The History
The idea of the G&G Darehshori Foundation originated on a whim in the 90’s while Gholi and Georgia Darehshori were strolling on the beach in Sanibel Island, Florida fully immersed in the dazzling moments of the sunset. This couple knew instinctively that when you experience something so beautiful, you must share it! At that point, Gholi and Georgia owned some nicely appointed, vacation condos on the beach in Sanibel Island. It was their great pleasure to invite their friends to join them there. However, the Darehshoris really could not bring themselves to charge friends for the use of the properties. Consequently, the friends decided not to visit again until they could pay for their experience. Stalemate.
So, Gholi decided the logical solution to this dilemma was simply to create a 501 (c)(3) Nonprofit Foundation. They would call it the G&G Darehshori Foundation and the guests could donate whatever they thought was fair for the use of the condo and would receive a tax receipt in return. A total win- win! Thus, the birth of the G&G Darehshori Foundation.
The Purpose of the Foundation
It was then decided that the funds from the foundation would be distributed to worthy and unique small organizations which had identified specific needs in the areas listed below. These organizations would have little or no overhead so that it was clear the monetary gifts would be going directly to those in need. These groups represent a wide variety of interests of the Darehshoris. They include support in the broad areas of the basic human rights for all citizens of the world. These interests also include environmental concerns, sensitivity to treatment animals, the arts, and also justice related organizations. As you can see, there is much latitude in what the foundation is willing to support.
About the recently deceased (7/26/21) founder, Gholi Farhang Darehshori
Gholi Darehshori came to the USA from the Ghashghai Turkish Tribe of Iran in 1960. He loved sharing his story of his early beginnings. The oft told story was “I came to the U.S. with $36 in my pocket and 2 pairs of underwear and spoke not a word of English.” His thinking was if he could experience success in America with these humble beginnings, anyone could. He felt that his story could inspire others, and it did!
Gholi never forgot a kindness and delighted in creating ways to happily surprise people anonymously. (The stories of his random acts of kindness could fill volumes.)
Gholi loved to say that he wished to do 3 good things a day, and in that way, he would know that the supreme being would smile on him. He said it was a tribal tradition (however we never found another tribesman who knew anything about this tradition).
Actually, it was this initial “random act of kindness” (which was that of not wishing to accept payment in exchange for stays at the Florida condos) that inspired the creation of the G&G Foundation. With that in mind, we are breaking (only slightly) with the tradition of working exclusively with smaller organizations. Hence, we are in the process of asking Gholi’s alma mater, Texas Christian University, to create a fund called “Gholi’s Little Random Acts of Kindness Fund.”
The idea is to offer a surprise gift to students (examples include: helping to pay bills, taking students to lunch, paying for a student’s transportation, books, etc.) We envision students saying with pure joy: “I got Gholied today!”