The Finish Line Podcast Cherise Vermeulen, Executive Director of Generous Generations, on Seeding Generosity in Children and Youth (Ep. 118)
Cherise Vermeulen, Executive Director of Generous Generations, had several childhood experiences that radically impacted her faith and her understanding of generosity. At the age of six, she woke from a coma following a severe car accident, where she felt the healing touch of prayer. This life-altering event left her with visible scars, but it also prompted her to explore her identity in Christ and discover her intrinsic value. Later, as the recipient of an incredibly generous gift, Cherise came to recognize the immense impact of generosity in changing the course of someone’s life.
Through these experiences and Cherise’s background in children’s educational television, God laid the foundations for Generous Generations, which now provides generosity programming, videos, and content for children and youth across 26 different countries. By collaborating with localized ministries and training local leaders, Generous Generations has reached millions of children with the message of generosity in a culturally contextualized way.
Major Topics Include:
- The amazing story of how Generous Generations was born
- Different strategies for teaching children to young adults about generosity
- Collaboration as a central strategy for sharing the program
- How Generous Generations is affecting families and communities
- The challenge of contextualizing stories and examples to share generosity concepts with different cultures
- Tips for families to incorporate generosity into the daily lives of their children
- “Even in times of need, it’s not about what you can get, it’s about what you can give.”
- “I used to think you had to have a lot in order to give.”
- “Let’s decide how much we want to give and let God work out the details.”
- “Generosity is transformational. Why do we wait until we’re grownups before we learn about these beautiful values?”
- “Children learn quickly because they’re not afraid to fail.”
- “Teenagers need to feel like they have a voice and a role to play in deciding how to give.”
- “We want children under the age of twelve to begin to understand that generosity is an adventure.”
- “With the great wealth transfer being underway, we have the opportunity to speak to children and youth now to instill these biblical values of generosity and stewardship into their lives so that by the time they reach adulthood, they will be able to make huge decisions about how money is spent.”
- “When a child discovers the joy of giving, it’s not a duty to them or something that they have to do, it’s something they get to do. And the joy is contagious!”
- “Generosity is a new way to spread the gospel because it’s a universal language. It’s a concept that’s understood across cultures.”
- Generous Generations
- Journey to Generosity (JoG) with Generous Giving (see our interviews with cofounder, Todd Harper and CEO, April Chapman)
- Scripture Union
- Global Children’s Forum
- The Finish Line Community Facebook Group
- The Finish Line Community LinkedIn Group
Philippians 4:8 | Think on These Things
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
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