Practice in Vulnerability

There has been a long gap in posts on this blog, partially because during the Fall of 2011 I was utterly overwhelmed wrapping up my final semester of the Masters in Public Administration / Nonprofit Management program. The other reason, however, was that I felt like I had nothing to say. When you’re so busy, wrapped up in task after task with something to be done every moment, you become like a machine. You...

Remembering 9/11: The Flying Man

Today is the 10 year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. I have been trying to articulate how I’ve felt about this all weekend. Looking back at iconic and horrific images from that day, the one that stuck with me the most was the one known as “The Falling Man.” Staring at the image of this man, I was able to begin to express how that day affected me, in poem format. The picture invokes deep sadness...

Extreme Make-Over: New Brand, New Unity

On June 1, 2011 the nonprofit I co-founded and have served with for the past 6 years–ME³–got a face lift. We revamped our look, launched a new website (which the organization had been in dire need of, thanks to my own NON-uber l33t web skills). Oh yeah, and we also changed our name to Activate Good. On June 1, when our new name, brand, look, and website went live, the board of directors breathed a sigh...

Beyond Natural Disasters: Inspiring Volunteer Motivation Year-Round

Those living in or around the Raleigh, North Carolina area are acutely aware of some of the havoc wreaked by a massive tornado that assaulted our area on Saturday, April 16 of this year. Following the storm, many of us (especially in the nonprofit community) were inspired by the mass of volunteers who came out of the woodwork to help with tornado clean up, get supplies to those impacted by the storm, and give...

Playlist Memories: Joliet Jaycees, Illinois, 2004

Music has been the theme of my last few posts. I haven’t begun to scratch the surface on how music has played a role in my life or nonprofit-y dreams, so I’ll continue on this train of thought. Most of my close friends know I have a very strange and eclectic music collection. I’m just as likely to hear Handel as I am Muse if I venture a random song selection. Today my randomization led me to Save a...