Article: Embracing the Island Spirit, EAT. PRAY. MAUI.
Jacques Thurman with Steven Tyler of "Aerosmith" fame
When I first met Jacques Thurman a couple of months ago, I was immediately impressed by his vision. He’s extremely optimistic, inspiring and, at the same time, quite humble. He needed my help in creating a video that would showcase the spirit of his company EAT. PRAY. MAUI. I quickly found that, far from selling an empty logo on t-shirts and hats like many other companies, Jacques wants to help change the world one small step at a time.
Entering into a conversation with Jacques is akin to speaking to a woman who’s just given birth to a healthy child. He adores what he does, he loves to meet new people, and can’t wait for the next opportunity to inspire or be inspired.
A recent Facebook by Jacques pretty well sums up the vision:
“New year, fresh new month (almost over but still, the first month of the year) so consider this a fresh start, a blank slate. What do you want to make of it? If there is something that you’ve been thinking of for a while, it’s time to take that idea out of your head and put it into action. When you're yearning to do something there’s a reason for that.
Every single one of us has a purpose. This purpose can evolve with time just as we do but the important thing is to listen to what is calling us. It might be something creative, something big or small.
It might be something that scares you to death (that’s usually the strongest sign that it’s your purpose). Don’t let your mind convince you it’s too risky or it doesn’t really matter. Don’t listen to it when it tells you it’s been done before or who are YOU to do this?
Listen to your heart instead. Find that desire to explore and don’t take yourself too seriously. Allow yourself to try and fall and then get right back up again.”
- Jacques
Jacques with Jade Roper and Tanner Tolbert from "The Bachelor"
At EAT.PRAY.MAUI. there’s a tangible philosophy (see below), a sound form of philanthropy (see below), and a related non-profit that has a beauty that warms the heart. The non-profit, “Janie’s Fund” created by Steven Tyler (of Aerosmith fame), “is a philanthropic initiative in partnership with Youth Villages to bring hope and healing to girls who have suffered the trauma of abuse and neglect.”
The Philosophy:
"EAT.PRAY.MAUI. reminds us to embrace the island spirit wherever we are. They aim to inspire you to create balance in your life and to get into a rejuvenating mindset, even when you cannot escape the expectations and responsibilities of an urban lifestyle. "Dip into our Lifestyle, where the hustle fades away… sometimes we have to stop to let it happen."
More on Philanthropy (from their website):
We believe that our valuable clients are investors in our mission to alleviate poverty and provide opportunities to people. We’re helping people to thrive and giving them a fighting chance for a good life. With the help of our clients we have been able to offer loans to promising entrepreneurs around the world. We believe that everyone should be given the opportunity to build something for themselves. The same philosophy in our humanitarian mission. We all hear about multi-million startups, however a large part of the world's population is unable to even put decent food on the table, simply because they lack basic capital, we feel the pain and struggle of these resilient men and women, and we have committed ourselves to them.
For more info, see their website at: eatpraymaui.com
