On Thursday, May 9, 2019, members of our staff and board of directors met with a group of offTheLeftEye supporters at the New York New Church in Manhattan, New York, for An Evening with offTheLeftEye. If you weren’t able to attend and hope to catch one of our regional gatherings in the future, here’s an inside look at what you can expect, as we continue to expand the program and visit new cities across the country:
The evening kicked off as Director of Development Tim Bilger welcomed everyone to the gathering and thanked our hosts at the New York New Church for offering this space. After a successful test event in San Francisco last year, these regional gatherings evolved into a new initiative on the part of the Foundation to connect with our fans and supporters and give them an opportunity to meet others in their local area. If you weren’t able to attend either of our first two, there are more events coming up: The next will be in July in Los Angeles at the historic Wayfarer’s Chapel and another will be in October in Philadelphia at World Cafe Live (more details to come).
Tim introduced Executive Director Morgan Beard, who gave a short overview of the history of the Foundation and what we do today, and then turned the stage over to Curtis Childs to talk more about offTheLeftEye.
Curtis started off talking about usefulness—the Swedenborgian concept that the function of something is its true essence. In that light, he acknowledged our talented team and the channel’s statistical accomplishments, and suggested that one of the best ways to measure our success is by considering the impact offTheLeftEye videos have on people’s lives. Curtis read through a number of powerful comments left by audience members that make clear our videos provide a service to souls in need, such as this one:
“I was on the verge of turning my back on the whole belief system of the Christianity in which I was raised when I discovered Swedenborg in the most random way. I felt the truth in his spiritual revelations about Jesus and when I returned to the Bible, it was illuminated like never before. Thank you for making all this wisdom so accessible! offTheLeftEye is a bright, warm city on a hill.”
While we were there, a few supporters were even kind enough to let us film their testimonials, which will be shared on the channel soon!
After a Q&A session where Curtis answered questions on the fly, we had a raffle where we gave away some Foundation-themed merchandise. Like the dress Morgan was seen wearing at the event?
This and many more items are available in our RedBubble shop where 15% of the proceeds help fund our programs!
Morgan led a quick icebreaker where we discovered that we had a nice mix of people from Manhattan, the area around New York, and even Philadelphia. But the couple that got the prize for coming the farthest distance was from Seattle, Washington, in town to visit family!
Along the way we got to meet some amazing fans of offTheLeftEye and hear about peoples’ spiritual journeys and what brought them to become interested in Swedenborg. We’d like to express our gratitude to everyone who came out to join us and share the evening. It was great to meet you! Be sure to sign up for our print and e-newsletters to find out about more upcoming events and support opportunities. If you enjoy our programs and want to join our mission, you can do so by making a tax-deductible donation or by becoming an annual member or planned giving partner.
