Columbus Foundation Fellowship Programs

As my work with WARM and the Kids Lunch Club continues, I realize how many hats non-profit employees wear.  WARM (http://www.warmwesterville.org/) has only three full-time employees, meaning they must fill multiple roles and accomplish numerous responsibilities.  Recently, I found myself compiling daily meal count forms from each site to produce a summary of the first five weeks of the Kids Lunch Club program.  Sometimes, I can get caught up in the day-to-day tasks and lose sight of the bigger picture.  However, seeing the numbers of how many children are being fed a nutritious, free lunch meal brought me back to the mission and what is truly important.  In the first half of the program this year, we have averaged 198 meals/day, totaling 4,760 meals to Westerville area children!  With the collaboration between the Governor’s Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, the Ohio Association of Foodbanks, and W.A.R.M., we have observed a huge positive impact upon children and families due to weekend backpack meals.  Including the regular lunches provided at the Lunch Club as well as the backpack meals, close to 9,000 meals have been provided to children!  These numbers may not mean much to an outsider, but last year’s total number of meals served to children was 3,818.  On days when the numbers of participating children seem lower than average or we accidentally over-order meals, it is good for me to remember what we are doing is critical to each child.  I’m excited to be a part of this growing and changing organization. 

The full-time and part-time staff had a monthly meeting, which I was able to attend this week.  Occasionally, I can feel like I’m in the “Lunch Club world” so it was enlightening to check in with the other departments to hear about the great projects on which the other staff are working.  I was especially pleased to hear about the 54% increase in volunteers this year thus far.  The active community engagement in W.A.R.M. is truly inspiring and encouraging.  In May, W.A.R.M. was chosen as a recipient of the 2012 Torch Award for Ethical Enterprising by the Better Business Bureau.  This prestigious award recognizes organizations which emphasize the highest standards in leadership character ethics and ethical enterprising.  The executive director of W.A.R.M., Scott, spoke of celebrating this success together, reminding me of the last learning session with Cramer & Associates.  Speaking of learning sessions, I am anxious for the next one later this week! 

Signing off until then,

Owen

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