So yesterday was the big day. April and I met with Gail Monaco, the Director of Donor Cultivation and Major Events at the Metro New York Chapter of Make-A-Wish Foundation for coffee in NYC. The meeting was a success from the very beginning. Gail was super friendly, and very open, and willing to answer anything we had questions about. Her persona made it a lot easier than I had expected to feel relaxed around her, even though she has such a prestigious position within the foundation. We found that she had only just gotten involved with non-profits after working in insurance and real estate for numerous years. She started off as a volunteer for United Way, an opportunity which eventually turned into a paid position within the company. After being there for 6 years, she moved onto the Make-A-Wish Foundation where she has been for the past 13 years.
We learned about the process involved with granting a child's wish, and how every wish is made possible. The interviewing is actually done by volunteers which was something that surprised me. However, many of the employees at Make-A-Wish also volunteer for the foundation and get the opportunity to go out and meet the children and their families to find out what the child really wants as his/her wish. Gail said she has had the opportunity to do this several times, and though it can be tough, is a rewarding part of the experience. She also told us several wish kid stories, which were really inspiring to hear. Gail also mentioned that she still maintains contact with many of the wish kids after their experience with the foundation and gets invited to their weddings and other special events.
Overall, the meeting was definitely a rewarding experience and has further convinced me that working for Make-A-Wish is going to be my ultimate goal after school. I plan on getting involved with the Detroit chapter as soon as I am able to once getting back to Michigan. I would really like to intern with them at some point in time before graduating college to get a better feel for the industry in general, as well as the foundation specifically. I'm not sure what I would want to do within the foundation specifically just yet, however after listening to Gail yesterday, the foundation seems to allow you to "wear many hats" as she continuously described it. One day she talks to donors and plans budgets, the next she plans major events, other days she talks to the kids...every day is different and that aspect of the job definitely appeals to me.
In addition to meeting with Gail, I have an appointment with one of the employees in our office tomorrow to talk about his experience working with handicapped children. I'm also meeting with a woman who works in NYC at the Alliance for Lupus Research office as the Special Events Manager next Wednesday after work for coffee. I also received an e-mail response from another Make-A-Wish employee and will hopefully be meeting with her some time next week to get a feel for her position within the foundation and her experiences.
So goal #1 is going wonderfully and my networking is well under way!
More to come!
Krysta
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment