Meet Greg Mortenson: An American Idol in Waiting

You probably will never meet Greg Mortenson and you may not ever even see him on television. He doesn't sing or dance in ways that would attract popular attention. But if you pick up a book or two and let the message of his life wrap itself around you, it might not be difficult to conclude, as many others have already, that Greg Mortenson is an American Idol in Waiting - someone, that is, who people should hold up as deserving of reverence, respect and assistance in forwarding his life's work. Someone to hold in high regard.

Truth is I have never met Greg Mortenson in person either, though if I did I would probably be too in awe to even ask a sensible question. Instead I ran in to this amazing American in the pages of a best seller by Nick Kristof entitled "Half the Sky". What was said about Mortenson and his work in this Kristof masterpiece was offered in a tone of utter respect and got enough of my attention to set me off trying to discover all I could about this incredible humanitarian.

Mortenson's life at one time was directed almost solely to mountain climbing, accepting the challenges of peaks that took away his breath and drained his body of energy. His climbing experiences brought him directly into contact with remote communities in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Moved by the poverty but also the honesty and kindness of the people he met, Mortenson turned his life's attention in a most unexpected direction. Watching the village children trying to learn with only rudimentary materials and no school building, he determined to help lift one remote village out of its nearly medieval state by doing what he could to bring about the construction of a school building.

According to Greg Mortenson's website, since connecting with this need Mortenson has built not just one but a total of 131 local schools in remote and sometimes dangerous regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. His project has enabled some 58,000 students to receive education. Amazingly enough 48,000 of those students were young girls. It seems more than likely that without his Goliathan efforts most of these young people would have grown up lacking in literacy and fundamental knowledge. Most remarkably Mortenson's work has been carried out beside the shadow of nearby Taliban insurgents.

There are lots of places you can discover more about Greg Mortenson's diligent efforts on behalf of the poor villagers in Pakistan and Afghanistan. For a quick search you can of course check out several Mortenson websites. But for a fuller, deeper read you may want to find yourself a copy of his first book "Three Cups of Tea " available in most school and many public libraries in the U. S. The book chronicles his first connection with the Afghani and Pakistani people as well as the struggles he endured and challenges he faced both at home and abroad as he sought to deliver more and more young people into the modern world through literacy training and elementary education in schools. The book has already sold more than 3 million copies and received enough response to encourage a second volume from Greg Mortenson entitled "Stones into Schools."

Whenever I happen to catch a peak at "American Idol" I can't help but wish that there was a show with a similar name which featured Americans who have accomplished marvelous deeds that no one really knows about but which have nonetheless changed the lives of others for the better. There are lots of non-singing, non-dancing American Idols out there for sure. One you might like to meet is Greg Mortenson.

Sources: www.gregmortensen.com

www.threecupsoftea.com