Who Are We?

Empathy noun

em.pa.thy | \ ‘em-pe-thē \

The psychological identification with or vicarious experiencing of the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another. Essentially it is putting yourself in someone else’s position and feeling what they must be feeling. 

Empathy vs Sympathy 

Where as Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. Sympathy is the feeling of pity or sorrow for someone else. While feeling sympathetic is a natural response to the witnessing of another person’s suffering, empathy requires one to place themselves in that person’s shoes so to speak, and permits people to understand the emotions that they might be feeling. By understanding what people may be feeling, we are more capable of responding appropriately to social situations. Empathy promotes behaviors that can impact others. When one feels Empathy towards another they are more willing to help which in turn promotes others to do the same, inspiring them to be more empathetic as well. This is what our founder, Nicole Ledina, truly believed, and why our organization’s core statement  and name is “Empathy is the Remedy”. We hope to inspire people to be more empathetic and in turn create a force powerful enough to enact change where it counts, within the communities that are the foundation to our youth’s success.

Note from Roger T. Ledina, Executive Director of the Empathy is the Remedy Foundation

Empathy is the Remedy Foundation is the brainchild of Nicole Joy Ledina, our Founder, who unfortunately passed away from a rare autoimmune condition at the age of 19 in June 2017 before she could set up the non-profit organization that she envisioned.

Even at a young age in Elementary and Middle School, Nicole was already talking about and planning how she could help others in need, how she could make a difference in her community, how she can set up a non-profit organization to make things happen. She discovered and believed that the greatest impact she could make was by being herself and sharing her God given gifts whenever opportunities presented themselves. These gifts became very evident when she sang, ran, and served others. In High School, Nicole was a member of the advanced choir, runner on the Cross Country and Track teams, and President of the Music To Heal Club where they provided instrumental and vocal music to patients in local hospitals . She went on to establish a collegiate chapter and expanded music and volunteer services to senior homes, shelters, food banks, and other medical and social service facilities in the community. In these environments she encountered many Veterans, Senior Citizens, and Families in need. By sharing her voice, providing an empathetic ear to just listen, and being present for them, the people she interacted with quickly "adopted" her as their own daughter/grand-daughter. Nicole also saw the raw emotional connections they made when she shared her angelic voice with them and the uplifting and healing it provided for them personally. She gained tremendous insight, knowledge and wisdom from these positive experiences and those encounters really started to solidify in her mind what her passions were and what her mission in life was going to be. Despite being ill, she applied to her dream school, auditioned, and was accepted to the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston as a transfer student majoring in Vocal Music and Music Therapy. She was selected and was preparing to participate in Berklee’s First Year Abroad program in Valencia, Spain. Unfortunately, her illness relapsed about a month before she was to depart for Valencia and she was never able to fulfill that mission and dream . . .

Nicole had a strong faith and maintained great courage through adversity. She touched us in the most simple yet profound manner. She made us feel that we mattered and helped us bridge conflicts. Her big heart was infectious and her big smile lit up the room. Nicole’s actions were always in the service of others; never for personal gain. Her optimism and positive attitude moved mountains. In her passing, Nicole left a remarkable legacy through the example she set. She forced us to reassess our values, our priorities, what is most important, and what truly matters in life. Nicole left these and other “seeds” in all of us. We honor Nicole’s memory and her legacy by how we personally ensure these “seeds” are nurtured, so they continue to grow and spread to others and future generations.

It took us some time to deal with, mourn, and begin to heal from Nicole's tragic loss. Emotions, pain, and a pandemic slowed our progress. But after 4 years we finally achieved the first major milestone in Nicole's plan -- getting her Empathy is the Remedy Foundation established and off the ground. We are the Caretakers of Nicole's vision, dream, and legacy. That includes her Family, Friends, our Directors, Employees, Volunteers, and Supporters. It is now our duty to ensure we carry on Nicole's work, honor her memory, and spread the "seeds" she left us to others and to future generations.

-Roger T. Ledina