When Katie and I started Wyth, we had thousands of choices to make. How did we want to show up as a company? What values were important to us?
One of our earliest discussions about how we wanted to show up as a company was our commitment to building community. We believe that too many caregivers are facing the hardest job they’ll ever have alone.
For families navigating complex care, the death of a family member, and uncertain futures, too many people believe that they are alone on the journey- that no one has ever faced circumstances quite like they have, and the support structures just aren’t there to hold them when they need it most.
I know this intimately. In the earliest years after Henry’s diagnosis, I didn’t have anyone who quite knew the challenges that we were facing as a family. No one could relate to the nuances involved with raising a child who can’t speak, or the pressure I felt getting him the help he needed. No one relating to what you are experiencing can fuel a profound feeling of isolation during an already incredibly stressful time.
But I also believe that the hardest things we endure can teach us lessons we never would have learned otherwise, and fuel incredible growth. It took me years to get here, but I know now that our experience can be used to help other caregivers navigating challenging times.
In sharing our story with others, we realized that there are so many organizations whose origin stories are rooted in personal challenges, loss, and even tragedy.
We started Founded Wyth Heart to tell those stories, and inspire compassion and community for those facing their own challenges, and for the people supporting people through loss and hardship.
We believe that people are ready to support others going through a hard time, but sometimes just don’t know how. Each episode of Founded Wyth Heart will feature one person’s story; the challenge they experienced and what they built out of it. We’ll also dive into what support they received when they were going through their hardest time, but also what they didn’t get, that they could have used.
In talking about the hardest stuff, we hope to inspire people to find new ways to support people during their challenging times, and encourage those in their darkest moments that there is something better on the other side of their pain.
This is the work of our lives.
We are so excited to share these stories with you.
