Thank-you to everyone that came out to our February North Austin Influencers mixer.This month’s highlight, former Mrs Williamson County, Eleanor Cheng Butler spoke about the platform she was given to promote a cause dear to heart as founder of The Heart of Cancer. It is a non-profit organization that provides emotional, spiritual and practical support to cancer patients and families through an array of healing therapies and activities. Special thank-you to Pacific Rim Sushi & Yakitori Lounge for hosting us.
To see more pictures from the event, please visit here.
Maribel Garcia Valls, MPH, ACC, is the president and founder of Bee Happi. Maribel is an Associate Certified Coach (ACC) with the International Coach Federation (ICF) with years of experience in executive, professional, and life coaching, neuro-linguistic programming, positive psychology, journaling, and mindful meditation. In addition, Maribel has extensive experience in: culture, leadership development, team building, public health, health care, health disparities, and civil rights.
She has a Graduate Certificate in Executive Coaching from the University of Texas at Dallas and is Associate Certified Coach (ACC) by the International Coach Federation (ICF). In addition, Maribel is also in the process of completing Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) practitioner certification. Maribel is also a graduate from the Texas A & M School of Rural Public Health with a Masters of Public Health in Health Policy and Management. She also has undergraduate degrees in Health and Fitness from the University of Texas at San Antonio and Radiologic Technology from South Texas Community College. Prior to serving as the president for Bee Happi, Maribel worked in state government and the health care system for over fifteen years.
Maribel created Bee Happi after discovering that the process to become happy was simple, but not easy. After struggling through some periods of unhappiness, Maribel learned how to create states of happiness through coaching, journaling, meditation, and neuro-linguistic programming. Maribel was deeply inspired by many great influencers like Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Martin Seligman, Richard Bandler, John Grinder, Oprah Winfrey, Tony Robbins, Wayne Dyer, Eckhart Tolle, and Deepak Chopra.
The Bee Happi Coachhelps coaching clients to create happier and more positive attitudes so they can be more productive in reaching their life and career goals. Bee Happi Coaching using the principles of Positive Psychology, neuro-lingustic programming, journaling, and mindful meditation. The specific services offered include:
Journal with a Coaching Twist & Mindful Meditation Exercises: Coaching Sessions in the form of journal prompts on various topics such as: gratitude, happiness, relationships, personal leadership, time management, and so much more. These journal exercises can be purchased on the online store at www.beehappi.com.
Group Coaching Sessions: In the Bee Happi Community, we do things together. Group coaching offers a small supportive environment to brainstorm your happiness goals. Group coaching is a series of sessions on various topics. The groups are small with six to eight people that have committed to join this group for the duration of the sessions. After each session, participants will receive homework exercises to continue the learning and stay on track. There are many benefits to group coaching. It is an affordable way to receive coaching in a supportive environment with peer-to-peer learning from the group’s collective wisdom. In addition, the group serves as accountability partners to each other as they strive toward similar goals and experience similar situations. Sessions can be done live, phone, or videoconference.
Individual Coaching : Private coaching is a great option for clients wanting one on one support. The individual coaching will include a series of sessions, homework exercises, limited e-mail support, and accountability checks. This coaching program will give clients the structure and support to lead them in the right direction. Clients will finish the program with a clear, customized step-by-step blueprint for the change they want to make. Sessions can be done live, phone, or videoconference.
Bee Happi Funshops:There are many ways to learn with the Bee Happi Community! We have live funshops, webinars, and self-paced online learning. The goal is to teach participants how to use happiness strategies to flourish by working smarter not harder all aspects of life.
Restore Rundberg is about neighborhoods helping neighborhoods with the mission to improve the quality of life, health, safety, education, and well-being of individuals living and working in the Rundberg neighborhood. This community-driven initiative is a partnership between neighborhoods, the community, government, higher education, public safety, researchers, and stakeholder groups. Residents in the Rundberg corridor are leading this revitalization effort since December 2012.
The project is supported by a three year grant from the Department of Justice running until September 2016. The goal is to develop innovative crime solution and complementary social services. Rather than short-term fixes, it is important that these crime solutions are sustainable over time. Much research is under way in partnership with The University of Texas at Austin School of Social Work. For the Restore Rundberg project to be successful, it takes a community collaboration of local residents and leaders, area businesses and nonprofits, the Austin Police Department, a number of City of Austin departments, The University of Texas, and the community at large.
To be successful, this project requires a high level of participation from community members and here are ways to get involved!
Sign up for Restore Rundberg emails and meeting notifications here.
Restore Rundberg meetings and events, including monthly community meetings on the fourth Thursday of each month is an opportunity for input. Find upcoming events on the homepage of this website and on their Facebook page.
