Bringing you closer to the Central Florida community!

An Epic Story of Change

Each week in The Community Guide we let you know about local organizations that pay it forward in our neighborhoods, but with the rise of the Internet and technology the truth is the World is becoming one large community. Epic Change is a Florida based organization that is making their mission the global community.
Epic Change helps people in need share their "epic" true stories in innovative, creative and profitable ways. This allows them to acquire the financial resources they need to create positive "change" in their communities. They offer these change makers interest free loans that are used to establish and sustain their efforts to make a difference in their communities. By developing profitable ways to share these stories, the recipients are able to repay the loan which can then be paid forward to help another group.
Stacey Monk was inspired to start Epic Change as a result of a volunteer trip to Tanzania she took in the early part of 2007. It was then that she realized the power of these local stories and the potential to raise funds to support impoverished communities across the globe.

Currently Epic Change is helping a local Tanzanian woman rebuild and expand a primary school near Arusha that serves 200 children. For this project, Epic Change has made $35,000 in loans, which has been used to purchase nearly an acre of land and construct 4 brand new classrooms in less than a hundred days after the loan was disbursed. Through a partnership with Sun Strides, solar power has also now been installed at the school. Additionally, nearly 10% of that loan has already been repaid through the sales of products like postcards and greeting cards as well as fundraiser auctions & performances held by the school.
The Epic Change model is very different from a lot of organizations because they provide interest free loans and a plan for future success versus simply giving a one time charitable gift. A parent of one of the children at their first project site once said, “If you tell a man he is weak, he will be weak; if you tell a man he is poor, he will be poor”. This illustrates the reasoning behind the Epic Change model: We treat our partners not as recipients of charity but rather as leaders who possess the strength and resources (i.e., their stories) to improve their own communities - and even to improve other communities in need elsewhere on the globe.
The Central Florida community should get involved to make a difference in the lives of some incredible children like Gideon and Glory. Since repaid loans are paid forward to other recipients, your donations and support will have a snowball effect. To get involved in Epic Change’s efforts, you can make a donation, subscribe to Epic Change’s blog, join their online communities on Facebook & MySpace and sign up to get email updates. Perhaps most importantly, the community can get involved by purchasing Epic Change products which will be launched this holiday season, including holiday cards and gift items, beginning mid-November.
In thinking about stories that have had the ability to inspire millions, I am reminded of Anne Frank who said “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world”. There are millions of stories out there that can inspire a million lives and I urge you to check out Epic Change to see how they may be able to inspire you.