"Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes . . . the ones who see things differently. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things . . . they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are the ones who do." ~ Steve Jobs Who are the "crazy ones" around you that are changing the world?

Interesting question although a little daunting. I think I may tweak it a little bit: Who is attempting to change the world, or even who has the potential to change the world?

I think my youngest daughter Julie fits into the latter category. She’s always been the quirky child who marches just slightly off-kilter to the beat. Her friends are a group of eclectic but lovable misfits and  creative souls—artists and musicians among them. She was the child who could be counted on to befriend  the left-out classmate. A vegetarian due to animal rights issues, she has rescued abandoned and abused animals, including a dog, a bunny, and two goats. Yes, goats—she kept them until her college landlord (who probably figures he’s seen it all now) banished them from the premises, after which she found a new home for them on a farm. She explores new and different ideas and cultures by reading books and taking classes in a wide variety of subjects—Marxism, atheism, Buddhism among them. All her clothes are recycled items from the Goodwill or Salvation Army ("except underwear" she says—thankfully), and she’s undoubtedly fed a large number of Atlanta’s homeless with her groceries. I think she can potentially do anything she sets her mind on doing, and persuade others to join her along the way.

My friend Teresa is the queen of green. Her motto is recycle, reduce, reuse. She’s on a personal crusade to replace the purchase of water in plastic bottles with Nalgene bottles and Brita filters. She’s building an environmentally friendly cabin complete with a composting toilet, and she bought a hybrid car to save on gasoline consumption. Like Julie, she buys clothes in consignment or thrift shops. Her expendable cash goes toward causes such as the Buffalo Field Campaign in Montana to stop the slaughter of wild bison.  And her spare time is spent working with groups to maintain trails and build foot bridges. If it has to do with the environment, Teresa is there—donating, building, helping.

The third person who comes to mind is my friend George. In 1999, George was diagnosed with ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. At the time, he had a long list of professional achievements under his belt in the arena of telecommunications, but after his diagnosis, his greatest goal was to raise awareness for all disabilities. For 7 years he struggled with his disease, refusing to retire or slow down. With his infectious personality, he had many friends and supporters. George succumbed to ALS in 2006 at the age of 50, but he established the George Vinall Foundation before he died. The Foundation successfully sponsors a walk every year in Washington D.C., along with an annual golf outing/reception, with proceeds going toward raising awareness and finding a cure for ALS. George’s self-written epitaph reads, “Armed with little more than a rickety wheelchair and a big mouth, he tirelessly lobbied on the Hill… but failed in his crusade to fix the handicapped door on the eighth floor of the FCC, which remains broken to this day.” George left a lasting legacy. And I’ll bet that broken handicapped door has been fixed now.