Between the Mountain and the Sky: Meeting Maggie Doyne and the Work of BlinkNow

Some evenings stay with you long after they’re over...

We recently attended a screening of the documentary Between the Mountain and the Sky, a powerful film about Maggie Doyne and the organization she founded, BlinkNow. But what made the evening especially meaningful is that it didn’t begin with the film—it began with a meeting.

The publicist reached out to Diane, having learned about her work helping people explore meaning, purpose, and what matters most at the end of life. Maggie told us before the showing that she felt, intuitively, that she and Diane needed to meet. That simple act of curiosity and connection spoke volumes. Before ever seeing Maggie’s story on screen, we encountered her humanity face to face—thoughtful, grounded, and deeply present. 

Maggie’s journey began years earlier, at just eighteen. She left the comfort and familiarity of home in the United States to take a gap year and travel to Nepal. What started as a young person’s desire to help others for a year turned into the mission of a lifetime.   

In Surkhet, Nepal, Maggie met children living in extreme poverty—children with extraordinary resilience, humor, and heart, but far too few resources or protections. She fell in love with them. Not in an abstract, charitable way, but in the deeply personal way that changes the course of a life.

With no master plan and no organization behind her, Maggie asked her parents to wire her the babysitting money she had saved growing up. She used it to purchase a small piece of land, with the simple but radical dream of building a safe home for the children she could not leave behind. That humble beginning became the foundation of what is now BlinkNow.

Today, that single act has grown into the Kopila Valley School and Community Center, serving hundreds of students through education, health care, housing, and community development programs. More than 90 children now call Maggie “Momma.” What began as one young woman’s leap of faith has become a lasting, community-led model of care.

The film does not shy away from the emotional weight of this responsibility. Instead, it honors the reality that love and leadership come with sacrifice. As Maggie shares early in the film (paraphrasing):

“I can’t be everything for these kids, but I can celebrate their lives, and I can make a difference.”

That line feels like a quiet philosophy for how to live—one rooted in humility, empathy, and action.

At Dream of a Better World, we believe deeply in supporting work that restores dignity, nurtures possibility, and reminds us of our shared humanity. The evening with Maggie—and the story shared in Between the Mountain and the Sky—was a powerful reminder that meaningful change often begins without certainty, funding, or permission. It begins when someone chooses not to turn away.

If you’re looking for a way to help:

• You can support Dream of a Better World (BlinkNow Nepal Kids), allowing us to continue uplifting and partnering with organizations doing transformative work like BlinkNow. (100% of your donation will turn around and go to a project at BlinkNow.org.)

• You can support BlinkNow.org directly and find out more through their website.

• You can also watch Between the Mountain and the Sky and donate directly through the film’s platform, where contributions support BlinkNow’s ongoing work in Nepal.

None of us can do everything. But each of us can choose to care, to act, and to contribute in ways that ripple outward—sometimes farther than we can imagine.

Thank you for your continued support!

Dream of a Better World

PS. If you know anyone that votes at the Academy of Motion Pictures, PLEASE let them know about this film and amazing story… It is rightly being considered for an Academy Award!

Lake County Shelter - SUMMER Support

 Let’s Help Our Friends at the Lake County Resource Center get ready for SUMMER!

FACT: Lake County Resource Center is a safe haven for abused young children and parents who often were forced to flee their homes and showed up in need of shelter. There are currently 23 children at the Lake County Shelter for abused women and children, which is more than any other time we have worked with them. 

 

FACT: Lake County is one of the poorest counties in California. Lake County Family Resource Center serves families struggling with poverty, hunger, abuse, lack of basic resources, and other needs.

FACT: Spring and summer are coming soon! It’s time for these kids to get outside and play! However, the facility is lacking in toys and supplies for outdoor activities. Here’s where we can help!

We are hoping to raise funds to purchase at least two picnic tables, a stand-up basketball hoop, basketballs, and anything else they may need like crafts and sporting goods! 

We have rallied around this amazing shelter in Lake County for several years now, mostly purchasing necessities like mattresses and bedding. Today, let’s make a difference so these young kids can have some fun!

Thank you for helping us help others!

All of us at Dream of a Better World

If you'd like to financially support this cause, you can CLICK HERE or use the DONATE BUTTON above!

PS. As always 100% of your donation will go directly to helping this cause.  We are volunteer based and raise what little overhead we have separately.

 

HOLIDAY 2024 GIVING PROJECT:

Humane Prison Hospice Project

Let’s spread the gifts of love and music this holiday season to those broken and separated from loved ones due to being incarcerated, with a special focus on those who are dying in prison. The Humane Prison Hospice Project is committed to implementing end of life care in prisons by supporting and training prisoners to be caregivers to the dying. Our donations will help train and support this mission.

 

In addition, we are raising funds to purchase musical instruments for the incarcerate men in California prisons, offering them an opportunity to learn something new and to experience the joy that comes from singing and making music. We will be purchases guitars, ukeleles, handheld drums, harmonicas, tambourines and more!

 

Let’s shine our holiday light on them, too!

 

California Homemaker’s Association – CHA

There are many people living in our neighborhoods and towns who are struggling to make ends meet. Some are hungry, without shelter, in need of medical and dental care or in need of legal advice or other services to support them in getting back on their feet. CHA can support people with all of these needs and more!

 

The Association is 100% volunteer run; it accepts no government funding or any other money with strings attached – rather it exists through the dedication and generosity of its members as well as those allies in the community who have joined our cause. CHA serves no other aim or aspiration outside its stated goal. 

 

This year we are raising funds to add to their general fund, enabling them to continue offering these amazing services free of charge to those who need them! And maybe, just maybe, we will be able to purchase some warm winter coats and clothes for some of the people who need them most.

