Author Archives: Nelson de Witt

About Nelson de Witt

Nelson/Roberto – The son of Ana Milagro he was separated from the family shortly before his first birthday. He grew up in the Boston area with his adoptive parents and younger bother. He now works to share his family’s story and is making a documentary about life 30 years after the war. http://www.nelsondewitt.com

Becoming One Family Video: An Emotional Interview With My Sister and Adoptive Mother

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In August (I say May in the video but it was really August) my older sister Eva came to visit. I sat down with her and my adoptive mother Margaret to talk about how we became one family. It was a really powerful and emotional conversation. They talk very openly about their feelings and what it was like getting to know each other.

This was the first interview we did for the documentary film I’m working on. If you enjoyed this video check out our project page on kickstarter.

Watch me speak at#140conf LA

Just a reminder that on October 5th at 3:40pm I will be speaking at the #140 Character Conference in LA. I’l be sharing our story and talking about the documentary film. The event will be broadcast live you so you can watch me and all the other great speakers.

Getting Ready for #140conf LA

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Chamillionaire at TC Disrupt

It’s been very busy around here lately. Two weeks ago I spoke at the #140conf in Boston which was a lot of fun. That same day we launched our film project on kickstarter. There has also been a lot going on behind the scenes as we prepare for the next event, #140conf LA.

Sunday I’m back on the road again to spend a week in LA. Monday and Tuesday is the #140conf LA, at The Music Box, where I will be speaking again. I’ll stay in LA for the rest of week so John and I can have some face time to work together.

I’m very excited for the LA conference. I have a feeling there will be a bigger audience than Boston, which is exciting. Also, there will be a couple of well known celebrities, such as Nick Cannon, Michelle Branch, Kevin Pollak and Chamillionaire. I can’t wait to hear their thoughts about technology and how they are using it.

One person I am really interested in seeing is rapper/entertainer Chamillionaire. I have a couple of his songs and I’ve seen videos of him speaking at Stanford and other tech conferences. He recently spoke at TechCrunch Disrupt about what a rapper is doing at tech events. The video is below. I’ll be speaking after him so maybe we will get a chance to chat.

He mentioned that he uses google alerts so posts might show up on his feed. It’s funny how technology makes us so close. I look forward to meeting him and everyone else at the conference. Boston was great and I have a feeling LA will be just as good.

Speaking at #140conf Boston: Thank You Everyone for Your Support!

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Image by Steve Garfield

On Tuesday I spoke at the #140conf in Boston. It was an amazing event. I shared my family’s story about how we were separated during El Salvador’s civil war and our journey to reunite. I also talked about how we are using social media and the web to bring our story to more people. I hope to have a video of it for those of you who weren’t able to attend.

The response and feedback from the talk was overwhelming at first. It’s always been our dream to share this story with the world and getting such a strong reaction was so encouraging. Thank you to everyone who came up after to talk with me. It was great meeting all of you and your kindness means the world to us.

Check out the Identifying Nelson page to learn more about the film and how we are using social media. You can also pre-order the DVD on kickstarter.

Here are some of the talks I enjoyed the most.

The Rock Star Panel

It was every interesting to hear this group. I drew a lot of parallels between what we are doing and what they are doing. In some ways we both entertain people. I’m not sure that’s the best way to describe what our family’s story is about, but they are similar.

The most interesting thought was by Ted Cohen (@spinaltap) who said something to the effect of “I tell the artist that it’s not just about one spike in attention and that you have to manage it and keep it going.” This is so true. You can’t just get a little attention and call it a day. You need to build on it and keep it rolling!

Crowd Sourcing Cancer

This was another emotionally charged talk. Alicia C. Staley (@stales) had just lost two friends to cancer and was understandably broken up. I’m so glad that she decided to talk and share her story.

What was interesting to me is that she is in a similar and yet different position as me. We are both trying to share our stories and connect with people. The difference is that there are many other people who related to her experiences. The challenge for me has always been that there are only a handful of people who have experienced what I have. I don’t have that community to turn to, so I have to find people who connect with the story in different ways.

Look for Work

I thought Chris Brogan‘s (@chrisbrogan) most profound thought had nothing to do with social media. He said “Look for work, not jobs.” I think he nailed it with that statement. This puts the responsibility back on you. You have to go out there and look for meaningful ways to provide value. We can no longer expect someone to tell us what to do.

What Were Your Favorite Talks?

AJ Leon (@ajleon) wrote up his favorites in a post Humanity, Serendipty. What were yours?

Financing the Dream: Using Kickstarter to Make it a Reality

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Exploring Our Options

Making a documentary is no small task, both financially and work wise. It was clear from the start that this project would require a capital investment if it was going to reach the level John and I dreamt of. While the price of video equipment continues to fall, it is still out of reach for most people. Since neither John nor I are independently wealthy, we were going to need to find a way to raise some money. But, where to look?

