FINDING PASSION AND PURPOSE IN OUR COMMUNITY written by JULIE KOERBER photography by DANIEL SULLIVAN and FOR THE BLANK
THE IDEA IS SIMPLE. Take a white board and a dry erase
homeless man in downtown Billings wrote the word “sobriety” and talked about the challenges he has just making it through the day.
marker around town. The board reads “For the” and then below those words sits a box. Those who grab a hold of the board can write down one word or phrase, something that describes what lights THE their soul on fire. The grassroots campaign PURPOSE IS REALLY photographs the person and his or her TO CHAMPION LOCAL word. The photo and all its good vibes are ORGANIZATIONS then blasted over social media. As those THAT ARE CREATING behind the effort say, they develop a POSITIVE CHANGE AND A conversation, they listen, they cheer and MEANINGFUL IMPACT IN then they connect.
OUR COMMUNITY.
“When we started to reach out and have people tell us about themselves, it was surprising how many were willing to talk and share their stories,” says Kelsey Wagner, one of the women who is a part of the allvolunteer For the Blank grassroots campaign. “It got personal.” “We just really want people to know that their passion has a purpose,” says Leah Swalley, who helps with the operational side of For the Blank.
A teen working at a downtown boutique — Leah Swalley, For the Blank wrote the word “equality” and shared why her purpose is to bring light to everyone in life, no matter who they are. A Fed Ex driver chose The idea was sparked when a handful of people sat the word “kindness,” and spoke about how he uses the around a table at Church for the City. The group, led by simple act of smiling to make another person’s day better. A Pastor Kalen Brown, noticed a lot of good going on in town. They
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YVW MAGAZINE