Meet your Austin Police Department District Representatives host weekly community meetings at the YMCA, 1000 W. Rundberg Lane, on Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. These meetings are a great way to meet and connect with area District Representative. The meetings generally focus on issues important to community members and stakeholders who live, work or have an interest in improving the quality of life in Restore Rundberg grant area.
The Revitalization Team Workgroups are tackling specific priority areas and related outcomes identified by the Team. The committees are staffed by volunteers who join based on their expertise and/or willingness to take a leadership or hands on-role in completing project objectives and activities. Restore Rundberg Priority Areas: 1. Revitalization of Key Properties 2. Healthcare 3. Afterschool Programs 4. Code Comp;liance 5. Homelessness Intervention 6. Housing Affordability 7. Economic and Workforce Development 8. Prostitution Prevention and Intervention. Volunteer today!
Some positions in the Restore Rundberg Revitalization Team leading the neighborhood revitalization project are up for election at Restore Rundberg January team meeting, on January 28, from 6:30pm. If you’re interested in taking a leadership position in the project, please fill the Revitalization Team membership application and send it by January 21 at 3pm.
Click here to take the Restore Rundberg survey that’s being conducted by the University of Texas at Austin. This survey seeks to understand how Rundberg community members view their surrounding area, neighbors, and police.
Susan Savkovis Communications & Marketing Manager at Easter Seals Central Texas, a local nonprofit which promotes independence and creates opportunities for children and adults with disabilities in Central Texas.
Before joiningEaster Seals Central Texas, Susan was involved in online marketing and social media for an Austin digital marketing firm which helped best-selling authors and brands like Chicken Soup for the Soul with their online strategy and branding. Susan has spent more than twenty-five years in marketing including brand development, social media strategy, and public relations to support positioning and marketing communications efforts. She also spent time in Sydney, Australia working for a national advertising agency. From volunteering as Branding Manager for Austin Pets Alive!, Susan Savkov took her love of marketing to the nonprofit sector and enjoys telling the stories of the clients of Easter Seals Central Texas.
Easter Seals Central Texas provides an array of programs to support the health and vitality of children, families and adultsliving with disabilities in our community. The organization is a locally funded and governed non-profit based in Austin and serving over 8,500 clients in 22 Central Texas counties that promotes independence and creates opportunities for people with disabilities to pursue their hopes and dreams.
The Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) program serves families with children from birth to three years of age. ECI servicesinclude, but are not limited to: family education and support; audiology and vision services; nursing and nutrition services; physical, occupational and speech-language therapies; and developmental services for children with a variety of diagnoses, such as Autism. The Comprehensive Outpatient Rehabilitation Program provides medically prescribed physical therapy, aquatic therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and audiology for children and adults ages three and up. Easter Seals Camps for both children and adults with disabilities provide inclusionary, fun and safe activities for clients, while providing affordable respite for caregivers. The Workforce Development Program provides specialized training, job placement and support to adults with barriers to employment. The Independent Living program enables adults with disabilities to live with maximum independence. The Liberation Station computer lab provides open Internet Cafe hours, as well as job readiness and computer literacy classes for High School students and adults with disabilities. The Community and Housing Services Program provides advocacy, assistive technology, financial literacy training and accessible, affordable housing for people with disabilities.
Susan Savkov has been instrumental in organizing Easter Seals Central Texas’ annual Dia de los Muertos (‘Day of the Dead’) Festival which features celebrity line-up of live music. Proceeds will benefit Easter Seals Central Texas’ mission of promoting independence and creating opportunities for people with disabilities. The festival is an exciting whirlwind of Dia de los Muertos activities including live music, cultural performances, vendors, food and drink.
CASA speaks up for children who have been abused or neglected by empowering our community to volunteer as advocates for them in the court system. When the state steps in to protect a child’s safety because the people responsible for protecting them have not, a judge appoints a trained CASA volunteer to make independent and informed recommendations and help the judge decide what’s best for the child.
The CASA programs of the Greater Austin Area (serving Travis, Williamson, Caldwell, Comal, Guadalupe & Hays Counties) have united to gather all superheroes for children for the 2015 CASA Superhero Run. This year’s fundraiser will be on Sunday, September 13th, 2015, starting at 7:00 AM, at The Domain Central Park, 11100 Alterra Pkwy, Austin, TX 78758.
For children who’ve been abused or neglected, CASA means having a home instead of feeling lost, and being a priority instead of feeling invisible. For volunteers, CASA is a life-changing experience that makes our community a better place.
