A Founder’s Journey
People become a compilation of their experiences, and their surroundings. Each new experience teaches something and can leave an imprint that lasts for life. Here are some of the experiences and lessons throughout my life in the nonprofit sector which have influenced the way I see the world, the sector, and Giveology.
Over the Rhine Community Housing
What I learned: Progress isn’t equally distributed
Beginning in High School in Cincinnati, I became involved with OTRCH through Elder High School. We had a partnership with another local high school to volunteer to renovate apartment buildings in an area of Cincinnati known as Over the Rhine (OTR.) I graduated from high school in 2011 and in the same year OTR was named the most dangerous neighborhood in the country. It was clear to the city and to residents that change was needed.
While undoubtedly, city residents would consider the revitalization of OTR a massive success, this volunteering was my first experience with gentrification. As luxury apartments were planned, new bars, restaurants and shops opened up store fronts, OTRCH focused on a different problem, affordable housing. When I look back on my experience, I am reminded that capitalism and progress tend to leave the most vulnerable in the dust. This is when I first learned the true purpose of nonprofit organizations, which is to fill the gaps in our economy and to take care of those who aren’t taken care of by the “progress” of a free market economy.
Inner City Youth Opportunities - Cincinnati
What I learned: Becoming a true stakeholder is enriching to the individual and the organization
I went to college at the University of Cincinnati and joined the Sigma Chi Fraternity. In this blog I don’t plan to litigate the very real positives and negatives of Greek life, however, personally, this is where I learned what it meant to be a true stakeholder in an organization. Over four years, I became a volunteer, a donor, an ambassador, a volunteer organizer, a friend, and a partner for the organization. I tutored at Inner City Youth Opportunities after-school program every Wednesday for four years, and twice worked their summer camp.
Throughout all this time, I got to know the employees and the founder, and they got to know me. We built a level of trust where we felt comfortable enough with each other to share our thoughts, feelings and ideas with each other about the long tern success of the organization. This included the increased involvement of my fraternity in their programming and their activities. We created new programs and activities hand -in-hand with them and created an organizational relationship that is still as strong as ever nearly 10 years later.
What I learned: Community and social fundraising is very powerful
Another tie to my fraternity is our national philanthropy and our Derby Days week. As a college kid, it was difficult to make the kind of impact I wanted to make personally. However, through a group and through our university community we were able to exponentially increase the impact we made simply by joining a movement. That movement was the Huntsman Cancer Institute’s mission to understand cancer from its beginnings, to use that knowledge in the creation and improvement of cancer treatments, to relieve the suffering of patients with cancer, and to provide education about cancer risk, prevention, and care.
People all over our campus community knew they were contributing to something bigger than themselves, and at the same time other communities across the country were doing the same thing. This national network created a larger sense of community, belonging and positive impact that led to millions of dollars being raised by college students for one cause.
The Children’s Place Association
What I learned: Systemic issues call for a holistic approach
The Children’s Place Association began in 1991 and originally served the needs of children effected by HIV/AIDS either personally or with family members. Over 30 years they expanded their reach to now serve “Chicago’s most vulnerable children.” As they learned more about the populations they were serving, they continued to add services and programs to provide assistance. Today Children’s Place Association operates an early learning center, provides social work case management, offers mental health counseling and other medical services, assists in affordable housing arrangements. These are just some examples of the variety of services they offer, while still expanding, to serve their clients in a holistic way.
What they did well at the beginning of their organization was to have a clear mission. Their clients and their services have expanded over time, but their mission has remained the same. It is also their open mind and their commitment to listening to their clients which has led them to their expansion. Instead of pretending to know what is best for their clients and prescribing solutions, they constantly choose collaborate by asking how they can best serve, and act based on those suggestions.
What I learned: Strong relationships are an organization’s most important resource
North Park University is a small, Christian, liberal arts school who aims to prepare students for “lives of significance and service.” I still work there in the office of advancement, and it is where I earned my Masters in Nonprofit Administration. While North Park doesn’t have the financial and institutional resources that other schools (even of similar sizes) have, their alumni and donors have an incredibly strong affinity for and commitment to the school.
This did not happen by accident, North Park for as long as I can tell has made their main priority building and maintaining relationships, even over annual fundraising goals and quotas. When done right this priority does lead to dollars in the door, but there is a level of trust built with their constituents which has served them far better in the long run than simply squeezing donors for every dollar. North Park views donors and alumni as partners in their shared mission instead of a form of revenue, which is what the nonprofit sector should look like at its best… stakeholders collaborating to accomplish their mission.
I would encourage everyone to reflect on your personal experiences with the nonprofit sector, what have you learned, what do you still have to learn, what is it that draws you to this work?
