The Bumpy Road to Human Kindness

Generation k for kindness

Life can be quite a bumpy ride, but if you seize the pitfalls and view them as opportunities to rise above and beyond what you thought possible, it can all be worthwhile in the end. On the latest edition to Route 664 the Road to Human Kindness, we were honored to interview two amazing guests who demonstrate just such a positive outlook on life. Our first guest was Brad Gornto who is both an attorney and serves on the Council of Philanthropic Advisors, who tells us all about a little-known sub-route to Route 664 that you can take advantage of. And our second guest is none other than world renowned Chef Roberto Mendoza, who literally went from a life of poverty to becoming chef for celebrities, royal families and presidents.  He also had the luck of winning the lottery in 2019, the entirety of which he decided he would donate to feed starving children. Now that’s what I call human kindness!

By now you’re probably familiar with the three ways you can set up your own Social Secharity, either through a charitable remainder trust, a pooled income fund, or a charitable gift annuity. But there’s a fourth little known option that Brad Gornto tells us about called The Charitable Lead Trust. It’s a kind of trust that works like an enhanced pledge where people can contribute annually to the charity of their choice donating the money now instead of being donated after you pass away. At the end of the set term of the Charitable Lead Trust, the remainder of the funds either returns to the client or they go to the client’s immediate family, so the money stays within the household. It’s an incredible tool to take advantage of, and Brad is available for consultation if you want to learn more about this lucrative opportunity.

Then we were joined by Chef Roberto Mendoza himself, who shared his remarkable story of survival and success with us. Born and raised during the conflicts that rocked the tiny country of El Salvador, he remembers how he and his family temporarily lost access to clean running water because of the war and how he prayed to never go hungry or thirsty again. He delved into his studies and became the student body president at his university, but ended up getting kidnapped soon after. It was the Salvation Army that actually found him and rescued him, sending him to live far away in Canada where Roberto had to start over. In 1994, he made his way back down to warmer weather in Los Angeles. He began his long road to success as a simple dishwasher, but after watching the chefs cook he asked them to teach him how to cut vegetables, and how to cook. He went to culinary school in Pasadena, and learned to speak English. He then worked for an Israeli family who were kind enough to pay for his schooling, but much more than that, they were surprised by how quickly Roberto learned to speak Hebrew as well. 

Roberto made his way to cook for the Beverly Hills Hotel, where he was befriended by none other than the Prince of Saudi Arabia, who he began to cook for and learned some Arabic as well. The Prince recommended him to then President Bill Clinton, so Roberto ended up working at the White House for the Clintons, Bushes, Obamas, Trumps, and continues to cook for the current administration. Aside from all this tremendous success, Roberto still often cooks for homeless people on the streets because he remembers his own humble beginnings and feels compelled to do as much as he possibly can to help. In 2019 he was lucky enough to win his local lottery, $250,000 which he completely donated to feeding starving children in his home country, saying he felt God was telling him to do so. It’s as if he was tested and demonstrated complete selflessness, the kind of thing that should be an example for all of us.

Chef Mendoza’s epic story is full of both adventure and outstanding examples of human kindness which is exactly what we’re all about here at Route 664, and his is just one of many stories of unsung heroes working behind the scenes every day to make the world a much better place. As Roberto sees it, all the blessings and success in his life were given to him by God, so he feels none of it belongs to him and when we leave this world we cannot take anything with us, “It all stays here,” he says.  We definitely need more people like Chef Roberto Mendoza in the world, and it shows how far just one simple act of kindness can go in this tiny blue dot paradise we call the world. To hear more amazing stories like these and get involved in efforts to raise awareness on Route 664, which we call Social Secharity, visit www.socialsecharity.org or like us on Facebook @SocialSecharity.