life. So, they go partying and drinking and having fun, and it is super nice what they do as well.

Promote the alcoholism? No. That is what they do? No. It seems counterintuitive. Teenagers, you know, teenagers just being, like, they are one of us. They are just like us, you know? No, I am kidding. Oh, my God. You are like, they go, drinking.

The party. I don't know how to say it. I don't know. Socializing. Socializing, yeah. Sorry, I just want to make sure nobody was under the impression that we're promoting underage alcohol consumption amongst the autistic community. No, no, no. So, she did that at the same time while working, then she was able to sort of organize the foundation in a way that she was able to quit her job and sort of be formally the director and founder of the foundation and run it.

She wrote it by herself. She will now have an accountant and more people, but it was all by herself. So, when she told me all this, I was like, wow. Wow, like this is beyond. At the moment, she had, when we met in 2020, there was like 60 kids, something between 57 and 60. At the moment, we're, I'd say like 216 around.

So then, of the, so you have these 216 children, and they have a wish that you're trying to grant, or you've already granted, some of them you've already granted the wish. At the moment, we have different programs. And the foundation, because we realized it was not only about the kid. It was also about their family or their caretaker, because many times it was not even the mom. It could be the grandma. In many cases, the father was not around, or the mom was not around.

You never know. With that being said, what we realized is that there is a whole universe around the kid that we are also helping, and that actually makes a change. So, how it is, is basically word of mouth in the hospital. We go visit the kid in their house.

Check around how they live, what they need, get them to set all the medical records and everything. We have, let us say, alliances with two hospitals in Colombia that are really good. So, they help us, let us say, help the kids. We will get them, like, the, let us say, basic medical insurance, that it is like a national right in Colombia. So, they all have their paperwork and everything.

And, as I mentioned, we have different programs. So, let us say... We realized also families or caretakers of the kids will faint in the hospital because they had nothing to eat, because they don't have the resources to buy lunch either at the hospital or around.

So, we launched a program called Lunches with Love, and we basically meet at a lines with a diner, and they provide us the lunches. So, we have, let's say, people who help us with that specific program. So, you say, you know, I'll contribute. So, you know where your money is being given to. That is one of the programs we have. We also launch a way to sort of try to be self-sufficient.

We're not self-sufficient, let's mention we do receive donations, but we tried. But with the distractions of the mothers, or the caretakers, because they're all the time at the hospital, they don't have a formal income source. Your full-time job is caretaking. Exactly. So, we taught them how to make candles, so we sell candles, super pretty. Cookies, so we also sell cookies. We used to sell little rosaries, different images, so the Virgin Mary.

And different, how do you say it? You know, like Fatima. Icons? Yeah, different devotions. So, we do that, and that's actually one of the best ways Zaymani moves around the foundation. We also have a program in which you become like a godfather of the foundation. It's not of a specific kid, because unfortunately, some of them may pass away. So, what we try to do is sort of like you're the godfather of the cause itself. So, you're reviving the hope of... This community of people.

So, that is kind of like our, in more financial terms, like our constant cash flow, like our safety net cash flow every month. So, we really thank all the Godfathers that we have, and we are always trying to reach more, and we are trying to make it accessible to all ages. So, we usually start at $12 a month minimum, for a minimum of six months, and every month we send them this little brochure of your money. So, we were able to give this many lunches, we were able to move this many kids to the hospital, like all the programs and what it did.

So, mentioning that, another program we have is taking public transportation in a city like ours. It's hard. Now, imagine a kid which is in a wheelchair, or they may faint any time because they have, you know, they're going through, like, chemo or all of this.

So, we do have another program called Wheels with Wings, in which we bought a brand. You guys are good at branding. I know. I know. Wait, did you come up with these names? No, but I mean, we're great. Yeah, okay, but I feel like you were taking credit for that. No, no, we all did it. But I think I'm glad you said it. You like to exaggerate. Okay. So, this program, we help kids get around, so we bought our own van.

We branded it, and the oldest sister of one of our girls in the foundation is the driver of the van, and she picks up the kids in their houses and takes them to their medical appointments and to the hospitals and everything. So, it has been great, and we also have alliances with taxi companies who help us around. So, usually on Sunday nights, The schedule is done, and sent, and organized, depending on the appointments of the children and everything, so that is also something we do, and along with that, we do have the dream come true part, which are different categories of dream, so you may have an education dream, which is, we do have kids who already were able to go to the university, so one of them graduated as a pilot.

