MEET TOMMY OBENCHAIN, FOUNDER OF “PEARLS FOR LIFE”
Keeping track of Tommy Obenchain is no easy task. One either has to hop around the globe on a regular basis, or else constantly check Twitter (@whereistommyo) to learn the 22-year-old’s ever-changing location. “Omaha-Minneapolis-Nashville-Memphis-Liberty Bowl-Nashville-Break in via 2nd story balcony-NYEshakedown-Atlanta-Skyclub-Dallas-Home. #2012.” In less than 140 characters, that tweet says it all.
While it’s not unusual for young adults to catch the travel bug, something distinguishes Tommy from the rest: his journeys are not just for pleasure and play, but rather for a significant purpose.
“I think the confluence of travel and service is wildly enlightening,” he commented. “Serving in other parts of our world has enlarged my heart in a unique way – I’ve been stretched to see the wide expanse of humanity as one.”
Before explaining what exactly Tommy does, it’s important to share a glimpse of who Tommy is. In a nutshell, he’s a Dallas native with deep faith and incredible vision, a strategic leader always thinking outside of the box, and a lively fellow with a heart as big as Texas and a smile even bigger than that.
Frequently playing “businessman” with his dad’s briefcase as a little lad, Tommy has always had an entrepreneurial eye, which blossomed when he traveled to China during his mid-teenage years. He visited an impoverished orphanage and a Chinese pearl market, and then returned home to found “Pearls for Life,” a social enterprise that sells freshwater pearls to help those in need.
In May of 2009, while studying International Business Communication and Political Science, Tommy completed a month-long microfinance internship in Bangladesh. There, a new idea began to take shape: what if his freshwater pearl sales could help fill Bangladesh’s incredible need for clean drinking water?
By the following May, Tommy had gathered a team to embark on a research trip aimed at uncovering the core of the problem and how to create a sustainable solution. He soon connected with the developer of the Sono filter, a device able to filter out 100 percent of arsenic in a water supply, and shortly thereafter redirected his pearl profits to benefit the Bangladeshi people.
The endeavor’s microfinance model recycles funds back into the community, and thus perpetuates the installation of Sono filters. Today, over 50 filters are in use, which have brought clean water access to over 500 individuals.
“‘Pearls for Life’ is more than our name; it is who we are and what we do,” explained Tommy. “Our jewelry all comes from fresh water – that’s where a pearl’s life begins. And our work ends in giving clean water, which is the centerpiece of life on earth. So, water to water – pearls for life.”
Follow Tommy on Twitter, and find “Pearls for Life” on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/taylorpearlco
Founded by 22-year-old Tommy Obenchain, “Pearls for Life” uses its profits to bring clean water to Bangladesh, a country where 77 million people drink contaminated water each day.