TOP TALK
Posted By Tier One on June 15, 2018
Marian Hughes
Co-Founder, Managing Partner
Marian’s creativity goes beyond producing PR content…
She loves to practice her personal creativity in the garden. Her love for gardening inspired her and her husband to get married at the Missouri Botanical Garden, one of her very favorite places. To this day, she enjoys visiting botanical gardens with her family wherever they travel. Marian even got involved in launching an organic vegetable, sensory, and butterfly garden at her kids’ elementary school, which is still going strong. She says, “It gave me great joy to teach kids about growing fresh, healthy foods.”
Lessons from family dinners and family days...
The fifth of seven children, Marian remembers her house in St. Louis, Missouri, always being full, lively and busy with everyone juggling school, jobs, and extracurricular activities. Despite a hectic school and work week, her parents insisted on nightly family dinners. Sundays were also designated as “family day” and typically consisted of a small adventure like going to a museum or a play to exploring a park or an interesting neighborhood or festival. She fondly remembers her parents inviting friends and work colleagues to join them for family dinners over the years and fostering the family’s love of sharing ideas, listening to different perspectives and exploring new things.
Since junior high, Marian has supported...
The American Youth Foundation (AYF), a nonprofit youth development organization. Through its programs, AYF inspires youth to discover their own best self, the richness of living a balanced life and the power of creating inclusive, caring communities. Each year, the AYF gathers thousands of kids from around the world to attend its community and school programs, summer camps, and leadership conferences at Camp Merrowvista in New Hampshire and Camp Miniwanca in Michigan. A scholarship enabled Marian and two sisters to first attend the AYF's Camp Miniwanca during 8th grade and early high school. Since then, she has witnessed the impact AYF has had on the lives of her own family and friends. She says, “It was a life changing experience that helped nurture my self-confidence, leadership and community-building skills.”
AYF’s motto, “My own self, at my very best, all the time,” is the framework for discovery and growth within its programs. Activities are intentionally designed to allow participants to put their best selves into action, challenging them to unlock their highest potential and realize they have unique gifts that can positively affect the world and make a difference in big and small ways each day.
Marian admires and supports the American Youth Foundation because...
Its program focuses on helping youth develop character in an increasingly complicated and pressure-packed world. Through the AYF’s timeless dare to “Aspire Nobly, Adventure Daringly, Serve Humbly,” participants in AYF programs are taught to act in ways that are consistent with their values and develop their capacity to make a difference in the world.
In support of AYF’s mission...
Tier One will be making a donation to AYF’s scholarship fund, which helps children who otherwise would not be able to participate in the organization’s community and school programs, summer camps, leadership conference and other activities.
You can learn more about AYF and its program at…
The AYF website or by checking out this video about Camp Miniwanca.
