Image Source: Karen Pritzker [image] Retrieved September 30, 2015 From, http://www.renwomen.com/women-we-are-featuring.html
Mission Statement: The mission of The MY HERO Project is to use media, art and technology to celebrate the best of humanity.
Learning about heroes from all walks of life helps young people understand their own potential to affect positive change in the world. MY HERO provides millions of people of all ages with stories of hope and inspiration. (Meyers, J., Pritzker, K., & Milch, R., 2014)
Venture: The My Hero Project, a non-profit organization, and website was launched in 1995 to create a space in the media where people of all ages could share and discover stories about those making a positive difference in the world. The goal was to provide children with access to information about real life heroes who had overcome obstacles, faced great and small challenges and succeeded. In 2015 My Hero is working towards being the world’s largest online, interactive media library of hero stories, art and films. The project website provides digital storytelling tools and a rich multimedia library supported by a global learning community of media professionals, artists as well as teachers and students. The My Hero Teacher’s Room provides an abundance of lesson plans, resources, stories and community support to guide students towards celebrating heroes and heroism. (Meyers, J., Pritzker, K., & Milch, R., 2014)
Bio: Karen Pritzker, wealthy investor and philanthropist along with TV producer, Jeanne Meyers and documentary film maker Rita Stern founded My Hero project in 1995. Karen Pritzker’s background includes being a freelance writer and editor of various magazines, and later an executive producer for a documentary about Dyslexia which focuses on her daughter. Her philanthropy includes large donations to universities, educational foundations and medical/science foundations. (Wikipedia, 2015) Pritzker’s role in her philanthropy goes far beyond writing a cheque. She has founded, co-founded and served as president of several educational organizations and foundations. Her personal goals through these foundations are to advocate for literacy and education for all children as well as to provide the resources and services to assist teachers and students. (Seedlings Foundation, My Hero Project, Teach for America) (2010 Founder’s Award, 2010)
Team: As a co-founder of My Hero, Karen Pritzker is joined with two successful media producers, Rita Stern and Jeanne Meyers. These three women bring a strong background in multimedia productions, building foundations, businesses and ventures both for-profit and non-profit. These founders are joined by a strong Board of Directors, with their combined connections and passions for what they do along with the generous financial backing of Karen Pritzker enabled the My Hero Project to be launched successfully, now 20 years later My Hero is a global success.
Opinion: Karen Pritzker was born a billionaire, she is a member of one of the wealthiest families in the United States. I imagine she would have the financial support and backing to fund any project she wanted to, the fact that she chose to start a foundation that supports finding the best in people and celebrating real heroism rather than the heroes in the media, such as actors or athletes who are paid for the “contributions” to society, speaks to her personal integrity. She has had the opportunity to use her wealth to give millions of dollars to help fund her passion projects, which includes literacy and educational pursuits. I would support this non-profit organization based on the quality of the resources and the concept of celebrating real, everyday heroes. I am inspired by the My Hero mission and plan to use this website and several of the lessons in my program. I am interested in finding ways to improve literacy and access to technology for all students.
2010 Founder’s Award: Capt. Dave Truitt and Karen Pritzker. (2010, October 22). Retrieved October 1, 2015, from https://www.pritzkermilitary.org/whats_on/video-rucksack/dave-truitt-and-karen-pritzker-2010-founders-aw/
Karen Pritzker. (2015, September 19). Retrieved October 1, 2015, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_Pritzker
Meyers, J., Pritzker, K., & Milch, R. (2014). The MY HERO Project: Mission Statement. Retrieved September 30, 2015, from http://myhero.com/about/02-founders.asp
