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“That’s not me.”

My mother-in-law’s reaction to the signs for Miss Dorothy’s Garden still makes me laugh.

When we surprised her with the idea of the book for her 99th birthday, I wasn’t sure she fully understood what I was trying to do. She met the illustrator, Robin Swaby, on Zoom. She saw the early drawings. And every time, her response was the same:

“That doesn’t look like me.”
And truthfully, she didn’t seem all that interested in the process.

But when the printed books were delivered—just after her 100th birthday party last year—everything changed.

I’ll never forget it.
She came down the stairs faster than I’ve ever seen her move, just to see the boxes.
She insisted on sitting with me as I carried each one into the house.
She picked up a copy, flipped slowly through every page.
And when she got to the end, she looked up and said:

“It’s about me.”

Yes, Mom. It is.
It’s dedicated to your century of service in San Francisco, in California, and across the nation.

But now—just one year later—we can say something even bigger:

It’s reaching the world.

What started as a book is now a global kindness movement.
Children are becoming BEE Buddies.
Ambassadors are helping them sow kindness.
And I’m inviting you to help it grow.

I just spent the most glorious 4 days at the Drake University BSO Reunion 2025 in Meet Minneapolis. I had no intention of selling books—until our fearless Chair, James Holmes, Jr., called me right before I left and said, “Bring your books.” No plan. We'll figure it out.

Late Friday night, we finally carved out a corner in the Hospitality Suite for alumni authors… and then something wild happened.

I was SWARMED. Signing books. Telling the story. Taking photos. Laughing with classmates I hadn’t seen in decades. One of them was Angela Morehead—my Gospel Choir sister from over 40 years ago.

While I was caught in the whirlwind, Angie was quietly watching…and then, like only she can, she took the mic without a mic...and finished by "dropping" it!

She filmed a FULL-on infomercial. HSN meets Holy Spirit. Vanna White with a mission. 🎤😂
I had no clue until someone told me the next day. When I watched it? I laughed ‘til I couldn’t breathe. Then I cried. Then I said…THIS is Day 1. 💛

Today marks the official launch of the 100 Champions in 100 Days Campaign for the Miss Dorothy’s Garden Legacy Project—a movement to honor my 100-year-old mother-in-law’s legacy of kindness to enlist children around the world as BEE Buddies with Miss Dorothy and her BEE helpers.

And thanks to Angie, instead of disturbing my rest and reminiscing, hers will be the perfect video to kick off our first annual fundraising campaign.

Just press play.
• Then, visit https://missdorothysgarden.com/100champions to learn more
• Ready to give? Go directly to https://givebutter.com/100champions
• Will you become 1 of the 100 by donating or raising $1001?

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