A Hunter College alum who started a Philadelphia nonprofit promoting teen social activism is making a documentary to inspire changemakers of all ages and backgrounds.
Barbara Greenspan Shaiman ’67, a Hunter Hall of Fame inductee, started the nonprofit Champions of Caring in 1995. The group has worked with 10,000 students in the greater Philadelphia area who have given a million hours of service locally, nationally, and globally. She also started a pilot in Cape Town, South Africa.
Shaiman, the daughter of Holocaust survivors, is working with Emmy-winning documentarian Henry Nevison on “The Coral Ring Legacy.” The film describes the long-term effect service had on the teens’ lives and how her drive to better the drive to better the world arose from her family’s Holocaust history.
“I wanted young people to understand why it's critical to stand up, to speak out to raise your voice against hatred and violence in society,” Shaiman says in the film’s trailer. “The impetus for my starting Champions of Caring was to honor my parents and the many Holocaust survivors and those who perished. We must teach our children to love. The documentary will show the power of the individual and collective possibility to create extraordinary change.”
Hunter and its motto of caring for the future also inspired her.
“Growing up I never dreamed that I would be fortunate enough to go to college,” Shaiman said. “I am very grateful to Hunter for accepting me and giving me the skills, knowledge and confidence to actualize my vision for becoming a social entrepreneur and creating a kinder world.”
Born in Regensburg, Germany, Shaiman came to America when she was three years old in 1951. Her mother, Carola, was the sole survivor of a family of 65 members, while her father, Henry, was fortunate to work for industrialist Oskar Schindler.
The coral ring of the film’s title refers to a family heirloom from Europe that was hidden during the Holocaust and retrieved after the war. This became her mother’s engagement ring. On Shaiman’s 50th birthday, her mother gave her the ring, requesting her to make the world a better place. This ring inspired the creation of Champions of Caring.
“I wanted to create a tool to empower young people to create social change, because I know in my heart that if you give young people the skill sets to help them to create social change, miracles can happen,” she said.
Many of the original students who participated in Champions of Caring in the 1990s are now in their 30s and 40s, and the social activism they learned changed their lives. They still perform community service and teach those values to their children.
The goal of the documentary is to create a global movement inspiring people of all ages and backgrounds to become changemakers. An empowerment tool kit is available on the Champions of Caring website.
“It didn’t matter what race, religion, ethnicity, socio-economic background before [Champions of Caring], you were going to be embraced, you were going to be welcomed, with that same kindness we were giving to the people and children in our communities through our volunteer work,” one Champion says in the film.
For Shaiman, the pledge of service that came out of the horrors of the past will ensure a better future.
“We must make sure that we leave a better legacy for our children for our communities, because they deserve that,” she said. “And that is why we are making this documentary. We want to share this with everyone because everyone can help change the world.”
