Class Notes: Adam Braun

In an attempt to find something that's even remotely as incredible as our time at Bruno, I've spent the majority of the last five years relentlessly searching for places that recreate the magic that we all experienced on campus. These travels led to a few realizations, one of which was the power of education to change the lives of youth.

Following a year of travel after graduation, I moved into NYC to work in management consulting at Bain & Company. Like most 23 year olds, I had no qualifications to consult anyone on anything, I was simply trying to absorb as much as possible from others to one day start a great nonprofit that empowered youth domestically and local communities abroad. In October 2008 I put $25 into a bank account to start Pencils of Promise. With the support of countless incredible people, many of which are Brown Class of 2006 members, PoP has now become one of the fastest growing nonprofits in the country and we've recently broken ground on our 23th school between Laos, Nicaragua and Guatemala.

All of this came full circle when I was recently joined in Laos for a new school opening by the very friends from Brown (below) who helped me get the organization off the ground. It's been a fun and funky journey so far, but there's no doubt that the place that planted the seeds for this all was Brown. I'm so psyched to see everyone at the 5-year reunion, free hugs for all.

In Ruth We Trust,
Adam

Brown Class of 2006 alumni Luke Tedaldi, Adam Tichauer, Gabriel Bourgeois, Dan Teicher and Adam Braun at a recent Pencils of Promise school opening ceremony in Laos