Columbus Foundation Fellowship Programs

Week four. Day 20. I already feel like I’ve been at the Guild for months!

I feel like this because there’s so much going on around me. Kids are at SYEP camp at Camp Mary Orton. ACES started its new Pre-K program last week. The KEYS program has just revved up its engine, with new employees and orientations. Teachers are gearing up for classes to start-up in mid July. And the D&O team … I like to believe they’re always busy but this summer it just seems magnetized.

Thankfully, I’m here to help this summer.

Linda told me in my interview that she needed her Fellow to be creative. She needed them to be what she wasn’t. She told me later, after I was selected, that I was everything they were looking for and needed.

Since I first started at the Guild, I’ve been needed to do many different types of tasks. Analyzing the website, brainstorming themes and concepts for the Annual Report and Holiday Campaign, writing blogs and tidbits about the Guild, coordinating deadlines and articles for the newsletter and Annual Report, helping out at GED graduation, running small errands, shooting photos if needed, and designing.

Design. This is where my “heart truly lies.” My passion. (Other than Johnny Depp movies, if you didn’t already notice my quote!)

Surly Girl Saloon placemat, BOD nameplate, informational brochure, mailchimp template, and web construction using Post Its.

I only wish I had more of a role in designing the actual Annual Report and newsletter. Godman Guild has an out-of-house designer, like most nonprofits do. Maybe I could be the future IN-house designer in a couple of years… It doesn’t hurt to dream, does it?

–Stephanie

Happy Friday everyone!

The Ohio Association of Foodbanks is a finalist for Toyota’s 100 Cars for Good,  which is a giveaway of 100 vehicles to 100 non-profits in 100 days (and I’m 100 percent sure you want to help!).

TOMORROW, July 7th, the Ohio Association of Foodbanks is competing against four other non-profits for a Toyota Camry Hybrid, we need YOUR HELP to make us a winner!! If you have a Facebook (which isn’t far fetched to say that you probably do), then please vote for the Ohio Association of Foodbanks (formerly the Ohio Association of Second Harvest Foodbanks) tomorrow starting at 10 AM!!! You can click on this link, search for 100carsforgood on Facebook or go directly to our 100 Cars For Good Page here. Simply click on the vote tab and vote for us! It’s easy!! Share also with your friends on Facebook so that we can be sure to make the Ohio Association of Foodbanks a winner!!!

Check out these short videos for the contest.

This first one is explaining the contest:

This one is our entry video:

Your support would be incredibly appreciated! As said int he video, we could use this vehicle to reach more Ohioans, extending our Ohio Benefit Bank services.

Thanks everyone and have a great weekend (don’t forget to vote!),

Melissa

First, I’d like to say THANK YOU to all of the community non-profits who have taken the time to meet with me or to speak with me on the phone. I have been learning a lot, and I am very appreciative of everyone’s time… especially with this being a short work week. (Happy Independence Day!)

It’s been very cool to get an inside view of a variety of different non-profits. While asking about their transportation challenges and related solutions, I’ve also been able to gain a better understanding of their missions, overall operations, the populations they serve, etc, etc. As someone looking to identify the best ways to make meaningful contributions within the non-profit sector, I am very fortunate to be working on this project for the Dowd Education Center.

Here at Homeless Families Foundation, the staff continues to provide outstanding service to families in need. This morning, I was able to help deliver some household supplies to a family who just moved in to their new home. It was great to see how happy they were to be living in a clean and safe environment! And I am very happy for them!

I can’t believe we are at the end of the third week of this Fellowship!  Time flies!  I have to say the highlight of this week was looking at the results of my volunteer survey.  In this busy world, I really was not sure what kind of responses I would get.  I know when I am asked to take a survey, I generally put it off for as long as possible because I just have so many other things to do.  Now that I am on the other end, I really appreciate the time the Food Pantry’s volunteers put into their answers.  While only 20% of our volunteers actually took the survey, those that did provided simply wonderful insight.

The purpose of the survey was twofold: first, to find out environmental concerns of the pantry from the volunteer’s point of view; and second, to gauge how appreciated they felt as a volunteer, and what the Food Pantry could do to better show their appreciation.  There are many days where there is more work to be done than volunteers available, so the Food Pantry Board was very interested to hear how the volunteers felt about their time spent here.

I was slightly worried when I first opened the survey results.  What if the volunteers are angry?  What if they don’t like what the Pantry can offer them?  I surely did not want to be the bearer of bad news.  As usual, my worries were for naught.  While I really did not know what the volunteers would say, I absolutely did not expect the immense satisfaction and gratitude the volunteers had for the work they do.  I realized their views reflect my own about volunteering, and that I should have known the responses before they even came in.

One volunteer wrote, “I don’t volunteer to be appreciated.  I volunteer because I believe in the mission.  That is what satisfies me”

Another explained, “I know in my heart I am doing good work.  I don’t need to be rewarded for that.”

