Columbus Foundation Fellowship Programs

Hello Everyone! This past week I have been settling into my long-term project that I will conducting with Green Columbus this summer. Essentially, I am researching all things related to green spaces here in Columbus. Some of you may not know, but Columbus is one of the nation’s worst urban heat islands, which is a fancy title for a city is presumably hotter than its surrounding suburbs because  it has minimal green space. The science starts to become heavy, but essentially the asphalt and concrete structures of cities (e.g. roofs of buildings, parking lots, and roads) absorb so much heat that it creates a “heat island” effect effectively making it hotter in the city. Since Columbus is one of the worst heat islands in America, there has been a call for change.

One of the best ways to decrease the urban heat island effect is to increase green spaces. Not only do green spaces have exponential social, environmental, and health related benefits; but they also can decrease the urban heat island effect by transforming vacant lots into green space and decreasing the amount of exposed asphalt and concrete in the city. I would say that the best way to decrease the urban heat island effect would be to increase the tree canopy within the city. By planting trees all around the city, the trees can physically cover some of the roads and sidewalks to decrease the urban heat island effect. In addition to physically decreasing the temperature of the city, trees have an abundance of social, health, and environmental benefits as well.

With that being said, my job is to create a report explaining the benefits of green spaces and identifying gaps in Columbus’ current method of transforming vacant lots into green spaces. So, I will be researching the various programs that other cities have in place to see where the City of Columbus can improve. In addition, I have been informationally interviewing a few people in the Columbus area who specialize in this field.

As of now, the project is going very well and I am very excited to continue working on it throughout the remainder of my time with Green Columbus. Hopefully this report can invoke change in some organizations around Columbus, so that the city can decrease the urban heat island effect.

Until next time,

Jake

This week I’ve been really focused on getting the Learning Garden fundraiser off the ground. Though I’ve organized community events before while working with other community gardens, I’ve never been tasked with putting a fundraiser together. My experience so far has been overwhelmingly positive. My supervisor is both supportive of and excited for the event, which makes the planning really fun. The event is also the unveiling of the Hoover Haven, the newly renovated garden education center.

I reached out to Chef Kuukua who owns Asempe Kitchen to discuss working with her for the event and she was completely on board. She will give a cooking demonstration of her unique take on Ghanaian cuisine to guests that buy tickets for the event. Guests will, of course, be given samples of the food and will then be offered the opportunity to purchase larger portions prepared by Chef Kuukua. Though the Hoover Haven is too small to hold the event, we’re excited to have Chef Kuukua break in the new kitchen by using it to prepare the meal beforehand. Proceeds from ticket sales and from the sale of food will directly benefit the Learning Garden and support the development of educational programs for the Hoover Haven.  

It’s been really fulfilling to take a project from a vague idea to a concrete set of plans. I’m really excited that I found someone like Chef Kuukua to do the cooking demonstration because she’s spent her career using her kitchen to build community and bring people together, which is exactly what we hope to do at the Learning Garden. I’ve also enjoyed the experience of figuring out the logistics of hosting a fundraiser, like budgeting, securing donations, coordinating schedules, and marketing and promotion. I’m excited to share the flyer and link to the Facebook event and ticket information once our marketing team finalizes everything!

It was a short week due to the Holiday, but exciting nonetheless. I began calling some of Homeport’s residents to conduct a survey on their current financial state and their experiences with Homeport’s financial advising services. I’ve made a ton of calls this week, but have only received a couple of responses. While I was told to expect this, it still came at a surprise. A lot of numbers I’ve called so far are disconnected, and many don’t have voicemails. This has made collecting data very difficult, and it may take longer to conduct these surveys than I expected. I will also likely have to figure out another way to conduct these surveys, such as online by sending them via email.

Of the residents I have talked to, many seem very satisfied with the services that Homeport offers. Respondents have expressed how glad they are that they attended workshops or counseling because they learned so much. One resident said that attending budget counseling forced him to think about his expenses and led him to create a budget and spending plan to follow. Another resident said that being forced to think about her finances and identifying what was necessary and what wasn’t helped her create a budget and stay on top of her bills. Everyone I’ve spoken to so far has said that they would be very likely to recommend Homeport’s services to a friend or family member. This experience has shown me how much people value Homeport’s assistance and how much it can make an impact.

The unique opportunity to hear from residents first-hand has given me yet another new perspective of the issues that Homeport seeks to address. I’m looking forward to continuing calls next week and hearing more about resident’s experiences with Homeport’s services. This insight will give us valuable information about the effectiveness of financial wellness services for Gifts of Kindness recipients, and I’m excited to see what the data reveals.

