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We have spent eighty-eight episodes of the Bella Buzz podcast discussing the impact of technology on our world. We have spent time analyzing the impact of social media on business, communications and personal connections, but not once have we discussed the impact of social media on survival … until today.
Desiree and Joe are please to introduce the listening audience to Rev MacInnes. Rev’s story is well documented in the article that he wrote for Huntington Post called Starbucks Changed My Life: An Open Letter to Howard Schultz. Rev reached out to Desiree after discovering her mutual Chicago connection and realized that she might be able to help him spread the word about his efforts to help others who are in a homeless situation.
It is a testament to social media that we can learn about Rev’s life story and for Rev to have the chance to communicate with luminaries from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation or celebrities such as Mila Jovovich.
With the help of Maegan Carberry, the story of Rev’s relationship to Starbucks was made public. The gist of the story revolves around a period in his life when Rev needed to determine a place to stay warm between 7:00 am, when the shelter closed, and 9:00 am, when the library opened. Most of the time Rev would visit the local Starbucks, spend some money from the gift card that he possessed, and use the wifi to work and access social sites. As the funds on the card diminished and his concern grew about what to do, Rev turned to his Twitter followers to ask for advice. Not only did the group come through with advice, they offered to put some funds on the card so that he could continue to use the Starbucks as his “third place.”
Rev is building upon this concept and has incorporated the help of some interns to produce a grant for a research study that focuses on how “small things do great things.” A business outcome could be for a fund that would be directed towards helping a local individual in need.
Another entity that Rev introduces us to is Gifted Dreamers and Kristine Socall, who has tapped into Rev’s passion.
If you want to get directly involved in the work that Rev is doing, you can visit Change.org where he has set up a petition “calling on Howard Shultz, CEO of Starbucks, to partner with local community organizations and the global Twitter community to make Starbucks an even better place for those in the homeless community who depend upon it.”
You can find more of what is happening at Rev’s blog I’m From Nothing. BTW, Rev is currently living in an apartment that is paid for via a program through H.U.D.
We thank him for his time today and for making an impact on others.
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Theme music for The Bella Buzz is Fallen by Digital Chemistry, available for download at the Podsafe Music Network.
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