What Good Shall I Do This Day?

August 12, 2017

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Four years ago, the Purpose community lost one of our dear colleagues (and the world, one of its brightest lights). 

Mike Hammer was a member of the Purpose Strategy team when he passed away in August of 2013 from injuries sustained in a bicycle accident. Mike was 28 years old. 

The extent of our grief at losing Mike so suddenly is surpassed only by our gratitude for having known him, loved him, and worked with him. In his Purpose bio, Mike had written that his work was “fueled by a belief that everyone has a capacity for compassion that can shape the world for the better”—and no one embodied that belief through word and deed more ably than Mike. Mike is survived by his wife, Meaghan, and their son, Julius. 

Mike kept a small placard on his desk that read: “What Good Shall I Do This Day?” 

That phrase—which typifies the values he held and the life he led, from his unflagging work in pursuit of social justice to the legendary hugs he gave—serves as a reminder of who Mike was to each of us and as motivation to all of us as we continue his daily work.

That mantra now rests on the wall next to the NYOffice elevator and greets everyone who enters our space.

Each year, we take a moment to reflect and remember.  The Purpose team celebrates Mike’s memory and legacy by asking ourselves: what good shall we do this day?

 

For more detail on Mike’s life and the education fund set up for his son Julius after Mike’s passing, you can visit this Kickstarter campaign for Thousand, a helmet made in his honor.  I’m sure you’ll consider yourself lucky to get to learn more about such a beautiful soul.

We hope that you consider this day a reminder to ask yourself what good you can do this day.


Robert Jay Ross Chief of Staff
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