A Few Servant Leaders Transforming Their Local Community and Changing the World
A memorandum to introduce, acknowledge, and express appreciation for the years of volunteer work by community-minded entrepreneurial champions everyone should know.
We may refer to House of Genius as a platform to diversify and expand community engagement with entrepreneurship, however, it is nothing if not for the thousands of people involved. House of Genius is a tribe panelists, presenters, volunteers, sponsors, advisors, directors, organizers, moderators, scribes, well wishers and supporters, both past and present, of our events in 33 cities and counting, worldwide.
Playfully we refer to the brilliant minds and beautiful spirits we get to host at our events around the world, as “The Neighborhood.”
— Co-Founder, Toma Bedolla
This year we begin a new chapter in our journey as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit, charitable organization. To open, it feels necessary to highlight a group of individuals responsible for both significant and lasting impact(s) on what House of Genius is today. Entire articles could be written about the many contributions from these wonderful people. For now, we will begin by briefly sharing our enduring and heartfelt gratitude.
Listed below are some of the finest examples of servant leaders, perfectly imperfect, and community-minded to leave the world a better place then they found it.
Roughly in the order in which they walked into our Neighborhood…
Kevin Verde, Neighbor since 2011 — Kevin launched our second House in Austin, Texas and later helped launch House of Genius in Madrid, Spain. Kevin has been a part of House of Genius in various capacities beyond City Director and Organizer, contributing time and technical expertise all along the way. Kevin has really made House of Genius a part of his life and we’re a better organization for it. Author’s Appreciation: Verde, you’ve had as much influence and impact on this organization as any founder, volunteer, or sponsor. We simply wouldn’t be celebrating over 7 years of collaborative genius without you. Austin, Texas, Madrid, Spain, and House of Genius are lucky to have you in our midsts.
Sue Heilbronner, Neighbor since 2011 — After her first Genius session ended, she marched (if you know her, you know I mean marched) right up to me and said “I want to sponsor this.” A week later House of Genius had its first ever sponsorship. Sue also launched House of Genius in Singapore, our third House, and the first international addition to the Neighborhood. Author’s Appreciation: Sue, you knew this could be something much larger than a Boulder monthly event before anyone else ever did, including me. Thank you for pushing House of Genius to think big. Thank you for all you do for the community, entrepreneurship, and everyone who dares to wander into its wild waters.
Dan Marsh, Neighbor since 2011 — Dan helped support the launch of our Singapore House, our Manhattan House in NY, and later helped launch House of Genius in Brooklyn. Dan has been a part of House of Genius in various capacities ranging from City Director to Scribe (a deprecated role; pun intended Marsh-mellow). Dan brought energy, passion, and most of all, a commitment to the values of House of Genius. A number of people on this list were introductions Dan has made over the years to the organization and to the author. Dan exemplified the courage we try to instill in every panelist and presenter to believe in the value your perspective brings to every conversation. Author’s Appreciation: Dan, looking back I believe you were the first to fully embrace and recognize the values of House of Genius, and recognized who aligned with these values at their core. The fact we have local teams now instead of just directors and moderators is entirely your fault. Thanks to you and to the perpetually largest Manhattan/Brooklyn team, members past and present.
Jacqui Dietrich, Neighbor since 2011 — Our original Denver City Director and then our first ever Global Director, Jacqui helped hone the House of Genius brand, sharpen our focus on the importance of the intimate and ongoing monthly events, and facilitated our expansion via several inaugural sessions in markets all over the world while also playing maestro in leading and organizing our annual Summits. Author’s Appreciation: Jacqui, thank you for showing us how to never compromise our brand or values as we continue to scale and grow. Personally, thank you for reflecting back to give me the confidence to pursue the vision and mission in my mind about all we might hope to achieve as an organization capable of changing the world.