And the other one is studying infirmary. So, it's been really good to get that support from universities and different organizations helping us with that, and we do have that program. We also have dreams that are called Super Party, which is like, I want to have a suit 15, or a suit 16, or I want to just have a… Birthday party of, I don't know, Mickey Mouse themed, or whatever you would like.

I have one last year. I can, if you need some decorations, yeah. Oh, that's nice. I can send you some. You were able to wear, like, your little, is that a real thing? Yeah, I mean, I have mouse costumes. It was a lot, yeah. Oh, Mickey Mouse waffles. Yeah, exactly. Breakfast or dinner. All those ego waffles.

Ego waffles, people. Okay, so you're having super parties. Super parties? Super parties, yeah. And then, what are the things you want to see happening in the future? Really? Just keep growing it? Or are there particular things? I would love to keep growing it. In terms of particular things, I would love to make stronger the part of, really... Being able to provide more to the kid, so let us say you are able to move forward with your treatment, and we actually provide you education, but also you get to go to the university, so kind of changing the poverty narrative a bit, so there is the poverty trap in which, I do not know, as a teenager you may get pregnant, or as a boy, then you do not go to school, and then you just maybe go into criminal stuff, or not, it really depends, so trying to break that band.

I think will be a dream. We do have big dreams, like we dream of taking the kids to Walt Disney World. Like, trust me, we kind of pray for that. Because we do have lots of kids who say that, but we try to. Keep it. Yeah. To the standards that we can take it to. But we have taken, for four years in a row, 11 kids and their moms to see the ocean for the first time. Oh, that's okay. Yeah. So, it's been amazing.

We went to Parque Jaime, what is it? Duque? Yeah. Oh, we always take the kids there. Yeah, I see that. I was just thinking, I was like, that probably seems like something more. We have taken them a couple of times, usually to celebrate the international Children's Cancer Day, which just passed. So, that Awareness Day, we usually do a big event for that. We are having it on the 22nd, this month. Oh, cool.

So, the idea is really just to keep reviving the hope, create a community, and try to also change hearts in the way of saying, we are now also doing baptisms. So, we have moms, fathers of the foundation, even kids who have never been baptized, try to also bring them to the faith. It is like a forced conversion kind of thing. No, it is not a forced conversion. He said, they want to. We offer the possibility, and they say, I want to.

When they turn around, you're like throwing holy water at them? No, no. Okay, so I'm going to try. No, no. I have to check out to make sure that this foundation is legit. So, we have done weddings. Okay, forced weddings. We have done, no, not forced. Forced baptisms, forced weddings. No, I promise we're not forced. This is very problematic. Okay. And we were the bridesmaids. Okay. We have done. First Communions, Baptisms. So, it's really, because if you're trying to revive the hope, we really need God for that.

Like, He's the one who's going to pull you through. So, we're happy to also spread the faith, and we also do different psychological help for moms, and we also have like a program when If a family loses their child, we don't want to, like, kick them off the foundation, so what we do is we keep them, and it's called also, like, the group of angels. So, they're also moms who help us doing candles and different stuff. So, really, we try to close the circle as much as we can, but if you ask me, the big pleasure is just to spend time with them and listen to their stories and have fun and join around, and I really think most of these women are superheroes.

Like, the stories of everything they've been through. I'm like, I wouldn't, I would have given up. Yeah, but seeing your own child suffer, I can't imagine how it's just going to be terrible. I'm like, this is just, wow. And then, I remember once we were talking, like two moms and me, and one of them said to the other, she was so frustrated with the situation that had been happening to her, and she says, you know what, I think we're blessed.

Of the kids we have. Like, no one else gets to have this privilege. That really changed my mind. How did she define that as a privilege? She just said that the love she was able to experience with her kid was beyond anything else. Like, no one else could experience that. And I just saw it, and I said, yep, I believe you. I agree. Well, there is something about the...

The reality of suffering, or the poignancy of it that draws out different intimacy, because you are exposed, right? When you are suffering, you are reliant, and whether you are the one who is having the physical ailment, or you are the… The mother or the father watching, there's a spiritual suffering there. I mean, we talked about the Virgin Mary, and obviously she, with her sorrowful heart, she had to watch Jesus go through all these things, right? And we have a whole theology in the Catholic faith around suffering.

