I saw a play in Portland Maine recently, and I can’t stop thinking about it.

The best art is like that. It won’t leave you alone.

“Conscience” by Joe DiPietro tells the story of the battle between Maine Senator Margaret Chase Smith and the notorious Senator Joe McCarthy.

It’s a riveting history. But it’s also sadly relevant today.

“Conscience”  shows us how a brave Senator– the first woman to serve in both the House and the Senate– stood up to a demagogue who gleefully ruined lives through disinformation, lies and bullying.

Back then it was the fear of communism. Today you can take your pick of things used to whip up fear and emotion.

Predictably, politicians in the McCarthy era valued their careers over their country and the truth.  They despised McCarthy but they wouldn’t stand up to him for fear of losing their seats.

This is how real and lasting damage occurs. When we look the other way, when we wait for others to do something or when we give our assent through our silence or just as bad join in and spread more lies.

Injury occurs when we support those who exhibit abhorrent behavior.

Margaret Chase Smith did none of those things. She spoke truth to power. Her conscience wouldn’t let her be silent.

I learned a lot about our history and our present during those two hours at the Portland Stage, a gorgeous old theater with a rich history of producing landmark works.

Sitting in the dark I got swept up in the drama marveling at the performances, the story, the brilliant writing. There is nothing like live theatre.

And when the show ended, all we wanted to do was talk about what we had just seen and how it relates to the world we live in today.

It’s a dreadful time in America. It really is. So much anxiety. So much vitriol. So many lies and half-truths. So much hatred. You can feel it in the air. You can taste it and it’s bitter. We are no longer united and it feels awful.

According to a recent poll cited by the Aspen Institute, 58 percent of Americans believe our best years are behind us.

That’s a staggering and depressing statistic because America has always been focused on and excited about the future. A future we were leading with optimism.

Both parties embraced the future: “It’s morning in America.” “Hope and Change.”

Now we “lead” with words like “vermin” and “unhinged.”

We’ve lost faith in our institutions. We’ve lost faith in each other.

We lack leaders and as a result we are at risk of wrecking a remarkable country.

Both sides of the divide don’t agree on much these days, but we seem to agree that we are broken, polarized and at risk.

The author Frank Bruni calls it a crisis of confidence—a disease of pessimism in a country built on optimism. Bruni calls it a “violent rupture of our national psyche.”

Indeed.

Which is why “Conscience” the play resonates so deeply. We long to see our leaders stand for something.

Watching Margaret Chase Smith take on Joe McCarthy was gratifying.

Every bully has it coming. Every bully is driven by fear. And every bully will take your lunch money until you stand your ground and say no more.

Those that stand up to bullies pay a price. Their noses get bloodied, but their causes are noble and at the end of the day history treats them kindly. That should matter.

Nobody remembers the sycophants. Nobody.

But they remember those who stand up for what’s right.  We remember those whose conscience drives them to do the right thing. We call it character. We call it integrity. We long for these heroes. They make all the difference.

Nobody remembers the sycophants. Nobody.

We do however remember the monsters—they should serve as cautionary tales not to be repeated. And we remember the heroes and heroines—those who stand for something. Those who lead with love and courage.

Those with conscience.

Catalysts

The Carl Angus DeSantis Foundation honored two community heroes last week at a luncheon at the wonderful Farmer’s Table in Boca Raton.

We officially presented the “Catalyst Award” to Ted Hoskinson of Roots and Wings and Julia Kadel of the Miracle League. The award is in honor of our late founder.

Mr. DeSantis was a catalyst. He made good things happen and he led with generosity and courage.

The award is loosely modeled on the MacArthur Foundation “genius grant.”  Like that award, you can’t apply for our prize, your work speaks for itself. Foundation staff and the board honor two people a year with a no-strings cash award and a luncheon celebrating their achievements. We also gather the two dozen organizations we are supporting to honor their work in our community.

It’s a fun and meaningful afternoon. We’ve seen our grantees walk out with new friends and collaborators and it gives us great pleasure to see these relationships form. We have a great community, and we have great people who devote their lives to helping others.

In my view, these are the real leaders in our world. Running a nonprofit is infinitely harder than running a business. I’ve been involved with both and while business is tough and complex, nonprofit work is loaded with complications and nuance. But the best nonprofits lead with love. They make miracles happen.

So, when you gather these special people together it’s magical. You can feel the power in the room, and you can’t help but be moved by the compassion they have for others.

We support organizations that are swinging for the fences.

We do this because that’s what our founder Mr. DeSantis did.

When I got involved in his world in 2008, our world was falling apart. The financial crisis was threatening to sink the economy. I had no idea that Carl would be the force he would become in my life. But when he recruited me to help with a beverage company he had discovered—a small but promising brand named Celsius—he exuded optimism about the future. He made all of us in his universe believe that we could conquer the world and slay the giants who were around every corner waiting to smack us down.

I found an email Carl sent me from back then; when I decided to listen to my heart and take a chance on this guy.

“I’m not in this for Cracker Jack prizes,” he wrote about Celsius. “This is going to be big.”

And years later—after all sorts of adversity—it was.

Carl believed. Always.

That’s what we look for in our Catalyst Award winners and our nonprofit partners.

There’s Mark Sauer—a retired executive who ran MLB and NHL teams—who “retired” to Delray Beach and decided to change the lives of impoverished children through Bound for College.

There’s Erin Hogan who runs Her Second Chance in Boca Raton, giving women in recovery the chance to learn skills and rebuild their lives.

We just welcomed Lynne Kunins and the magnificent team at FLIPANY to our Foundation family.

FLIPANY feeds thousands of nutritious meals to kids and seniors at scores of sites throughout South Florida while teaching them about health, fitness and how to cook healthy. Lynne is a social entrepreneur who overcame addiction, poverty, hunger and attempted suicide with physical fitness and nutrition. She’s an inspiration. A community builder. She’s been doing this for 20 years and she wants to take this nationwide. I have no doubt she will.

The night after our Catalyst Lunch, we went to the Kravis Center for a FLIPANY event called “Chef’s Up Front.” Talented chefs from throughout our region gathered to raise funds for FLIPANY’s many programs. It was heartening to see the love and passion in the room. Food and nutrition connect us as people.

When we visited two sites to see FLIPANY serve nutritious meals to hungry and poor children, many of them from immigrant communities, I was struck by the beauty of this simple act. There are people who villainize others and there are those who love others. Most of us walk by and pretend that we don’t see what’s right in front of our eyes–that’s a violent act too in so many ways. I know which group I want to belong to. I know which group I want to help.

Which brings me to this year’s Catalysts.

Julia Kadel and Ted Hoskinson are personal heroes of mine and many others. For 20 years Julia and her husband Jeff and their army of volunteers have built community by enabling children of all abilities to play our national pastime. My goodness, baseball is a beautiful game. They call their effort the Miracle League and indeed it is a miracle. The love they have for community is miraculous and powerful.

Ted’s Roots and Wings honors teachers and helps children become good readers. Ted and his team are changing lives. If you can’t read, you can’t succeed. Ted’s mission is to leave no child behind. It’s a beautiful way to spend a life.

I can go on. And I will because our Foundation has only just begun.

I invite you to join us. I write this hoping that you will find a way to help heal a broken world. Please transcend the ugliness of the present moment by getting involved in activities that build a better future.

Unity over division, love over hate, generosity over greed, truth over lies. Light not darkness.