Andrew Mortimer, Neighbor since 2013 — Andrew, a.k.a. Morts, or the “British Bomber” when on the ski slopes of Colorado, has given this organization, from his very first session in London to present day, the confidence to believe and invest in becoming a global network of servant leaders. Few if any other City Directors have proven more loyal, values aligned, or forward thinking as Mortimer and his team. Author’s Appreciation: Mortimer, no one exemplifies the values, commitment, and passion to see this mission through at both the local level and as a global movement for change more than you. You are the gold standard for our City Directorship anywhere in the world. The city of London is damn lucky to have you whether they know it yet or not.
Jorge Vega, Neighbor since 2013 — Jorge is hands down the most impactful panelist turned volunteer we’ve ever been blessed to meet. Having attended our inaugural event in Manhattan, in large part by chance (Jorge was working with our original venue sponsor the THINK Conservatory), Mr. Vega has evangelised and helped grow House of Genius in Brazil and soon in Europe. He’s invested considerable time, heart, and personal resources to bring the House of Genius format at nearly every stop in his life’s journey. Author’s Appreciation: Jorge, you give without hesitation, you care about every community you touch, and with a little luck, House of Genius will help more people see the world through the lens you so naturally do. You carry far more on your shoulders than we could ever expect or ask, with a smile and generous heart. You are the model for the cultural mindshift we hope to achieve globally.
Chris Chavez, Neighbor since 2013 — In the proverbial illustrated dictionary of life, if you looked up the words commitment and/or community, you would find a picture of Chris Chavez. The most humble trash talker you’ll ever meet, Chavez brings a fearlessness, focus, and accountability to House of Genius as an organization and also to our work. Chris is the primary source of confidence we have as an organization in the merit of our mission. Author’s Appreciation: Whether by choice or divine design, you represent the community champion we strive to be as an organization. Your involvement gives us a legitimate chance to change the world. Your confidence and support balanced by brotherhood and accountability have been the reasons, personally, to keep getting up when knocked down. Thank you for believing.
James Capps, Neighbor since 2014 — Capps, a.k.a. Cappuccino, more than any one person involved in House of Genius past or present, embodies the organization’s humor with perspective as we empower and require it by asking everyone to leave their credentials at the door. A sitting VP at Comcast when he attended his first session, Capps not only offered to get involved with House of Genius to serve the Denver community, he changed his life by stepping down from his VP position to do so. Capps has invested his time, talents, and personal capital to keep the lights on and help House of Genius grow. Author’s Appreciation: Capps, you have added perspective, humility, and constructive introspection to House of Genius from day one. You’ve also added compassion and humor to our thinking, our work, and our culture, making sure we’re never taking ourselves too seriously. It has been the effortless grace you’ve imparted, humble understanding, counsel, and patience for the process, alongside a remarkable reliability when it matters most that has kept Genius from stalling over the past two years. We wouldn’t be here, organizationally; personally, neither would I, if not for you.
Jonathan Beninson, Neighbor since 2014 — The Neighborhood’s original Jonathan, “Beni” brought a lifetime of entrepreneurial exploration and experience, and an emotional intelligence second to none, to our culture and our work. Much of our work with organizations like the US State Dept, Meridian International, Clinton Global, and Nexus can be traced back to Beninson’s efforts and evangelism. You will never find another human past or present who more fully embodies being the change you wish to see in the world. Author’s Appreciation: Because of your bold and unrelenting sense of personal purpose to enact change, House of Genius is recognized as one of the world’s most effective platforms to unlock the latent potential of any group, community, or industry. The potential and direction of House of Genius has been shaped by your fearless faith in the fight for a better tomorrow.
