“Heart work.” This is a phrase David James Duncan used during a keynote address to the third annual Krista Foundation conference in Davis Lake, Washington in 2003.

Anyone who has lost a child knows that the only way to get out of bed each morning is to find your ‘heart work’ and continue to do that in the name of your child. That is exactly what Drs. Linda and Jim Hunt did when they founded the Krista Foundation for Global Citizenship in memory of their married daughter, Krista Hunt Ausland, who was killed in a bus accident in 1998 while volunteering with her husband, Aaron with indigenous families in Bolivia.

The Krista Foundation supports and encourages other young adults engaged in a similar sustained period of voluntary or vocational service in America’s inner cities, developing nations, or environmental stewardship as an expression of their faith and values. Nominated by university and civic leaders, each “Krista Colleague” plans on serving with an established organization, such as Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Jesuit Volunteers, Presbyterian Young Adult Mission, or World Concern.

Each year, eighteen colleagues become part of a mentoring community and receive a $1,000 Service and Leadership Development Grant to use to explore vocational interests. In return, each Krista Colleague commits to helping mentor future Krista Colleagues through involvement at planned conferences, debriefing retreats, and writing for the Global Citizen Journal.

Krista’s mother, Linda Hunt, explains that, “because of Inland Northwest Community Foundation, we were able to start our own foundation right away before our own 501©3 status was established. INWCF provided the opportunity as a means for people to begin donating immediately so we could secure an endowment to endure beyond Jim and I.” In 10 years, the Krista Foundation endowment has grown to nearly $400,000 thanks in part to a generous gift from the estate of Krista’s grandmother, Evelyn Christensen.

This belief is also at the heart of INWCF. We are honored that the Hunts chose their community foundation to begin growing the endowment, and as the Krista Foundation continues to grow, we celebrate the hard work and dedication of these young people.

For more information about the Krista Foundation for Global Citizenship, please visit their website at http://www.kristafoundation.org