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20 Years of buildOn:Supporter Geoffrey Norman has a buildOn Family
Over the last 20 years, buildOn’s mission has inspired the support and passion of many individuals whose enthusiasm has, in turn, rallied the aid of others. But Geoffrey Norman is a special case. “Once you come into contact with buildOn, you get infected with it,” he told me over the phone. “And there’s no known cure!” What he didn’t mention then, but what became clear throughout our conversation, is how quickly one can spread the contagion. A former asset management executive at General Electric who witnessed one of the first presentations that our founder and CEO Jim Ziolkowski gave to the leadership team at GE, Norman inspired his entire family to join the buildOn team.
[pullquote]Once you come into contact with buildOn, you get infected with it![/pullquote]
Norman described his initial meeting with Ziolkowski fondly. “In the early 1990s, probably around ‘93, Jim was invited to present his story to GE Asset Management’s leadership team. He was such a young guy, and spun an incredible story about building schools in places like Nepal. I was intrigued by the story, and impressed by Jim’s passion and charisma. I went up to him afterward and asked if I could help. I still am.”
