When I reflect on building the factory for Meds & Food for Kids, my leading thought is how amazing it is that a small NGO with no building experience built a factory on its own without major delays. There was no big budget for an exploratory project. There was no paid professional design/build company.
More than fifteen companies and another six plus individual engineers came together to make the factory happen. Most donated time and many donated materials. When there was a gap to fill, someone was always there to step in. The level of collaboration was superb.
The factory project was often chaotic. We had to make decisions on-the-go, because many things had not been worked out in advance. After working on staid projects for a Fortune 500 company, I found this exhilarating.
Building the factory was personally rewarding. I was working on something that really mattered. I was able to use my experience working on international projects and I got to use hands-on construction skills learned off-the-job. Where else could a retired person get to work with so many great people from throughout the US and multiple countries? I learned so much from these people and I gained many new friends. Being part of this project was a privilege.
Dave Harmann