I've actually had a number of friends who have converted to Catholicism. Mainly through the theology of suffering, because they had had very difficult situations. I remember one who has two children with cystic fibrosis, and so her whole life is going to hospitals, going to doctors, constantly with the machine to help them breathe better, and all those sorts of things. And the fact that we, as Catholics, have a... The sense that there is a purposefulness to suffering, that it can be transformed, and even find joy in that.

And I think, you know, sometimes people think the Catholics are a little too much into the suffering thing, but it is like, you know... We're all going to encounter suffering. You can hope to avoid it, but it's just never going to happen. And so, that's an equal opportunity, whether you're very rich or very poor, you're going to encounter suffering at some point in your life. So, as strange as that is to, that's strange, but as confounding as that would be to hear that a mother feels almost grateful.

Yeah. Now, a cynical person, like my friends in New York, would say, you're grateful that your child is dying? But that happened to me once. We were praying for the health of some of these kids, and the priest says, we thank you, God, for the illnesses that they have, and the process, and the moms. And I was like, what? Like, I had a moment, which I was like, why are we thanking him for them? You know what I mean? But then you realize everything comes from God, and then I also realized when this kid sort of departs sooner, well, they're saints.

They want them there with him, with Jesus, and God, and everyone in heaven. And if you ask me, my dream control will be together in heaven. So, it's like, you're too good that you're already there. You know what I mean? No, and I think that those that are more skeptical are kind of like, ah, you're just finding a way to rationalize this pain or this suffering.

But I think, no, I think it is, there's a deep... Wisdom in that. My dad passed away two years ago, a little more than two years ago. He had dementia for a while, and my mom took care of him for 10 years, probably more. And the transformation of that suffering of taking care of somebody for that long, and you have... Things you would prefer to be doing at this stage in your life that are not taking care of somebody 24-7, you know?

But then, I can't speak for her, but I will say that there was an acceptance and a transformation of sorts that happened a few years before he died that she much… She embraced that role of the caretaker in a different way, and it shifted and transformed the way that she could go about every day. Because it was like those little moments that are tedious or frustrating, or when my dad was not completely in control of what he was saying or doing.

You feel like, hey, man, I am trying to take care of you all the time. Could you be a little grateful? She was able to just have patience. So, I hope it is both their paths to heaven. I don't know. We will see. We will find out much later on, I hope. But, yes, I think I have witnessed that, and I have also seen friends that have been very sick that… Did not have a religious basis in their lives, and you could see how, this is not to make, oh, if you believe in God and you're Christian or you're Catholic, you're categorically a better person or something, but I did notice that a lot of people in my friend's life that he passed away from cancer, this was five years ago, but not a Not a religious person in the room, except for me, I guess.

And there was a lot of fear. I don't want to be around this illness. I don't want to see it. I don't want to be reminded of death. I want death as far away from me as possible. Even though they loved our friend deeply. I mean, he was a very beloved person. But there's almost like this, I don't want to be around this, because...

It's too real, you know? So, they kind of pop in and pop out, but didn't want to stick around too long, because it's not easy. I mean, I've never been comfortable around hospitals and all those sorts of things.

But when it is something you care about, you just kind of like get over it, right? Real quick. And all the more for a mother or father, right? So, I am sure it is very transformative for all the volunteers as well, right? It is. I feel it fills their heart. If you ask me, I feel any way of volunteering or giving back.

It's really more to you, to your heart, to your own growth, than even to their own kid. It's amazing if they get to smell and everything, but I really feel it's for your heart. I have this saying of, I think one of the most important traits of a person is having empathy.

If you have empathy... You'll take care of others, you'll be worried about them, you'll treat them well. So, I feel having this moment of giving back and volunteering really sort of… So, I really think volunteering gives a deep connection. And I do have volunteers telling us, like, thank you so much. This has been amazing. It's like, no, thank you. Hey, you're the one volunteering. Yeah.

Have you had experiences with people that... Where they didn't have any exposure or experience with volunteering, being around sick people, but how do you, or maybe you know how they made these decisions? Because I'm always focused on those that find what we're talking about unrelatable, where they might go...

Yeah, that's great. You grew up in a Christian home, and helping people was just part of your life, and so, great. You're doing it at even a bigger scale now. Wonderful. But somebody else might look at it and say, I just can't relate to that, and it's uncomfortable for me, and you're saying to me, oh, you're going to feel so much better, but how does one get over, go from a lack of...