Many went on to explain similar feelings.  Knowing that they are needed and being able to help.  The understanding that getting food to the hungry is the ultimate goal – not any form of public recognition.

Part of my Fellowship experience is making the Food Pantry more volunteer friendly.  This week, part of my job description changed.  Previously, I was brainstorming all of the different ways we could let the volunteers know they are appreciated – raffles, volunteer of the month, newsletter recognition, etc.  While we may still do these things, the job has evolved.  Many of the volunteers requested more training so they would be better able to help our neighbors in need.  And not just Food Pantry training – also gaining knowledge about outside community resources, so they would be ready to assist those that needed more than groceries to get by.

There are many ugly things in this world, and many beautiful things.  This is beautiful.  I had asked what the Food Pantry could do for its volunteers, and inadvertently the volunteers responded with asking what more they could do for their community.  THIS is what our nonprofits are about.  We don’t do it for the recognition.  We do it because we love our communities and our neighbors.

With love,

Liz

Site selection for the Near East Side Cooperative Market (NESCM) has forced me to flip my thinking upside down. Instinctively, the first questions I had when looking at each space were, “is this space big enough?” or “is this space nice enough?” Perhaps these questions are a function of my privileged background; I’ve always had the luxury of striving for something bigger/better/grander. However, when discussing potential spaces with the project coordinator and other board members, I realized that they were asking the polar opposite questions.

As we sat in Zanzibar coffee house after checking out a couple sites, someone piped up, “I dunno… that space seemed a little big. Will we be able to fill all those shelves?”

BIG, I thought? The place was a mere 1000 square feet!

Then someone else chimed in, “yeah, I know some other co-ops that operated successfully in 500 square feet for their first ten years of business.”

Comments like these made me realize that starting too big would ultimately make the co-op fall flat on its face. It’s better to have a small space that looks fully stocked and abundant than a large space that always appears empty. Not to mention that a smaller space means less overhead, fewer workers, and a smaller product base to keep inventory of. Once I wrapped my head around the idea that smaller was better, I got hit by another paradox.

Talking about a gorgeous new space on Long Street that we had just toured (pictured above), someone said, “I’m nervous that the place is too nice; will the folks in the community think that storefront is too fancy?”

I was a little bit blindsided by that one. Wouldn’t the community be thrilled with a sparkling new storefront for the community market? After a bit more discussion I realized… maybe not. If this is meant to be a community gathering place, the community should feel comfortable there. And if the perception exists that this co-op is too corporate or too fancy, then the community may not feel at home. That would be a big mistake on our part.

I’m learning lessons along these lines on a daily basis, and I’m infinitely grateful for them. The ability to think flexibly and to view problems from all angles is at the crux of critical thinking. In the past, I’ve prided myself on my open-mindedness and ability to approach situations without assumptions. However, the longer I work with NESCM, the more I realize how far I have left to go. Sometimes my assumptions are so ingrained that I don’t even recognize they’re there. Re-training my thinking to approach every situation as a blank slate is difficult, but it will enable me to operate free of prejudice and bias, which is a virtue in nearly every circumstance.

There has never yet been a man in our history who led a life of ease whose name is worth remembering. -Theodore Roosevelt

I am now working for the Ohio Association of Foodbanks (formerly  the Ohio Association of Second Harvest Foodbanks).  The Ohio Association of Foodbanks has been an unofficial affiliate of Feeding America, which was formerly known as America’s Second Harvest until the 2008 name change. As we became an official Partner State Association of Feeding America earlier this yea,r taking ‘second harvest’ from our namesake allows for a more easily understood connection and intent of the organization.

It may be a challenge referring to the organization as the Ohio Association of Foodbanks; catching myself before I add in the ‘Second Harvest’, but as with all changes, time allows for adaption and soon it won’t cause me to even blink an eye.

Click the picture to see our website^^

Short post today, I’ll write more later this week.

Until next time,

Melissa

It’s no secret that we can’t truly serve people until we know what they need help with. It’s no secret we can find a solution until we identify a problem. And in my experience, it’s to be certain that there is something we can learn from each person we meet. In fact, I believe to be the greatest servant leader we can be, we must first have the willingness to put others needs before oneself, we must have the humility to accept we do not always know what’s best for ourselves and others, and we must have the meekness to learn from and about others.

Now I believe for my internship with the Down Syndrome Association I am still in the stage of learning from others. And my, how I have learned.

In three weeks at the DSACO office, I have learned several important things:

(1) Improvement is always possible, and it is always necessary. In striving to better the lives of those with Down syndrome in the central Ohio area, improvement is not an option, it is our mission. So every day we are trying to improve communication, increase planning, assess experiences, and brainstorm ideas.

(2) To maximize impact, one must work with others. We don’t know all the answers, and we can’t execute all the plans, so teaming up and collaborating can minimize knowledge gaps, and maximize output. We work with other passionate people in our office, we work with experts in various fields for our different programs (Golf Academy, Summer Learning Academy, Lose The Training Wheels, etc.)

