Hi all! In my second week with the Center for Disability Empowerment, I have continued to work on the 35th Anniversary Celebration of the Americans with Disabilities Act. As the event approaches, there are many moving parts we are trying to pull together. Now that I have a better  grasp on the project, I found that I have been able to work more independently this week. I started working on tasks on my own and sending out emails to sponsors about program information. I have certainly seen how important it is to keep information well documented and organized for event planning. 

One unique opportunity I had this week was to attend the Delaware County Board of Developmental Disabilities meeting. I accompanied Sue Hetrick, the CDE Executive Director, as she presented about the Anniversary Celebration of the ADA we are working on and encouraged the DCBDD to sponsor the event. I have never attended a board meeting like this before, and never considered that something like this may be an occasional responsibility of a nonprofit executive director. We have not heard back yet about a decision from the board, but are hopeful that Sue’s succinct and effective pitch has made them willing to sponsor the event. 

After the Fellows Learning Session at the Columbus Foundation on Wednesday, I tried to think about how I could be a leader at the CDE even as an intern. I reflected on some of my strengths as a worker and team member, and thought about how these strengths could be a positive example or inspiration to anyone I have been working with, no matter their position in the organization. This was a motivating thought, and I hope to continue to put forth high quality work at the CDE to lead in a small, but nonetheless powerful way. 

Until next week, 

Rachael McCague