Traditionally we had few options. We could find some big investors in the TV or film world. John knows and has worked with organizations that might be interested in our story, but that might mean giving up some control. Neither of us like that too much since our goal for the project was to open source it on some level. We could try to pay for it ourselves but that might drag the project out as we scraped together the funds. Thankfully in today’s world, there are better options.

The Kickstarter Revolution

Kickstarter.com is a web site that crowd sources funding of art related projects. Instead of getting a few people to give a lot of money you have a lot of people give a little money. I love this idea because it really takes advantage of the distributed and viral nature of the web. It opens up a whole new dimension of funding to independent projects.

We Are Live!

Over the past month, John and I have been working to apply to kickstarter and get our project idea together. We’ve worked tirelessly over the past few days to get ready. I’m proud to announce that our page is live!

Please check it out and let us know what you think. If you feel like donating to the project that would be awesome, but don’t feel obligated. Even more valuable than money is that you share this project with others. Maybe you aren’t in a position to help (I completely understand whats that’s like), but someone else might be. Spreading the word will help us make the dream come true.

The Last Time I Saw Her: Remembering My Grandmother, Mama Chila

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May 2008

A Remarkable Woman

Two years ago last week, my grandmother Mama Chila passed away. I’m not sure I can describe what an important person she was to the family. It was due to her pure determination that we were even reunited.

After the war, she went back to El Salvador to look for her lost grandson. She asked questions people didn’t want to hear and had doors slammed in her face. She kept pushing until her dream of finding me came true.

When we were reunited she played a crucial roll in bringing the two families together. The first letter she wrote to us after our initial visit was to my younger brother Derek. It started “Dear Grandson.” This was a very meaningful gesture because Derek was not related to her and the reunion had been hard on him. She knew the only way this would work is if we became one family. She set the tone right away.

Since I can’t put into words what she meant to us, I want to share with you my last memory of her.

Remembering Our Last Days

In May of 2008 I went down to Central America for three weeks. Mama Chila had started to get sick the fall of 2007. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I went to go visit, but I was pleasantly surprised to see her condition had improved. She was a little frail, but up to her old tricks, cooking, cleaning and doing chores around the house. I gave her a big hug and greeted the rest of the family. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew this could be the last time I saw her.

I’m pretty sure the first thing she asked me was if I was hungry. She would make a traditional Salvadoran dish called pupusas. Knowing that I was coming she had already gone to the store to get all the ingredients. Mama Chila and my aunt got to work right away.

They must have been really good that day because I ate a lot. I had four for five for lunch. Then I had another two as a snack and three more for dinner. As if I knew this was the last time I would enjoy her cooking, I had more than my fair share.

She loved to cook for me. I think it was her way of taking care of me. I had my own life in America and didn’t need anything from her. The one thing she could do for me, that she knew I loved, was to cook. I didn’t even have to ask. She was always ready when I came to visit and if I didn’t eat at least four she would ask if something was wrong.

This was our relationship. We never talked much about life or about the events of the past. We just had those little moments together. I think they were special in their own way. After everything we had been through, the separation and the journey to reunite, the only thing we needed was that.

It’s the Little Things You Miss the Most

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The Little Things

I hate to go
But I can’t stay
Stuck between worlds
A life almost complete
Bittersweet like lemonade
It’s the little things you miss the most
A hug on a rainy day
A joke no one else gets
Off on my own, until I return
And I remember why
I never want to leave

– Nelson/Roberto

My Sister Comes to Visit

It’s been a little quiet on the blog and Facebook page over the past week. That’s because my older sister Eva was visiting me from Costa Rica. She was here for about 10 days, even though it felt like much longer. I was so busy having fun with her that there wasn’t much time to post updates.

We did a lot in the short time we had. I was her personal tour guide and I took her all around Boston. We went to a Red Sox game and a Duck Tour, and walked all over the city. She really got to see and know Boston.

Some photos from our time together. More to come!

www.flickr.com

Getting to Know My World

I think it was interesting for her because she experienced a little bit of my life. Not only where I live, but what it’s like to travel like I do. You’re constantly torn between the people you love and the life you have. Just when you’ve adjusted it’s time to leave.

It’s not easy always being on the go but it’s the life we have. What’s the alternative? Sure we could all live our own lives and see each other every couple of years or so. That just seems like a waste of the second chance we have been given.

On the Road Again

Speaking of traveling, I will be going down to Panama at the end of the month. This will be a very short (for me) 10 day trip. Mostly, I will be helping my father’s business with some computer upgrades, but I will try to take some more great photos as well!