Until next week,

Caroline Corona

Lady Bird Johnson would often use the quote “Where flowers bloom, so does hope.” Hope Hollow’s first summer fundraiser called “A Garden Party” is coming up on July 15th, and we decided to coin the term as well (because how much more fitting can it get?!). All ticket purchases and donations for this specific event will go towards benefiting children and young adults who receive services from Hope Hollow. Kim Knoppe and Marian Hutson, dear friends of Hope Hollow, have witnessed the effects that cancer has on their loved ones and graciously offered to put on this event.

A guest attending “A Garden Party” will receive a catered meal and drinks, enjoy live music by Matt Munhall, hear testimonies from those who have been touched by Hope Hollow, and so much more. As Hope Hollow continues to grow and gain recognition among communities of central Ohio (and beyond) fundraisers such as “A Garden Party” provide a small nonprofit various opportunities. For example, we are able to raise funds for an amazing mission, while at the same time spread the word about Hope Hollow to possible stakeholders: patients in need, interested donors, community partners, volunteers, etc.

It is easy for me to speak so highly about Hope Hollow because I have been behind the scenes getting to know the founders, Kevin and Jane Clark, interacting with cancer patients, and working aside committee members who are also passionate about what we are doing. However, I have no doubt that attendees of “A Garden Party” will be just as inspired as I am.

*Above is a picture of Jane holding a little boy named Aiden. He has since become an angel in heaven, but has never left Hope Hollow’s hearts or minds. Aiden is just one of the reasons “A Garden Party” will benefit the youth.

So what exactly has Hope Hollow had me busy with these past few weeks?…a variety of things let me tell ya!

• I am working along side Kim Knoppe and Marian Hutson to make sure everything for “A Garden Party” is squared away. Some of these things involve, contacting all Columbus Parishes so we can advertise the fundraiser in their bulletins, recruiting friends and relatives to attend the fundraiser, ordering and purchasing materials for the gift-bags, putting together PowerPoints, organizing volunteers, and a lot more that I am forgetting to mention.
• Kevin and Jane Clark continue to keep me involved with the patients that we serve too. I have listened in on many phone calls, delivered grocery and gas gift-cards to social workers, and even had the opportunity to meet a social worker from the Stefanie Spielman Comprehensive Breast Center.  Hope Hollow has brought some of the most faith filled and strong individuals into my life, and I continue to watch and learn from them in complete awe.
• I have also been utilizing the education the John Glenn College of Public Affairs has provided me with (and the education my parents have so generously have allowed me to pursue) in my daily work. Courses I have taken in community development, nonprofit management, nonprofit boards & governance, etc. have allowed me to take what I have learned and put it into practice. Whether that be working with authority, or communicating to board members I feel I have the knowledge to do so appropriately.

Week number 5?! Where in the world has this summer gone…

What this fellowship has taught me in these weeks…

1. I have one incredible support system! I cannot say thank you enough to the friends and family who have kindly supported Hope Hollow and I during this fundraiser. I am so grateful for everyone who has bought a ticket or donated (especially those all the way in Cincinnati and South Carolina)!
2. Cancer SUCKS! but it doesn’t define an individual by any means. Recently, Hope Hollow has had several members of its community pass away. Although it is very sad, the hope and courage of their loved ones is contagious and unwavering.
3. I am realizing the difficulty behind event planning and fundraising. My hat goes off to those who do this for a living…boy is it tough!

Ohio Wildlife Center offers a free infoline service that allows concerned citizens to call in with various questions about animals in their backyard, on the road, or in the mouths of their dogs, etc. A story we hear often is that of a young bird sitting on the ground somewhere alone and unable to fly. People are often concerned that the bird is injured or orphaned or both. The bird can’t fly, are its wings broken? He’s all by himself, were his parents killed? The answer to these questions is typically no.

Contrary to what we see in movies and books, baby birds do not actually just take off flying from their nests all in one day, perfect and strong. It’s not that glamorous. In reality they awkwardly hop/fall out their nest and sit around blinking at their brand new world for a while. It’s not easy to spend your whole life in a nest and then start soaring right away. These birds that we find on the ground looking clueless are actually called fledglings. A fledgling is older than a baby bird but not quite an adult bird. There’s a gawky inbetween stage where they have to get out of the nest and figure out what the heck is happening around them. Their parents will often check in on them, drop them some food, make sure they’re doing okay. The fledglings will try out their wings day by day and then when they are strong enough, they will take to the skies all by themselves.

