Valor Gone Viral: Palisadian Philanthropist Transforms Lives Through Twitter

By GABRIELLA BOCK | Reporter

Social media is changing the world.

For better or worse remains to be seen, but for every impulsive POTUS tweet and Snapchat selfie, another person becomes empowered to make a difference through virtual storytelling.

And for Palisades Charter High School alumna Patty Breech, class of 2002, her story begins with a hunch and a hashtag.

Breech, who earned a degree in linguistics from Yale University, spent her early 20s working as a consultant and corporate web developer before making, what she said, was the greatest decision of her life.

“I felt stuck,” Breech told the Palisadian-Post. “It was a turning point where I knew I needed to do something that would contribute to the greater good.”

So, Breech did what most people with a high-earning salary wouldn’t do. She quit.

And as she set out on what was supposed to be a year-long learning expedition around the world, the young philanthropist called upon an old friend named Maggie Doyne.

Doyne, who made headlines when she, at 19 years old, used her babysitting earnings to open a children’s home and school in the impoverished district of Surkhet, Nepal, was the sole operator of her growing nonprofit organization Blink Now.

With only $5,000 in savings, Doyne started the organization in 2008 after a backpacking trip landed her in the civil war-torn country.

“I knew that Maggie was doing great things in Nepal so I quit my job and signed on as a volunteer,” Breech revealed. “I was really just prepared to cook or clean bathrooms in exchange for a place to stay.”

In what Breech called an “aligning of the stars,” Doyne was looking for more than just a helping hand. She needed a tech-savvy, social media guru that could use the internet’s various free marketing platforms to raise funds for the organization.

Without hesitation, Breech packed her bags and moved to Nepal for the long haul.

Nestled in a mid-western foothills of Birendranagar, 360 miles or a 14-hour drive west of the capital Kathmandu, the Kopila Valley Children’s Home and School houses 50 orphaned boys and girls and educates nearly 350 children in kindergarten through 10th grade. Many of the students are the first in their family to receive an education.

Breech, who moved directly into the Kopila home in 2014, managed the organization’s social media accounts and helped Doyne raise the kids, often stepping in as a second or third parent.

Often behind the lens, Breech documented the small, daily victories of the children and shared them with the rest of the world.

The 31-year-old said that living with the children opened her heart and mind to an entirely new outlook on the human experience.

“The Nepalese people are an extremely warm and inviting bunch,” she said. “Each day begins with a communal breakfast and a few moments of song and dance before the children set off for another day of learning.”

With the home’s sporadic electricity and cold showers, Breech and other volunteers sacrificed their Western comforts to aid the organization—but for many of the children, the three-story home was by far the nicest place they had ever lived.

“Laundering my clothes with our automatic washing machine is one of the luxuries I allow myself from time to time,” she said. “We typically wash our garments by hand because our water comes from tanks set up on the roof. Those tanks have to be filled manually from our well.”

In what she referred to as her “awakening,” Breech told the Post that her time in Nepal has taught her about the immense privilege she holds, not only as an American citizen, but as a middle-class Palisadian as well.

“You know that privilege exists, but you don’t fully understand it until you see first-hand the condition of those living in underdeveloped areas. It was a devastating realization, but it pushed me to work even harder for these children.”

And work hard she did.

In 2015, Breech—along with many supportive Palisadians—campaigned for months on end to nominate, and then help, Doyne receive the CNN Hero of the Year Award. That win ultimately brought in a slew of donations that allowed Blink Now to further extend its reach to include vocational education for women and transition funds for aged-out students.

“We just set our first student up with his own apartment,” she said. “He’s 19 and it’s time for him to start learning how to be an adult.”

Now living a few blocks away from the children’s home, Breech said that the young man is adjusting well to the new space. It’s the first time he’s ever had a room of his own.

“It was an emotional day for all of us,” she said. “Maggie loves these children as her own, so it was like watching her oldest go off to college. We really are a family here.”

And, for the very first time, three Kopila Valley teenagers got on an airplane and flew to the United States. The students participated in a month-long cultural exchange program in New Jersey before heading to California with Breech.

“I wanted the kids to see where I grew up,” she explained. “We explored Los Angeles and took a visit to PaliHi to meet some of my old teachers.”

And like many Angelenos, the teenagers loved dipping their toes in the ocean, but hated traveling on the “scary” freeways.

Now back in Nepal, Breech is helping Doyne and the rest of the Blink Now team open up their new, highly anticipated facility for high school students. With construction still wrapping up, Breech has already started to raise funds for classroom computers.

“Education is the only thing that’s going to make the world better,” she said. “By sharing our experience, we are hoping that more people will feel inspired to make a difference.”

And, sometimes, all it takes is the click of a mouse.

For more information on how to get involved, visit blinknow.org.