They may say, I want to be more empathetic. But you don't really have the spark. But just like I said, with my friend who was dying, even though they loved him, it was still uncomfortable to be around him who was sick, you know?

Well, we're losing fans already. This is bad. We only have a few. I just want to be fair. She is your fan, the left. Mine stayed. Yeah, yeah. She's my fan. But he's technically working with me, so he has no choice.

You know what I'm saying? I feel like there are those that get it right away, and some people that need to be shown a path somehow. Oh, yeah. So, I do believe… What is that noise, by the way? Do you know what that is? Is this the party? Is this the party that you take the autistic kids to with the drinking? I don't know. It's like the construction thingy. They're doing construction at this hour. I don't know. This is the latest podcast we've ever done, by the way.

Oh my God. I'm pretty sure. I think so. Should I be on special, or like, where are you? Well, it remains to be seen. So, I do believe being devoted to service comes within you, but then I do believe you can also develop it, and I also believe there are many ways of giving back. I can tell you an example from my mother, for instance. Once, I took her to help us in the foundation, and she cried. I was like, Mama, why are you crying?

She was like, well, all these kids, and the moms, and they're sick, and I was like, you're not allowed to cry, because people call me to be happy. And she's like, oh, no, I can't. Then, she came back, and she taught them how to do, like, I don't know, again, the name of that in English, but the rosary, which does the ten... Yeah, just like a one-decade rosary bracelet that you wear on your hand, whatever. So, she taught them how to build them, because my mom is very good with hands and very creative, and she really enjoyed it.

And I said, see, that's amazing. And she's like, no, this is too hard for my heart. I'll help you with other things. So, she helps me, like, let's say, getting donations, or if I have to bring the kids, let's say, any type of food or something, a snack or whatever, she'll be all the sandwiches, and she'll be the happiest. And that also gives me back, because I do believe one of the things that you should do is use your time.

Like, if you take the time to even take the time and send some money or read what your help has done, I think that also gets it, but I do feel the spark is if you try it. Like, I really think that if you try and see the reality.

I tend to believe that everyone has something good within them in their hearts, so we sort of develop that feeling of how come this happens, I don't know, around the corner, or in my same city, or how can I help?

So, that is also what we try to do, and I do believe sometimes when we post pictures on the events, or videos, or whatever, it is also to show that to people, like, come on, we do have fun, this is amazing, you give back.

Kind of like, I don't know, not even if they only went one day, but then on the next day, they're even a better person because they realize there are people around you. And you live in a community of people. So, I don't know if there's a way that I could say this, from this moment on, you love to serve.

No, but like you said, even just the first try, I mean... Yeah, and I do think there are many ways of doing it. I like jumping around a lot, if you can ask them. I always do dances for kids, and sort of choreographs, and jump, and... At the office, they don't know I'm this person, and I'm like, thank you. But I'm more of that kind of thing. I don't know, I really enjoy that. I let them braid my hair, do whatever they like, that's something I enjoy, but then I have friends who are like, no, that's too much.

But then, I have moments. I fainted twice at the ICU visiting some of the kids. Oh, okay. Because it was so hard to see them suffer. I fainted, like literally. And my friend, like Camilla, was like, what's going on? Like, I have no idea. I mean, you can't control when you faint.

So, yeah, I believe it's just giving it a try in any way that you want to. And again, I feel service starts in your house. With your people, with your family, or even with the doorman, with the person who walks your dog, I don't know. I think it's all around. I don't think you actually have to go to the poorest community and help. If you have that sensitivity, please do it.

Well, I know you're in finance, but it seems like you're in sales right now. Oh, yeah. Woo! I think I've been involved with this special needs program for a while, and I didn't have any experience with... Well, I've been in the special needs community before, but... But I noticed, because we were doing something that was fun, it was a party, it was this prom for special needs individuals, that made it, I was looking at it as a nice entry point, it's a nice introduction for somebody who wants to volunteer, because if I say, oh, would you like to volunteer, I don't know, in a hospital, like, whoa, that's a big jump.

But like, hey, you want to come to a party, and you can escort somebody, we have a red carpet when they arrive. Or you can make a sign and cheer for them, or you can do hair and makeup, or shine the shoes, or whatever. So, there is like little roles, so kind of like what you are saying, you can ease into it. But there is also, even on those nights, it can be very difficult because we always pair people up, we call them buddies, and you are with them the whole night.

