Folk wisdom has it that a poor gardener grows weeds, a good gardener grows vegetables, and a very good gardener grows soil.
Edward C. Smith, The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible
I Never Met Shobhana Chandra
But from everything I have heard I would have liked her. Her fellow business journalists called her, “beloved and highly respected,” every ready with, “a friendly greeting or words of support.” Sho, as her colleagues knew her, brought an international perspective to the Society for Advancing Business Writing and Editing (SABEW) as a board member.
She passed away on February 20th, 2019.
The Sho Fund
Sho’s SABEW colleagues wanted her legacy to live on. So they created a scholarship in her name. The Sho Fund attracts journalists of color to business journalism and helps pay for their professional development.
This year, I was one of three journalists of color to benefit from the Sho Fund. This week I am headed down to Tampa thanks to a fellowship in Sho’s name.
Good Soil
Some people grow weeds in the soil of their fields. They do shoddy work and leave things worse off. Others do decent work, but their daily headlines leave behind nothing but fish and chip wrappers.
And then there are people like Sho. Her life means something to people who have never met her. People like me.
Sho’s life and work resulted in a fund to diversify the field of business journalism. She continues to enrich her field with new and exciting perspectives. She left good soil.
If you would like to make a donation in memory of Sho, you can donate online, please pick The Sho Fund in the drop-down menu.