CASA volunteers come from every walk of life and share a commitment to improving children’s lives, a willingness to learn, and an open mind towards life experiences different from their own. Volunteers complete an interview, background checks and intensive training. After being sworn-in by a judge, volunteers are appointed to a child or family of children and spend an average of 15-20 hours a month advocating for these children for at least a year. They get to know the child while also gathering information from the child’s family, teachers, doctors, care-givers and anyone else involved in the child’s life. Judges highly value CASA’s recommendations which help them make informed decisions in the child’s best interest.
For more information and/or to register to the upcoming event, visit: casasuperherorun.com
Harish Kotechawas born in Uganda, studied Electrical engineering in UK and settled in the U.S. when Dictator Idi Amin ousted most of the foreigners out of Uganda. He retired early from IBM where he worked in hardware development, contributing in the areas of semiconductor, system board, software and later in the area of quality improvement. He has almost two dozen US patents. Kotecha is a co-founder of an instant yogurt product, Yokit. Since retirement, Harish spends most of his time in volunteer work – he actively volunteers in religious, civic, cultural, service, and social organizations in the Austin area Indian community holding leadership or Advisory positions. Harish Kotecha has been recognized by the 2014 President’s Volunteer Service Award for addressing the most pressing needs in the community and country.
Since 2009, Harish has been helping with the resettlement of Bhutanese refugees in Austin working across resettlement agencies, temples, and other organizations that are assisting in the resettlement process. He is on the Advisory Board of Refugee Services of Texas and is on the panel of the Refugee Round Table. In recognition of his services, Harish was awarded 2009 Samaj Seva(community service) by the India Community Center.
Harish founded Hindu Charities for America (HC4A), a non-denominational charity, with the vision of Indians helping with Education of Homeless Children in the U.S.. Since 2010, HC4A successfully donated school supplies to most school districts in Austin area as a joint project with Greater Austin Area Jewish Federation. Since 2013, Jewish and Indian communities have joined hands and raised funds together with a fundraiser – Bollywood Meets Borscht Belt.
To help with income disparity in Austin area, an initiative to provide vocational training to economically disadvantaged children was launched in 2013. This resulted in 2014 awards of $20,000 in scholarships to Capital Idea, Manor ISD and ACC. This year $25,000 is slated to be awarded to ACC, Capital Idea, Manor, and Austin ISDs. Current efforts are to make HC4A a mainstream charity with involvement of all communities. Efforts are underway to establish an Executive Board, each Board member contributing annually $2,500 toward scholarships.
Recently the third annual ‘Bollywood Meets Borscht Belt’ fundraising event, organized by Hindu Charities for America and the Jewish Federation of Greater Austin, brought together the Indian and Jewish communities once again to help over a thousand homeless children with school supplies for the upcoming school year in Austin, Del Valle and Manor. The event was covered in an article in the India-West, the largest and most prestigious among weekly Indian newspapers on the West Coast of U.S. established in 1975.
Harish is married to Shobhna, has a daughter Sonia who is activist and works at CASA, and son Savan who is a very successful international songwriter to over songs 100M sold. Harish and his wife Shobhna often act as a resource to Indian residents who are newly settled in Austin. They have also helped overseas University of Texas Austin students by providing accommodations, transportation and settle in the area. Harish helps to do outreach for many organizations as well as those seeking to make connections with temples and cultural organizations.
Dr. Kazique J. Prince, founder and chief executive officer at Jelani Consulting, LLC , provides executive and leadership consultation and coaching services focused on cultural competency for individuals, teams, and organizations in business, education, government, healthcare, and for non-profit groups for more than 20 years. As a change agent who seeks the broader view in all situations, Dr. Prince draws upon resources and deep knowledge base to assist others in utilizing their own strengths and capabilities. He collaborates with clients working on managing cultural differences by trailblazing through opposition, spearheading forward-thinking, cutting-edge initiatives and programs while successfully uniting team members behind common goals.
Dr. Prince received his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology at The University of Georgia at Athens, Ed.S. in Counseling Psychology at Georgia State University, Ed.M. in Counseling Psychology at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and B.S. in Psychology from the Benjamin Banneker Honors College at Prairie View A&M University. He is a Board Certified Diplomat in African Centered/Black Psychology through The Association of Black Psychologists and certified administrator of the Intercultural Development Inventory through IDI, LLC.
Dr. Kazique J. Prince serves as Senior Policy Advisor & Education Coordinator, Office of Mayor Steve Adler. Mayor Steve Adler tapped Community Cabinet members to help the city uncover long-term solutions worthy of public support and balance urgent short-term matters against strategic long-term policy objectives. The Community Cabinet is a diverse talent pool of civic-minded thought leaders drawn from public, private, and nonprofit sectors with expertise in education, neighborhoods, health and human services, environment, business, and urban land use. In collaboration with other senior policy advisors, Dr. Prince’s primary focus has been on education; equity, diversity, and inclusion, workforce solutions, public safety, and health and human services.
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