Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Bettina Grzeskowiak. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Bettina, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
Thank you so much for providing this platform.
Let’s start many years ago as a child I have always had an internal desire to help others. As a young adult, I was struggling with health, finances and family situations. I noticed that many people around me also had their own struggles in different areas of their lives. I also noticed that there were not many organizations or individuals to turn to in times of need. I made a decision that I want to reach out to families in need.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Embrace started even before its name was defined. I founded Embrace because I felt the urge to give back to a community that ‘Embraced’ me when I first came from Germany. After seeing the challenges that people face like depression, sickness, or poverty, I began to reach out to make a difference. We decided to host some initial meetings with caring friends in the community to discuss local services ,needs and how we could make a difference.
After sharing my vision with friends, who immediately supported my vision and the project, we came up with a name and mission statement.
In the beginning, it was mostly small community events in which we connected with our community ,raised funds, provided clothing, and food for our local families who were facing hardship. We than started by making bag lunches for 50 people in May 2020 during Covid lockdown. Eventually more people volunteer their time with Embrace, we are now able to assist more families in need .
Today, we help over 2,000 people along the 192 corridor each month , in Kissimmee, Florida, and we also support other entities with ‘Back to School’ initiatives, anti-bullying initiatives, housing projects, and major food initiatives to support families in our area.
We have three different programs: The Outreach program Embrace of Celebration, The Youth and school program,
The event and fundraiser program.
We are planning to expand our outreach to double the number of families that we support in our community.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus
Working for the Walt Disney World company as part of the International Culture Program at the German pavilion in 1996 I lived in the Vista Way apartments for the one year. I lived away from home for the first time. I shared a 3-bedroom apartment with six amazing women from France, Mexico, England, Norway and Scotland. It was amazing experience. We learned to get along with people from different nationalities, religions, cultures, and backgrounds . We never fought or had any arguments. We also learned to make sure that people who crossed our path should have nice lasting memories from us and from their experience at Disney.
My own family came from different backgrounds as well so I grew up with the the viewpoint that people are the same no matter where they come from or what their beliefs. My mom is from Turkey with Greek heritage, my dad from Germany. My stepmom is from Spain and my aunt was from Israel. Their religious beliefs were just as varied: This background taught me of kindness, awareness, and to treat others equally.
Working for Disney taught me how to problem solve, work under pressure, and organization. Throughout my life, I have had a positive attitude and spread optimism to others.
Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?
My beliefs
The community of Celebration, Florida has been a huge blessing in my life as well . They have volunteered and donated to help support Embrace reach out to our families in Kissimmee, Florida.
Thank you so much . If you would like to reach out /learn more about Embrace and our work please visit us online or in person
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.embraceofcelebration.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/embraceofcelebration_youth/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/embraceofcelebration/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bettinagrzeskowiak9962
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@embrace34747
