Click here to go to the 2019, “I Dream Beautiful” event page http://moreselfless.org/events/2019-i-dream-beautiful-christmas-celebration/
More-Self-Less, Inc. would like to thank you for the opportunity to share a little about us as well as the privilege of consideration for your involvement in the “I Dream Beautiful” Christmas Event. Your commitment to help strengthen families in our community is sincerely appreciated and much needed.
For years, a group of friends and I purchased gifts for one another and had what we called a 2nd family Christmas. We always looked forward to this and had a great time shopping for one another. Well in 2010, a friend of mine was hit with a serious of rough times, starting with major health complications from Crohn’s disease. On a downward spiral, their family was stripped of their home, jobs, vehicle – all impacting their self-worth. I deeply desired to help them and provide a Christmas they would never forget. A few of my friends discovered what I was intending and were equally inspired to help. We decided that instead of exchanging gifts among ourselves, that we would “adopt” some families and celebrate Christmas with them, and we did just that! We chose four families from our community with a total of 12 children and on Dec. 20, 2010 we all met and provided a ton of gifts as well as a family dinner. We created an environment where we were able to interact and celebrate together as one “family” and had such a amazing and fulfilling time that we could not wait to do it again! This was the official birth of the “I Dream Beautiful” Christmas celebration.
Just one year later, a total of 21 families and 78 children gathered to celebrate at the 2011 “I Dream Beautiful” Christmas and 2012 there were 187 smiling children and their families!! We haven’t looked back since! Hundreds of people united, turning dreams into a reality, supporting the event. Our event is differentiated in many ways from other organizations where you simply buy a gift and drop it off at a counter to then be distributed. The dinner and gift exchange provides a great way for families to spend time together and bond. With MSL, we build an entire event around the season. We bring families together, share messages, and engage socially with a desire to take their mind off things for an evening – simply said, we drown them in love.
Our focus is not only on gifts for the children, but more importantly on necessities to enhance quality of life for the family. The gifts received surround the desire to provide opportunities for the families to spend time together reinforcing the concept of unity. Through our Christmas celebration, we have seen many lives changed for the better. We plan all year for this one night and make Christmas about more than just gifts. We make it about compassion and showing love toward your neighbor. We share, we bond, we unite, and we grow!
At MSL, we perpetually evolve and advance our purposes including focusing on the person who is doing the deeds, rather than the recipient. Our intent is to provide HEALING through an avenue of sharing, and experiencing the blessing of fulfillment that is received through selfless acts as well as offering, much needed encouragement to others. “A man who as a physical being is always turned toward the outside, thinking that his happiness lies outside him, finally turns inward and discovers that the source is within him,” Soren Kierkegaard.
With the help of supporters, such as you, we will continue to make a positive change not only in our own lives, selfishly, but also in the lives of others.
Our community is being strengthened around us~ There are hundreds of non-profits in Michigan that write their mission statements around the recipients of good deeds. More-Self-Less focuses on the person who is doing the deeds, rather than the recipient. I started this because I wanted to heal inside my heart, the pain that I had. I knew that if I did things for others and focused on positivity, that I would heal slowly from the inside out. MSL strives to provide HEALING by sharing the blessing of self-fulfillment received through selfless acts – continuing to make a positive change not only in our own lives, selfishly, but also in the lives of others. We know that those around you will see something that they want to emulate and will take part in the continuing effort to make positive changes. MSL’s goal is to capture that feeling, bottle it & share it. I want others to feel the amazing fulfillment of helping others, of hearing the genuine thank you from someone who has been touched by this compassion. By enabling this feeling, the theory of multiplicity will enrage and embolden others to take action.
I hold close and thank God daily for how blessed I am and my opportunities to help others and those friends that helped to start this. Let us continue to expand and utilize our circle of influence for good & further unite in 2014. Thank you once again for your generous support and collaboration with us and most importantly – becoming More-Self-Less. “Thanksgiving day comes, by statute, once a year; to the honest person it comes as frequently as the heart of gratitude will allow,” Edward Sandford Martin.
Anyone can give a dollar, but MSL can heal hearts and that my friends, will bind our community forever – not just one night, or one season. Don’t stop dreaming beautiful friends, we are and will be changing our city! You are a part of history ~ May God bless each of you and surround you with His love and Favor.
Brady Schmitz – Founder