We remember the Pulse 49
Updated: Jun 20
"Love is a fruit in season at all times, and within reach of every hand." - Mother Teresa
Seven years ago, 49 angels left our earth because of hate and (at the time) the most violent mass shooting in modern American history. Michael Sgro, CPBC, was in his last year of working in higher education and immediately reached out to his constituent students, alumni and families in Orlando. Michael had work to do in the crisis and was at the same time feeling very vulnerable, as a gay man.
"I wanted it to be a nightmare that I was going to wake up from. We had a targeted mass murder of LGBT and people of color and felt scared." Michael recalls. "I had to come to terms that I could not live in fear but had to honor the lives of these angels."
Our company's mission is to develop empathy as a core competency as a direct result of this tragedy. Michael believes that when we have empathy that we couldn't commit extraordinary acts of violence or hurt towards others. "Empathy is about seeing someone, feeling someone and helping someone. When we are connected, we can do anything together." Michael concludes.
The onePULSE Foundation was established to create a sanctuary of hope around this tragic day in American history which honors the 49 lives that were taken, the 68 injured victims, the affected survivors and the first responders and healthcare professionals who cared for the victims.
Congress passed legislation, during Pride Month 2021, to make the Pulse nightclub a National Memorial and Museum. Love more.