Father Moon empowered me to be a better person

Alexa Ward
August 2013
Women's Federation conference in conjunction with the International Leadership Conference

I would like to share an experience I had with the founders. In 1999, I was appointed to a position with WFWP on the national level and had the opportunity to meet with the founders in their home in New York. I came into the meeting with the idea that this would be a good opportunity to understand their vision for WFWP, their thoughts as to how it might be developed further in the United States. Actually, the conversation went quite a different way, and focused mainly on internal qualities of leadership. At one point, Father Moon encouraged me to serve with a mother's heart and not say anything. Though I realized that that was valuable, I did not feel it was especially relevant to my responsibilities at that time, and I put that suggestion on hold.

About ten years later, after I had moved on from that position, I found myself between positions. I was reminded of that suggestion and felt that it was a good time to put it into practice. For the next couple of years I quietly served my husband and our four adult children, who were in various undergraduate and graduate programs, coming and going throughout the year. When I look back on that time now, I realize how precious it was. I came to understand the strength and the value of being able to serve others with ease. My relationship with my husband deepened and our children came to see me in a different light and came to respect me more. It became a part of who I am. When I eventually took on a new position, I brought that part of me to the new situation.

Through that simple suggestion, Father Moon empowered me to be a better person. He treated everyone as family and naturally encouraged everyone he met to be more loving and more giving, not for his sake, but for the sake of the greater good.