 

 

Happy, Happy Holidays to all!

And thank you for your ongoing support and trust in our work!

All of us at Dream of a Better World!

The Chaplain of Oakland

Our Director and super active Dream Team member, Diane Button is having a BIG BIRTHDAY!!  And, we ALL want to help her CELEBRATE! For her 65^th birthday, in lieu of gifts, she is asking friends and family to help support the underserved and marginalized populations who may not have access to the same medical services that most of us are privileged to enjoy! 

 

Thanks to all of you, Dream of a Better World already supports individual clients directly by purchasing medical supplies, food, comfort supplies, final
wishes, and memorial expenses.  Diane's birthday wish is for us to support the non-profit production efforts of a film featuring Chaplain Betty Clark and Dr. Jessica Zitter about the disparities in our healthcare system.

 

The film is called “The Chaplain of Oakland” and the trailer below will give you a glimpse into the work they are doing. These trailblazing women are working tirelessly to change the way poor and underserved people die in America. This tugs at Diane’s heart strings and we all hope you will join her in supporting this worthy cause. 

You can watch the trailer here: The Chaplain of Oakland - trailer

 

                     DONATE - The Chaplain of Oakland

 

 

If you want to know more about Diane’s doula group, you can visit their end-of-life doula website here:  

 

                           End of Life Doula Alliance

 

 

Casa Hogar Nueva Vida!

Hola Amigos!

We are just back from a month with our friends at Casa Hogar Nueva Vida, which means House and Home of New Life."  It has been a truly eventful trip in which we have gotten to know them much better.  We have also developed a few additional relationships with local volunteers there that have great skill and desire to join us in and help bring this orphanage back to life. 

There are 12 happy, healthy children ranging from 5 to 17 years old and they too are willing to repair, clean, paint and pitch in where ever needed.  The woman in charge, Ami, is just 30 years old and she grew up in this orphanage.  She knows what it takes to keep these kids in school and feeling loved and cared for.  But she was in desperate need of guidance and help with the building itself.  

 

 

 

The building needs maintenance and repair nearly everywhere.  When we arrived, 5 of the 6 bathrooms were NOT working! Can you imagine?

The electrical was barely working and the floors, the ceilings, the roof and the kids beds and furniture were in desperate need of attention. 

Thanks to your generous donations, by the time we left, all of the bathrooms had working sinks, toilets and drains.  And, about half of the electrical was back and working.  Here are some photos of the work, the volunteers and the kids!

Thank you ALL!

Holiday 2023 Giving Project

 1. LAKE COUNTY RESOURCE CENTER

“We believe everyone deserves a stable and healthy family life.

We strengthen a family’s ability to become safe and self-sufficient.”

 

Last year, after we wrapped up our holiday fundraisers, we got an urgent call from our dear friend Pat Ench. She is irresistible and her heart is huge. She was in tears as she shared with us that there was a shelter in Lake County that was filled with abused women and children with no one supporting them over the holidays.

So, the week before Christmas, we gathered more resources, purchased clothing and a toy for each of the children, some warm clothes for the parent, and some household supplies for the shelter and we drove with Pat to the shelter and delivered them in time for Christmas. We even had funds to include a pizza party on Christmas Eve, which was the highlight of their season.

 

This year there are all new people at the shelter…  new moms, new kids, new stories. A wonderful local women’s group is supplying gifts for all the kids this year, except for one new family who has been assigned to us. We hope to also get the mom’s a small gift to open and provide them all with that same pizza party on Christmas Eve.

The shelter also has some basic needs this year to keep their environment clean and fresh, so we are adding these needs to our dream wish list:

 

DREAM WISH LIST

• 21 new mattress pads

• 30 Pillows

• Sheets and Blankets for 15 twin beds and 6 full beds

• Holiday gifts for one new family, a mom with 3 children, who just moved in this week

• Holiday gifts for 10 moms in the shelter

• A holiday pizza party for all the families to come together on Christmas Eve

 

2. A Local Family living in a garage – This young family lives in the Clear Lake area and they have fallen on very difficult times. They have two young children, both under 6 years old. Their life was doing well until the father of this sweet family accidentally fell asleep at the wheel late one night on his way home from work and injured his back. He has just begun to walk and function again but he was unable to work for many months. They are hungry, behind on bills, and are barely scraping by, with all 4 of them living in a small garage until they get back on their feet.

 

For the holidays we would like to provide this family with:

 

• Gifts for the Children

• Household needs and supplies for the Mom and Dad

• A holiday meal ordered from a local store

• Maybe a gift card for WalMart for food shopping through January 

 

 

3. CASA HOGAR – This orphanage in Puerto Escondido, Mexico is run by Ami, a 30-year-old woman, who was raised in this very same orphanage as a little girl. She has given her heart to these 12 children, now aged 12-17, who were taken off the streets and given an opportunity to live in a healthy and loving home. Mark will be spending time there in February, and has been deeply touched by the giggles, the laughter, and the “family” lifestyle they have all built together. Everyone works together to make the home run smoothly. Everyone gets an education. Everyone is loved and everyone belongs.

 

Today Casa Hogar is in desperate need of repairs, both inside and out. Just like in Lake County, this holiday season we hope to replace all the bedding, including decades old twin mattresses, at Casa Hogar. We hope to also be sending funds so Ami can purchase a Christmas gift for each of the 12 children and maybe even something for herself. 

 

She sure deserves it!

Please donate any amount you can! It will go a long way!  As always, 100% of every dollar you donate will go directly to provide for these projects!

Thank you so much to all of YOU!

 

We are so grateful you are partnering with us to make the world a little bit better!

 

Wishing you all love, joy, and peace in 2024,

All of us at Dream of a Better World