Sean Campbell, Neighbor since 2015 — Meeting by chance at a Blackstone event, Campbell “Soup” and I began theorizing and refining a theory, thinking through the necessary ingredients for a recipe to create a dynamic, diversely inclusive, innovative and artistic, actively engaged community culture by injecting some community-minded visionary thinking into the architectural and civic planning processes from the outset with a hand on the wheel throughout. A rabble-rouser at heart, Sean’s desire to serve the community aligns perfectly with our mission; he quickly recognized the potential for the DNA of House of Genius to foster a community culture valuing and empowering anyone who wants to engage. Author’s Appreciation: Sean embodies nearly every core value we hold dear as an organization. Always looking to be additive, appreciates diverse perspectives, and is one of the most natural servant leaders you will ever meet. Because of you, when we scale we will not just scale our reach, the impact of our work will happen exponentially faster giving us a real chance to realize the positive social change we’re after.
To be clear, the list above is immeasurably far from comprehensive and we will continue to update our appreciation for every director, organizer, moderator, panelist, presenter, advisor, donor, advocate, or volunteer in every city. There are far too many names to not leave several someones, somewheres, off the list.
Additional names with appreciation flowing in their general directions included in no particular order…
Community leaders from Houses all around the world, past and present:
Jake Wells, Bing Chou, Tim O’Shea, Charlotte and Michael Koenka, Heather Lefevre, William Beckler, Sertac Tasdelen, Katie O’Block, Samad Masood, Kevin Crocombe, Bernie Baskin, Viv Anand, Matt Fox, Vaskin Kissoyan, Jose Tora, Josh Anderson, Dave Hornick, Chris Soto, Whitney Kenter, Celeste O’Brien, Shireen Khan, Simla Somturk, Chase Whittemore, Jana Sanchez, Dan Richardson, Sarabeth Berk, Diana Smith, Catherine Kunst, Samantha Lee, Lindsey Blakeman, Jonathan Anderson, Alyssa Reese, Inés Velázquez, Scott Parsinen, Michael Sitarzewski, Fiona Schlachter, Sainath S, David Grad, Stephen Ellis, Lisa Solimeo, Katie Maxwell, Abbey Lamm, Jen Singh, David Safaii, Britton Griffith-Douglass, Emelie Vervecken, Deniz Naba (in loving memoriam), Robert Kwasny, Patrick Kelly, Todd Nice, Michael Dennis, Ege Buyuktaskin, Brandon Crowfeather, Eric Leftwich, Travis Hevelone, Adam D’Souza, Amanda Pratt, …<list update in progress; so many more to add>
Our wise entrepreneurial+community-minded advisors, advocates:
Michael Stack, Rehan Hasan, Dave Mayer, RJ Gallagher, Eva Yao, Jesse Lawrence, Sarah Phillips, Dan Whaley, Tom Higley, Eric Drummond, Carrie Van Heyst, Della Van Heyst, Peter Johnson (in loving memoriam), Rich Maloy, Peter Waters, Nicole Casanova, Dave Tabor, Brad Bernthal, …<list update in progress; so many more to add>
Some of our many sponsors and organizational supporters:
IBM, Colorado Startup Fund, Technical Integrity, The Sweeney Foundation, The Blakeman Family, Brian Collins, Matter Family Offices, Polsinelli, Bear Data (via Viv Anand), Laura Aboli, The Miller Family, Safenet Consulting, Hasan Legal, Meridian International, Formativ, Google, Boulder Bits, Bing, Podio, Printfection, Baumhaur Group, Approbatics, TravelSHARK,…<list is far from complete; links to be added>, and the countless local sponsors whose financial, venue, and in-kind contributions help House of Genius keep the lights on in cities all over the world.
We have been blessed to receive gifts of support to help in covering our costs over the years, however, when gaps have remained, these costs have been covered far too often by the local volunteers themselves, who already generously donating their time and talents to ensure each transformative experience House of Genius is known for. Help us to better support these volunteers and community champions in 2018 and beyond with your charitable contribution and investment into the community.
Please join our mission and donate to support our work, ensuring future events in your community, or help us open a House in a new city so people everywhere can experience the genius of collaboration. Make a secure and tax-deductible financial contribution (IRS requires min $250 to qualify for tax deduction)to House of Genius via PayPal.
