Communication Role Models

Mark Shriver

I must admit that reading the assignment for this week for my Communicating and Collaborating graduate class there were several names that immediately went through my head as competent speakers; Louise Derman-Sparks, President Barack Obama, Dr. Eugene Garcia, Hillary Clinton and T. Berry Brazelton.  The most recent speaker to really fuel my passion for empowering children and families is the son of my hero, Eunice Kennedy Shriver. 

Those of you who have been following my blog know that Eunice Kennedy Shriver has fulfilled a role I would love to model my life after.  You can imagine my excitement when I was provided the opportunity to see that her son, Mark Shriver, was a plenary presenter at an early learning leadership conference I attended in October of 2011.  He shared a few emotional stories of growing up in the Shriver household, working with children with disabilities and how he was inspired to follow in his parent’s footsteps to advocate for social justice.  As the leader of the Save the Children’s U.S. Programs I was honored to listen to Mr. Shriver share, from his heart, his passion for ensuring every child in the world has a “safe and vibrant childhood” (www.eunicekennedyshriver.org/bios/mark-shriver).   I was an engaged listener from the very beginning of his speaking engagement; one minute I was crying and the next minute I was laughing.  His communication was honest, accurate, and truthful.  He had statistics and strong knowledge to back up his reason for encouraging the audience to continue on in our roles as advocates for children and families.  I will carry Mark Shriver’s message in my heart for many years and this will be my motivation as I strive to become a competent communicator.