I’m UPTOGOOD Because I’m Stubborn
Life can be tough, but doing the GOOD I wish to see in the world has been worth the fight.
By Lucas Rosa, UPTOGOOD Ambassador
During my freshman year of college I was asked in one of my philosophy classes to write a 15 page essay on the meaning of life, and what initially seemed like a daunting assignment became an opportunity for me to dig deeper into my personal definition of life’s importance and how I may go about living it.
My answer came from a culmination of my life’s darkest events. When I was 8, I lost my older brother Vin to drug overdose, and when I was 9 my older brother Dom also died due to drug overdose. After their cremation, their ashes were cast out to the Atlantic Ocean. One of the things it did was encourage my father, Chucky Rosa, to jump into the frigid New England Atlantic ocean everyday (even in the winter).
It was his way of staying close to his lost sons and as a means to raise awareness on what would become an influential charity called Chuckys Fight.
Chuckys Fight was founded by my father in hopes to prevent teen substance abuse. My father does good in his own personal way by doing presentations at schools, working with at-risk youth, getting substance abusers into treatment, and of course having others join him on his daily plunge to raise funds. The testimonials he gets are amazing to see. I read dozens of handwritten letters every year directly claiming that my dad is the only reason they are still alive, the only person who was able to help guide them to sobriety, or the only reason their family is not destroyed by the tumult of addiction.
The way I have done GOOD is by being on the board of directors for Chuckys Fight and helping the charity to the best of my abilities. Some days this means helping through hours of community service with youth; other days it means rushing people around to treatment centers. But mostly it is about showing kids how important prevention and drug abuse awareness is.
One other thing my brothers’ deaths did was teach me that tragedy does not have to define a person.
Although it has affected me in many ways, I believe that it is our choices that define us, especially our choices about how we react to the good and bad that life throws at us. What I cherish so much about life, is that even though we are not masters of causality, we can still choose how we react to the events that occur. We can still engage with the struggles life may give us and truly flourish rather than just exist, even when it feels like there is no reason to keep on.
So for that 15-page essay, the answer to ‘what brings meaning to life,’ was simple enough: To bring out the best in ourselves and others, and to use our greatest asset as humans, that asset being freewill. This is why I am an ambassador for UPTOGOOD.
I believe that doing GOOD is a choice exercised by a conscious effort to bring out the very best in ourselves and others. Once I saw the immense potential that UPTOGOOD had as a platform to elevate social impact campaigns, I simply had to be an ambassador. Doing GOOD is not always easy either. For some, it is not even the path they are naturally inclined to take. But we must bring out the best aspects of ourselves and others and bring a natural fecundity to life. When I make a video campaign on UPTOGOOD, I feel like I’m contributing to that fecundity, that creation of good.
The only challenge I have had in catalyzing UPTOGOOD campaigns is selecting ones that don’t get caught up in a perpetually polarizing debate that does more harm than good. However, I realize that I have to acknowledge something internal about shying away from meaningful change. Sometimes the most productive acts of change come from empowering the strongest assets of both sides of a debate; and sometimes the true strength comes from one historically silenced voice. As I continue to exercise my role as Ambassador, I strive to engage in these debates in a more philosophical way, in hopes of making a positive impact.
Doing GOOD is not something to shy away from, not only because it is better for the world, but also because it takes a lot of bravery to put oneself out there and pour their heart into making a difference. I’ve seen it with my Dad, and I see it every day with UPTOGOOD campaigns that succeed in making a difference.
To me, this is the best way to engage with the world. It’s what keeps one from simply existing.
Tragedy — like the loss of a sibling — has a way of making people withdraw and exist rather than live. For me, doing GOOD makes me feel truly connected to others. It is my way of fighting back against poor circumstances and not letting tragedy ruin the part of me that holds my good nature.
I’m UPTOGOOD because I’m stubborn and want more than anything to fight for causes that make this world a better place. I’ll be the first to acknowledge that being stubborn can be its own hindrance, one that can kill you as it killed my brothers. It can lead one to be ignorant to the advice of others, uncontrollable, and ultimately shortsighted. But being stubborn can also be an immense asset when focused on the right things. Ultimately, being stubborn is a form of having an unshakable will to do what one believes in.
I would encourage everyone who lets their stubborn attitude control them to instead begin transforming it into a positive act. At UPTOGOOD, we help people with inspiring ideas create multi-faceted social impact campaigns that suit their needs. We want make your next fight for GOOD a viral and successful campaign. After creating a profile on UPTOGOOD, you can follow me on my journey with Chuckys Fight and other incredible initiatives to see for yourself what GOOD you can make possible for the world.
HERE ARE YOUR CALLS TO ACTION!
Does being UPTOGOOD resonate? Here are some things you can do to become part of our community!
- WATCHit: Please watch the short film about Chuckys Fight and drug prevention in America. It is called “Chuckys Fight: One Family’s Quest to Prevent Substance Abuse” and can be watched on UPTOGOOD.org/chuckysfight or by clicking below. If it compels you in any way, please donate whatever you can, share the video, engage in the video’s actions and promote it.
- SHAREit: Tell the world about how Chuckys Fight, the short video campaign “Chuckys Fight” or even this blog post, have helped you. Use the hashtag #KnockoutSubstanceAbuse or #ChuckysFight.
- PROMISEit: Use the PROMISEit application on the video campaign “Chuckys Fight” to pledge to stay clean and sober. Second, you can also pledge to take a dive with Chucky Rosa after fundraising, or even use the FUNDit application to pledge donations.
About the Writer: Lucas Rosa is an ambassador for UPTOGOOD, a video based fundraising and social action platform for social impact projects. As an ambassador, Lucas curates his favorite inspirational videos and develops impact campaigns that make the world a better place. Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in his blog post and his work is his own and do not necessarily represent the views of UPTOGOOD.