And, you know, sometimes you have somebody with a severe disability, being with somebody. The whole night is a lot, you know, when you're not used to it, like you have to feed them, or they might have, like, difficulty with, like, with sound, and they might be nonverbal, and you have to use different ways to communicate, whatever. So, that might be.

For somebody who has a little more experience, you know. Well, that is amazing. Can you invite me? Well, you just missed it. It was on Friday. Goodness, well, you know. We can blame our friend Felipe and Claudia, because they didn't know about it.

So, it is once a year. It is always the Friday before Valentine's Day. So, it will be, we did, this is our third year in Bogota, and then we expanded to Medellin this year, Cochabamba, I think Lima as well, added a few more locations, but we are 60 countries, 800 locations, 400,000 people. It is a lot. I don't do it. I am a small piece of it. I just do the international, helping the international expansion. But, yeah, it has been great.

I mean, it has been a whole… Different way to serve, you know, but there's, you know, I think there's lots of, like I say, there's lots of different ways to serve. Just find your little niche, and if not, feel guilty and give money.

I'm a big fan of guilt. I think guilt is a great thing. Or do both. Yeah, okay, fine, both. I just like to make people feel bad about themselves. You could say, like, shoes, or having a kid, I don't know, going to the movies for the first time. Okay, or just write me a check. Or if you could do both things. Yeah, or just write me a check.

Write me a check. So, I thought you were all going to ask me questions. What happened? Oh, yeah, okay. So. I'm ready. I want to know about your life. Oh, no, no. We're not starting from the beginning. We don't have that much time.

Now that we're going to talk about me, she's like, I'm definitely out. How did you develop this devotion to service? So, yeah, I mean, my parents were always volunteering. So, we used to take in, so in our home, we, I'm the youngest, and so, you know, when you're the youngest, like, whatever goes on in the home, you just think is normal. I guess this is how we do things here. I don't really have, I don't have a vote anyways. I just go along.

So, when we were growing up, my parents would take foster children that were awaiting adoption, so they would be So, sometimes they were, from the time they were born until they got adopted, sometimes it could take two weeks, sometimes it could take six months. Administrative things, I don't know exactly why sometimes it would take that long. So, we had these little babies, and it was great. I loved it. I mean, of course, it was hard for my mom to give the baby back after like six months.

And then we would also, women who were in You know, crisis pregnancies, where they were, you know, maybe they needed a safe place to live, or maybe it was not comfortable, you know, living at home, or whatever it may be. Or one case, we had somebody who was a recent immigrant from El Salvador, and needed, you know, she didn't have family in the States.

So, I used to joke, there was always a pregnant lady living in my house. First of all, I think that's amazing. So, you know, you just get used to that. You just grow up around it, and you think, oh, this is, I guess this is what we do.

And so, yeah, I think that probably influenced me, and then, yeah, just looking for different ways to... To get involved, and I think we all, at some point, start to figure out how we can use our particular skill set, you know, to be helpful, and as you are helping with kind of the more business mindset and the structure and the formation of the foundation, in addition to.

You know, passing out at hospitals sometimes, which is very valuable. I'm a cheerleader as well. Yeah, there's cheerleading, and then there's the passing out. Yeah, so those are very valuable. I don't want to diminish your contributions. But, so I think I've started to learn that what I might be able to have a connection point is that through my...

Well, I've had a lot of experiences with the church. My brother was a missionary priest in the Dominican Republic, but on the border of Haiti, so really like in the middle of the frontier, like Mone, or for nine years. And so, I've gotten to see a lot of different aspects of the church all over the world, and then being, in part being in New York, and in part just kind of knowing A lot of philanthropists and things like that. I think the role that I can play is connecting those two.

There's a lot of amazing ministries out there, and there's a lot of very generous people. So, I've been in a position where I can try to connect the two, but I think there's more that can be done. I think we need to re-examine the model on how we're funding things.

It is wonderful that we have a lot of generous philanthropists out there, but it shouldn't be where there are thousands of worthy projects and a handful of ultra-high net worth individuals, because one, it is wildly inefficient, and two, there is technology, storytelling, communication platforms allow for you to be aware of So, I'm working on developing a model for that because I think that would ultimately be more transformative. Because I started to realize that there are people that are much better at sticking with one cause.

