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Addie Ellis - Caring for the Least
Caring for the Least
“Who do I want me to be?” This was the question buzzing in my head while getting ready for this talk. I asked this question to my nephews and they all answered in the exact way that I would hope. They told me the things that I have always encouraged them to do: respect others, follow their dreams and passions, be the best “them” they could be. I then went to a young man that one would consider “the least of these”. His parents have some substance abuse problems, moving in and out of homelessness, he himself has some significant mental health challenges and is classified as “special ed”. I asked him, “honey, what do I want you to be?” He replied, “Auntie, I don’t know. I don’t know because you say one thing, but then when I go home my parents tell me something else, but then when I go to school I am supposed to be the special ed kid. If I watch TV I am supposed to be into drugs and probably in jail. If I listen to music, I am supposed to be promiscuous and have lots of women. I don’t know who you want me to be.” ... Read more HERE
Who is Addie Ellis?
She is co-founder of The Koci Group® a leadership and management consultancy headquartered in Sacramento. She holds a doctorate degree from Drexel University in Educational Leadership and Management. Dr. Ellis was appointed to the Human Services Coordinating Council, where she currently serves a chair, by the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors and serves on the board of directors for Families NOW and the Youth Development Network.
In her spare time Dr. Ellis is a marathoner, a cyclist, and is training for her next fitness adventure. The proud mother of her U.S. Navy son, Naseer, she lives by the quote, “it’s never too late to be what you might have been.”
Q Commons
Join 10,000 participants in 75+ cities as we gather to learn and consider how to positively impact our local communities. You will listen and interact with talks by 3 national and 3 local speakers about social issues and key ideas with an emphasis on how we as Christians can think and react to them.