What Are You Doing to Save America?
July 2025
As youngsters, many of us dream of changing the world. When our whole life is ahead of us, we truly believe we can do anything. Unfortunately, life has a way of flying by and some of our once-inspired dreams remain on the shelf, unrealized.
The reality is, no matter how much time has passed since we first envisioned our future miraculous accomplishments, it’s never too late to take a step in that direction. Even if it feels like you’re heading into the unknown, through prayer and with God’s help, even seemingly insignificant actions can deliver remarkable outcomes that bless lives.
Of course, nothing happens until you take that first bold step to put your ideas out there for others to ponder and embrace. As most leaders know, it’s only by proactively sharing your vision that will others become inspired enough to jump on board to help you make your dream a reality.
After my husband and I made the fateful decision to relocate from California to Florida a dozen years ago, one of the first things I did after settling in was invite about 50 of my new neighbors to an open house.
About halfway through the mix & mingle event, some attendees made it known they expected me to speak to the crowd. Not having planned to make any formal announcements, I simply explained that I had heard we were all like-minded: we all cared about our community and our country. It was my hope to prevent our new home state—and our nation—from falling into the abyss of onerous regulation and taxation that plagued California.
Our guests were wildly supportive, with bated anticipation about what we might be able to do together. Several suggested we should meet on a regular basis and invite expert guest speakers to share updates on civic affairs within our county and state.
And that is how We the People, the grassroots educational organization which I have now led for over a decade, came to be. Our aim is to strengthen traditional American values, stimulate intellectual curiosity, encourage critical thinking, foster respectful dialog on matters of civic importance, and motivate people to vote. Our group now boasts over 800 members.
For the benefit of this group, I routinely publish newsletters highlighting the civic and political goings-on within our community—important issues that aren’t otherwise covered by the mainstream media or local press.
In election years, we host candidate forums for important elected offices, from County Commissioner positions, School Board members, and Port Authority leaders, to State House Reps, State Senators, and Congressional offices. During these events, our members get to know the candidates and our elected representatives as real people and neighbors. We question them about their ideas for saving our county, state and nation, and perhaps more importantly, our elected officials get to know who WE are, as constituents.
It’s truly amazing what we can get done through our elected officials when they know our names and know that we stay informed about their actions, that we keep track of how they follow through (or don’t), and that we hold them accountable to their commitments. Essentially, we are all in it together—to save America.
According to our County Supervisor of Elections, the voting districts in which our members reside not only have the highest rate of registered voters, but they also tend to have the highest rate of voter turnout during elections. I take great pride in knowing that what we do makes a difference.
Shortly after launching We the People, the wife of our State House Rep suggested I get to know one of her friends, a thirty-something-year-old “Tiger Mom” who, before having children, served on the staff of the Leadership Institute in VA. Now as a stay-at-home mom, she didn’t want to put her precious children into the not-so-highly-rated public school system. Although she had no background whatsoever in school administration, she was intent on establishing a public classical charter school to ensure that her nearly-school aged daughter, as well as other children, would have the kind of education that she believed every child in America deserves.
Of course, it’s one thing to want the best education possible for one’s child. It’s quite another thing to start a classical charter school to “Save America.”
When I first met this thoroughly enchanting “Tiger Mom” over coffee, she quickly admitted she had no idea how to even start, let alone accomplish, such an undertaking. So, she prayed about it. She then took the big, scary step of putting her idea out there for others to ponder and hopefully embrace. Not surprisingly, her idea of creating the best free-to-attend public classical charter school in northeast Florida instantly spread like wildfire.
Many offered financial assistance. Others began recruiting the kind of caring, creative, courageous, and committed teachers and administrators who would thrive and excel in such an environment. Soon, parents across the county were eagerly enrolling their children.
In August 2020, in the middle of the COVID pandemic, no less, the Cornerstone Classical Academy miraculously opened for business in a converted church building in Jacksonville, FL, with an enrollment of 450 elementary school-aged students. Aiming to be the best-of-the-best, this public classical charter school was a raging success from its first day in operation.
The Cornerstone Classical Academy will soon begin its 6th year of operation, with classes for pre-kindergarteners through 11th graders. This year, all middle-school and high-school students will attend classes in a brand new, state-of-the-art upper-school building which will also house a big, beautiful gymnasium.
Thanks to the stellar reputation that the school garnered so quickly, a community-building company headquartered in Nassau County (where I live) called Raydient, recently extended an amazing offer to Cornerstone. If Cornerstone would agree to build a campus in their new master-planned community called WIldlight, Raydient would donate the land for Cornerstone to establish a school.
Now with plans to open a new campus in August 2027, Cornerstone Wildlight will initially accommodate pre-K through 5th grade classes. An additional grade level will be added every year thereafter until the school offers classes for all grade levels, pre-K through grade 12.
Because Cornerstone, as a 501c3 public charter school, must cover all building costs for the Wildlight campus, I recently hosted a fundraiser for them. During the event, Cornerstone’s Tiger Mom-Founder told the room of eager donors:
“When I first had the idea to start a school, it wasn’t really just about giving my daughter the best possible education. Honestly, I wanted to Save America.
“But I had no idea how to do it. So, I prayed…and our team still prays every day for guidance to Save America, one child at a time. We thank you so much for supporting us.”
Now, just imagine what you might do to Save America in your own unique way.
As our Tiger Mom has proven, you don’t need to know how you’ll do it. But through prayer, and by taking that bold first step to share your vision, others might be inspired enough to help you make your dream a reality, too.
May God bless you in your endeavors to save America.