With just one week remaining in my fellowship at the HSC, I’ve started reflecting on how much I’ve learned over the past few months. Because I was out of town for part of the week, things were a little slower than usual, but it also allowed me to begin preparing for my final week and look back on everything my team and I have accomplished this summer.

We kicked off the week with our all-team meeting, where we discussed several upcoming HSC professional services, including next week’s Nonprofit Sector Snapshot at the Main Library Auditorium and wellness programming such as Be Kind to Your Mind and Joy is an Act of Resistance. One of the things I’ve appreciated most about HSC is how intentionally the organization balances advocacy and capacity building with a genuine commitment to the well-being of the nonprofit workforce.

This week I also had the opportunity to collaborate with our Marketing Specialist on a social media campaign recognizing HSC member organizations whose leaders were named to Columbus Business First’s 2026 Women of Influence list. We celebrated Kamilah Twymon of The Center for Family Safety and Healing, Ann Bischoff of Star House, Toni Cunningham of Godman Guild Association, Lisa Hinkelman of Ruling Our eXperiences (ROX), and Rachel Lustig of Lutheran Social Services. It was exciting to highlight these leaders and recognize and learn more about the organizations they lead in the process.

Looking back over the summer, one area where I’ve seen tremendous personal growth is digital communication and marketing. When I first started, I was still learning the nuances of Canva, organizational branding, and designing content that was both engaging and consistent with HSC’s identity. Over the past several months, I’ve become much more confident using color, imagery, and layout to create professional materials that reflect our organization’s voice. It’s rewarding to recognize skills that once felt unfamiliar now feel like second nature.

I also continued refining HSC’s national thought leaders database, making edits to improve its formatting and overall accessibility. As the database has grown, I’ve realized that creating a useful resource isn’t just about collecting information—it’s about presenting it in a way that allows others to quickly find, understand, and apply it.

Finally, I began preparing for next week’s closing presentation by revisiting my weekly blog posts, organizing photos from throughout the summer, and reflecting on the projects that have defined my fellowship experience. As I prepare to share these experiences with my cohort, I’m grateful for the opportunity to have spent my summer with an incredible organization.