My first year in Douglas I attended the Arizona School Board Association conference. The keynote speaker was Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch. She was the MOST amazing speaker I have ever heard and I did something I have never done before, I waited to talk to her after the keynote. I told her about Douglas and asked her if she would come and talk to our faculty and staff.
Consuelo did our opening of the school year the following August. She also came and talked to our high school kids. I have never seen anything like it before. She had 1200 students in our gym in the palm of her hand for two hours! I could go on and on about what an incredible human being she is and what she has done for the betterment of our society! She truly embodies what servant leadership is all about!
She started a program called The Family Leadership Institute. We were able to bring this to Douglas four years ago. I believe in this program more than I have ever believed in a program in my entire career! I absolutely feel that given five to seven years, FLI can have an impact on the entire community of Douglas. It is powerful!
There have been so many success stories from parents who have gone through this program. It empowers them to become leaders in their homes and in their communities. One Board meeting, we had a local mental health professional get up and tell the Board that she could tell the difference between the kids she saw whose parents went through FLI and those that hadn't. She even told of two instances where a child was taken off of meds because the parents learned to parent differently.
We have an incredibly dedicated group of parents who absolutely believe in this program and have become facilitators. I have the utmost respect for them and they have become good friends. I hope that FLI continues in Douglas because of what I absolutely believe it will do for the children and the whole community!
Consuelo is my shero and I am proud to call her a friend!!!
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