That I am. Like they just find their thing and they want to do it all the way. I'm better kind of like having a… It is a portfolio of projects. It is just mainly because I lack discipline and perseverance, and I have a lot of trouble with boredom. So, I like to move on to other things. I have that thought a couple of times, you know, like saying, what if people could... That I seem undisciplined? No. Yeah, that is fine. What I mean is...

It is funny, you picked that up really fast. It takes usually people like three hours to figure out that there is no discipline going on over here. But, I mean, like, if giving back or donating, especially if you're talking about, like, money or just giving donations, or, like, buying stuff online, if you could just have an ad, like, donate, see this cause, yes, help. Like, it'll be so much, like.

I don't know. More engagement, we could say, and making it fun. I think there's lots to be done, also, with helping people around and really showing them how to contribute in different ways. Yeah, and I think, like I said, there's a lot of tools that have been developed that we can kind of, it's just a matter of...

Kind of aggregating the right tools towards these causes, and so, and I just think that I'm a late bloomer to this, so to speak, in the storytelling side of things. This podcast, the TV show that I'm working on, other stuff is, this is all new for me. This is the last, like, two years, so, or less than that, really. But you've done an amazing job. We will see. I don't know. Otherwise, you are passionate. I mean, I only have 6 followers for my dance channel.

You sit at 5, and I am at number 6. I am hoping to get 2 more over there. You will. I also think spreading the word about faith and God, and not being afraid of telling how His word of our life is. Well, I think mixing both things is amazing, so it is really an honor to also meet someone who likes to speak about their faith and not be scared of it, because, you know, there are people like, oh, yeah, I believe in God, you know what I mean, but it is like, no, I believe in God, yay, you know what I mean?

No, and it is... In New York, if you're in the kind of like, you know, just the normal, secular, financial, artistic circles, right, I think, yeah, I mean, there's definitely like a prudence to it, but at the same time, People are fascinated, and this is what kind of gave me encouragement to do these sorts of things, was that when we were developing this TV project, and it's about this skeptic and a believer having a conversation, anytime I would just describe what we're doing.

People would just come in with tons of questions. It was like you gave them permission to ask questions about faith and God and whatever, and I started to realize, wow, there is a lot more hunger. I think I was perhaps a little bit too, I was blending in a little bit too good. I mean, I was never.

People ask me, I would tell them what I believe, but I was a little more subtle about it, or nuanced, and now I just... Hold the crucifix over them, and then, you know, I find that that's more subtle, but no, I think I needed to grow in confidence. I guess the cat is out of the bag, so to speak, now, once this podcast is out. It's good that you figure out there's also lots of curiosity out there, and people asking you questions, and I think that's great.

I'm always happy when I have people ask me things about Catholicism. I have people even come to me and say something like, oh, Catholicism is just like a set of rules. And I'm like, no, not at all. Well, we do have a lot of rules, but yeah, there's fun parts, too. That's not the way of saying it. There's the fasting. That's so much fun.

It is, I don't know, asking God to do it all. There's the adoration for hours and knees. Oh, my. I don't agree. Back to differ with everything you just said. Well, I mean, those are the fun parts. I love those parts. It is very exciting. I love, I love just long, good Fridays with no meat. Yeah, it is great. Oh, good.

No, so you are like, it is not about rules. You say it is a way of life, but what is your pitch? Why are you like, this is, you should join this cult with me. First of all, it is not a cult. Just kidding. Second of all. Fact check.

Not a cult. No, once I was asked also this question, and I said two things. First of all, it is the lifestyle, and second of all, it has made my life so much easier to having someone who loves me profoundly to always be there for me. Because there is no love like God's love, and He loves you so much, and so transcendental, or however you want to call it, that it is so much easier to go through life with someone who loves you, and who always wants the best for you, and He is hoping to guide you into loving others, and to being a good person.

So, it is just so much easier. So, that is a good pitch. I know. I can sell a whole lot. Life is easier. Alright, well, I think maybe you should have your own podcast. No, no, no. I have lots of work. I am happy to contribute to your own podcast. They don't think so. No, no. Okay. Alright, well, thank you for...

Taking a risk, and coming here, and sharing about your life, about the beautiful work of this charity, and I hope that it will continue to grow, and then next year, when I'm, I don't know if I'll be back here next year, it's in different countries, but you can still go to the Night to Shine Special Needs Prom.

Yeah, so, and we'll look forward to your own podcast and your dance channel to compete with mine. Oh, nice. Okay, perfect. We got it. All right, well, thank you. Thank you.