(3) Have fun. We laugh a lot every day, and I wake up every morning excited about going to work, hanging out with the staff, and meeting new people.

I’ve learned just as much from the Down syndrome folks and family members I have met this Summer:

(1) Celebrate the small things. Possibly the most powerful thing I’ve learned this summer. There can never be enough high-fives, too much dancing, or too many laughs or smiles.

(2) Learning is exciting. To have the opportunity to come out of something knowing one more thing than before you came in is extraordinary, and it should never be taken for granted, whether you’re learning how to putt a golf ball, identify a picture of a camel, or pick-up a new dance move.

Other things I’ve learned that I think you should know too: Down syndrome is caused by having three copies of the 21st chromosome. That extra chromosome can result in low muscle tone, small stature, and several other medical conditions. These results vary in magnitude across Down syndrome patients. It is the most common chromosomal abnormality, occurring once in every 700 or so live births. Approximately 4 million people worldwide have Down syndrome, also known as trisomy 21. And it is Down syndrome. Not Down Syndrome.

While I’m still learning, I’ve come a long way from the young man who had never spoken to  someone with Down syndrome. And it’s been truly a blessing. Learning? Check. Serving? Let’s do this.

~Alfred Yates

With the help of employees, interns, and board members, I have been laying down the foundation for improving the transition to full time employment for the homeless population.   In order to accomplish this we need to work on three things.  Firstly, we need to make sure that Street Speech, selling newspapers to the public, is only temporary.  Secondly, we need to do a needs-assessment to determine what is holding these individuals back from gaining full-time employment.  Thirdly, we need to expand the existing social enterprise, Greenworks, to offer more street newspaper vendors the opportunity to work for it after selling the newspaper

I have been told that Street Speech needs to be transitional employment.  I have noticed that many vendors are staying in the program for several years.  We need to limit the amount of time that these vendors can participate in this program because it was initially set-up to provide quick, immediate relief and not long-term employment.  We will create mandatory workshops based on the needs assessment to help transition from them this program to Greenworks or another full-time employment option.

One employee and I have been working to expand Greenworks in order to feed vendors into this program from Street Speech.  Greenworks’s capacity is not big enough to hire many vendors.  Firstly, we need to do a better job at marketing the program to increase the number of customers.  I recently made a survey to send out to various businesses in downtown and the Short North.  Secondly, it will be more profitable to find a place to sort the recyclables to collect extra money versus dumping the recyclables into a RUMPKE recycling bin.  We have looked into this option, but no companies offer enough money to make it worthwhile.

My quest for starting a new social enterprise was put to a halt when I saw that the social enterprise Clean Turn is already doing the same work I wanted to do.  I will continue to meet with the entrepreneurs who have started social enterprises and find out what the community needs to set up my own startup.  If I am unable to accomplish this I will network with these current social enterprises to hire our homeless population.

To meet the social needs of the vendors I am in the process of setting up a bowling night for the street vendors.  I will use tactics from the Cramer and Associates presentation to create this evening.  I will be talking to the bowling manager at a local bowling alley where one of my co-workers and I frequently bowl.  I have done my research by looking up the current prices of group rates.  I will ask the manager for a lowered rate based on the needs of our population.  In exchange, I will tell him in exchange we can put the name of the alley in one of our homeless brochures.

David Teran

It’s funny that Melissa below mentions the Strengths Finder test because this week I FINALLY got to take it myself!   For years I’ve been hearing my friends talk about their results for a greek retreat, leadership retreat, etc., and taking it has always been on my list.  My office does a great job with staff related activities and one of the more recent ones revolved around taking the Strengths Finder 2.0 Test and everybody talks about their results all of the time.  I share an office with my two bosses and hearing them talk about their “woo” was a little confusing and I was ready to be able to share my strengths!

I scored: Significance, Communication, Harmony, Relator, and Input.  Check out the website if you’re more curious about what this test is and what the strengths mean.  Essentially though, it’s funny that I’m in a development and fundraising office and the “woo” factor isn’t at the top of my list.  Woo is exactly what it sounds like–the ability to get people to like you and cooperate well with you.  However, I found my strengths actually make sense for a fundraising and development professional.  Together, my strengths tell me that I love to be a part of a team and facilitate it’s survival and to form strong, personal relationships with people.  This reminds me that there are several ways to skin a cat; there are different types of people that make great fundraisers (and salesmen :)! ).  This book was also really motivating in that the emphasis is on what people do best.  The author of the book argues that for years Americans have poured effort into removing their weaknesses and focusing on them in lieu of honing their strengths and touting them.  It was a breath of fresh air for me as an A-type personality who consistently focuses on what I have to work on!

Some other things I got to do this week included a working lunch and dinner at Level and a another lunch at Union Cafe in the Short North.  Despite living in Columbus for four years, I have somehow never made it to these restaurants and I’m glad I finally did!

Until next week,

–Katie