Rob: So you’ve been involved with At the Crossroads for 17, 18 years, and you talked about what got you started. What has kept your fire lit?
Avner: That’s an interesting question because it’s an evolvement. What happened was first a commitment to something that I felt was valid and needed to be nurtured, and see it grow. But the fire never went away because I added At the Crossroads to my daily routine. I created a situation where At the Crossroads was part of what I do, what I did everyday, what I thought about everyday. It was a balance—the more successful I was as a businessman, the more I thought, “At the Crossroads needs me more.”
I love the reaction of a person that’s never heard of our organization when I tell them that we’re actually connecting on the streets of the city with homeless youth and building relationships. Just telling someone that an organization exists that does that without any influences from authoritarian sources perks up anybody’s ears who hears that. And so I’ve almost made it a daily game. Who am I going to pick today to hear the story? And every day the universe sends someone, at least someone to listen to the story and hear about it.
