Today we’d like to introduce you to Jen Flynn.
Hi Jen, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
In 2007 I had finalized my divorce and left my financial planning job. I was looking forward to a trip I had planned the year before so in 2008, I visited Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. Vietnam was the country that I felt weirdly at home in. I loved the food, the culture, the crazy markets with fresh fruits, fish and meats, the motorbike traffic – all of it felt exhilarating and at the same time, there was a calm zen that just worked. After my 2-week visit, I decided to find a volunteer opportunity in DaNang, the central part of Vietnam where I met some incredible locals who are my good friends to this day. My volunteer commitment was to be 3 months and I was trained to help the overwhelmed staff and care takers for orphaned infants, disabled kids of all ages and well kids who were abandoned by their parents for a multitude of reasons.
After about a month of this assignment, I knew I didn’t want to leave so I created a job for myself with the non-profit and wound up living on a salary of $300 a month and I stayed in Vietnam for 2 years! I trained other volunteers from around the world who came to Vietnam to help with caretaking, teaching English, physical therapy (none of us where skilled PTs but it didn’t matter). I was fortunate to travel to remote villages, accessible only by motorbike, to provide care for sick kids. I attended meetings with government officials to create agreements for where the non profit could help small villages and I met incredible people who were committed to bettering the lives of kids.
Overall, it was one of the best experiences in my life and several of the volunteers I worked with from around the world, are still my friends. I left Vietnam in 2010, came back to California and started looking for a job. Shortly thereafter I met my current wife, Lauren Robertson. I told her about my experiences and how I wanted to stay connected to Vietnam in some way and she fully supported my vision of starting a foster home in DaNang. I knew the only person who could make this dream a reality, was Robert Kalatschan who had founded Giving It Back To Kids, about 10 years prior.
The day I called Robert to pitch our idea, Robert said this vision was meant to be. The local government in DaNang had asked Robert to open a foster home but at the time, GIBTK was maxed out on it’s financial commitments with other homes, a heart surgery program and many other projects. We told Robert if his local Vietnamese staff could run the new foster home, Lauren and I would ensure it gets funded. So, within about 3 months, we raised money with former volunteers from around the world and opened Mary’s House in January of 2012.
Ever since, Lauren and I hold fundraisers in San Diego and raise the money needed to provide food, medical care, clothing, school fees and more, to 16 girls who live full time in Mary’s House. (By the way, our next fund raiser is at Kettner Exchange on Nov. 12th.) We named the foster home after my grandmother who always inspired me to travel. Our budget has grown from $40,000 for a few kids in 2012, to about $85,000 for 16 full-time girls today,.
With the love, education, confidence classes and a focus on ‘anything you want is possible’, many of our girls have gone on to complete high school and university and then found great jobs for themselves.
Lauren and I visit Mary’s Home every year or two. We love seeing how the girls progress, become confident, learn English and have big dreams for themselves.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I knew I did not want to open my own non-profit and try to run the business in Vietnam so I partnered with Giving It Back To Kids who is a respected non-profit organization and is now over 20 years old. The staff at GIBTK is top notch and their number one goal is to provide love and resources for all the kids in the multiple programs so they can be successful in life.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I joined the Air Force out of high school when I was 17 years old because I really wanted the opportunity to travel and be trained in a career. Four years later, after learning about data management and computers, I had several jobs in the digital marketing field. My last job in this arena was the Sr. Director of Operations for Upper Deck, the trading card company that was in Carlsbad, CA.
After that job, I was a financial planner at Met Life in San Diego for a few years, then I left that job and Vietnam found it’s way into my heart.
I now am a Realtor who exclusively sells raw land as investment property in LA and Kern County that will be used for massive solar projects to meet California’s need for green energy. My wife and I have invested in 18 properties over that past 16 years that make up a good portion of our retirement portfolio.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
Because I never graduated from college, I always thought that studying what would be applicable to my life at that time, would make me more successful. Therefore, I’ve read many, many books on personal self improvement, investing and how to be a great leader or manager. Whenever I was in an airport, I’d get the latest paperback and try to improve myself in some way.
One of the biggest impacts on my life though was doing the Landmark Forum in 2004 and subsequently being a Seminar Leader for a few years. The hands on training and development from those courses was by far the biggest impact on me as a human being. I learned that I can do absolutely anything I set my mind to and if I have integrity and authenticity, I can create miracles.
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