I’m twenty years old and I feel like at this age we are all a little like fledglings. For many of us, we are living on our own for the first time, beginning full-time internships and testing out the waters of adulthood. We can’t quite fly on our own yet and luckily my parents still drop me some food every once in awhile. This stage is filled with practice and growth and constant learning. In my time with Ohio Wildlife Center, I am able to shadow the more experienced employees, trying to figure out my new world. I think it’s a helpful mindset to know that you don’t have to be able to start flying all out at once right out of the nest. Nature has its way. There are challenges and steep learning curves in every field. While we may look and feel a little confused and bewildered in our twenties, every day we are taking steps towards flight.

Olivia Adkins

Hi Everyone! I’d like to take the opportunity on this blog post to inform some of you about why I am interested in the non-profit sector and my future career aspirations. I’m sure not all of you know my academic background, but I am currently a student at the Ohio State University double majoring in Environment, Economy, Development, and Sustainability (EEDS) and Public Management, Leadership, and Policy (PMLP); and delving even further, my specialization within EEDS is international development. Trust me, I know all of that is a mouthful to say; so to put it into simpler terms, I study international environmental and developmental economics and public policy.

I have explored many different career fields, and I’m still not sure what I want to do “when I grow up.” However, my agenda moving into the professional world is to adjust environmental policy surrounding social injustice both domestically and internationally; now, I have no clue whether that means I should join the Peace Corps or become an environmental lobbyist in Washington D.C.

Even though I am uncertain about what the future holds, I do know that working with non-profits is vital in my field of work. I think that by working in the non-profit sector, I can better understand how small organizations can change the communities in which they are present. For example, if I do become an environmental lobbyist, then I can appreciate and understand the work that non-profits do everyday. On the other hand, I just worked on a development project in Tanzania this past May, and we worked closely with a non-profit there called the Kilimanjaro Hope Organization (KiHO). Even though I had been working on the project for only a few months and I had only been in country for a few weeks, I now appreciate the work that the members of that organization do everyday. No matter what field I decide to go into, having experience in the non-profit sector will take me a long way.

In conclusion, I think that working in the non-profit sector is highly beneficial to my professional development. Through working in the non-profit sector, I can carry the skills and appreciation that I have gained into the professional world.

Until next time,

Jake

Hello again!

This week flew by as the middle of the week holiday sort of threw off the routine a bit, which was appreciated by everyone! In the heat of the summer, it is easy to begin to dread going outside and instantly being swallowed up by humidity, especially when a large percentage of your work is outside. This week, I was refreshed by the excitement of the 4th of July and the true tastes, smells, and memories of summer that make me wish it would last all year around.

Kristina, who does the finances for the Audubon Center, gave me a crash course on how to keep a nonprofit alive financially and the day to day spreadsheets that keep us on track.  July 1st was the beginning of the fiscal year, so I got to see how the center did last year in terms of expenses and income (in the form of grants, individual donors, and corporate sponsorship). I would not say that I am a natural when it comes to Excel or numbers in general, but it was fascinating (and not as scary as I imagined!) to learn about all the intricacies and detail that go in to keeping a nonprofit running.  I am so thankful when a staff member sits down with me to explain something I might just be expected to pick up without a briefing otherwise. Shout out to Katie who taught me how to use a dichotomous key today, which is a fancy word for a plant identification guide.

Another highlight of this week was going to COSI After Dark with my coworkers. It was fun to interact with everyone after work hours and explore the wonders of science right next door to us! I even got to be first in line for the Unicycle which has always been a dream of mine to ride (but the line is always crazy long), so that was a check mark off the bucket list.

Next week we will be buying supplies for and making the palette gardens so stay tuned for that! The “Upcycled Herb Garden” educational program will be at the Audubon Center on August 9th at 6:30pm, mark your calendars! We will be sharing how to make your own upcycled garden and grow delicious herbs in it. I am no master gardener so my new friend (and Grange Insurance Audubon Center Board member) Lori will be helping me out with this endeavor.

Peace!

Tori

On Tuesday of last week, the fellows had a great leadership session featuring two alums and two other mavens in the non-profit professional world. The leadership session could not have come at a more perfect time for me. If you can recall, I had been feeling a little bit stressed about the upcoming fundraiser I am planning for my organization. As a result, I have been putting all of my energy into making this fundraiser a success. My summer fellowship is the first time I have worked as a full time employee, let alone as a full time employee in the non-profit realm. I have always been used to clocking out entirely as soon as work lets out. As soon as 5pm hits—I answer no phone calls, no emails, nothing.

However, this summer I have found myself not sticking to my rule of containing my work between 9am to 5pm. At Central, I work from 10am-6pm, and sometimes have to do extra work after 6pm. For the planning of the fundraiser in particular, there have been times where I have met with people for meetings after I leave for work, visit restaurants before 10am, driven to different parts of the city in rush hour traffic to try to retrieve donations from different businesses, and so on. To be honest, the extra work is thrilling. I enjoy the fact that my work does not solely revolve around being in an office. At the same time, it can be a bit draining because I have not found a balance yet in which my extra effort is wholly productive rather than a mere feeling of productivity. Because at the end of the day, the extra work has not made me feel any less worrisome about the event. So, when the speakers visited, I asked for their advice on how to maintain joy and health in their professional lives. One of the best pieces of advice they gave me was “Do your job, Don’t become your job.”

Since Tuesday, I have truly taken the advice of “Do your job, Don’t become your job” to heart. Although I have not perfected the work-life balance yet, I have become more conscious and honest with myself about how much I can handle. I almost visited a restaurant on a Saturday of my four-day July 4th weekend to discuss the fundraising event! But, I decided that I needed my Saturday to myself.  I love the work I am doing because it is exciting work and it is good work. However, I am learning about ensuring that my work neither consumes my life nor my identity. Before I am a public servant, I am an individual with needs of sleep, food, good health, and joy and I can never forget that.

Hello, hi, welcome to my second post in two days! (I promise you, though, this bonus post is worth it!)

LeaderSpark is predominately an organization that hosts leadership development events, workshops, and programs throughout the year to help youth grow into strong, independent members of society. Some of the projects that they engage in, though, are a little more hands on, and I’m pretty excited that I’ve had the opportunity to dip my toes into one of them recently- Honey Child.

Honey Child is a social enterprise that was started by some of the youth that have participated in the LeaderSpark curriculum. They make honey, chapstick, and candles… from scratch. Which means these students are L I T E R A L L Y doing BEEKEEPING, managing their expenses, and doing everything it takes to create their own business, which is pretty dang cool!

All I’m saying is… the youth that we work with are pretty amazing. I worked to get some of the newly created candles ready to sell recently and seeing how much this enterprise has expanded since the Honey Child group started in just November 2016 is incredibly inspiring. These students want to learn and grow and make a difference, and I can’t even begin to describe how meaningful it is for me to be a part of an organization that makes that happen for them. A lot of the students that we work with are considered to be some that society as deemed unworthy or has given up on, but being a part of LeaderSpark… I know we never will. They deserve so, so much more.

SHAMELESS PLUG FOR THIS REALLY AWESOME GROUP OF YOUTH:

If you would like to buy any honey, chapstick, or candles from Honey Child, email Kay Wilson at kay@leaderspark.org or call our office at 1-614-442-7899.

(Heads up: the candles are honey and mint scented and likely the most amazing thing you’ll ever smell in your time on this earth)

Until next time, my friends!

Sam

Summer Art Workshops do not run this week because of the 4^th of July holiday, so I am able to take some breathes and participate in museum programs that I do not normally have the opportunity to be a part of.

Today, I joined an Artful Adventure tour. As described by CMA, Artful Adventures is, “is a unique preschool experience focusing on play, imagination, and wonder in CMA galleries. Preschool groups spend one hour exploring CMA with specially trained education staff members to discuss, imagine, and engage in hands-on activities that foster imaginative thinking.” This program is facilitated by the Learning department that I work under and often has summer camps and daycares sign up to participate.

It was fascinating to watch the preschool aged children react and discuss works of art hanging on the gallery walls. Our first stop was in front of a large piece that depicts a pool of water reflecting trees, a man, and clouds. The children talked about the strangeness of seeing familiar objects that are hanging upside down.

Then, using materials that we brought up to the galleries we had the students create a picnic for the man in the painting to eat. Most of the students jumped right in and were able to access their imagination quickly in order to decide what this upside-down man in the water would want to eat. Other kids needed a little encouragement about how to use material such as little puff balls, foil, and pipe cleaners to make something delicious.

Our last stop of the Artful Adventure was in front of a series of four works that show body shapes behind watery panes of glass. The children were quickly able to pick up on the sadness or creepy feeling that the pictures evoke. Using makeshift clip boards and paper, we had the students draw what they think the people behind the water really look like.

Chloe Napoletano