Just Ask

About ten years ago, I was working for Mead in Rumford, Maine as the Community Relations Manager. Part of the job was to administer the Mead Foundation funds locally, about $500,000 each year. I was like a kid in a candy store – who wouldn’t love giving money to non profits and schools? The first several months into the job, I met with so many wonderful people in desperate need of funding for their cause. I soon realized that $500,000 was a great start, but in reality, just a drop in the bucket. I was also increasingly uncomfortable with the fact that these organizations would now depend on this funding to be able to move forward and not just tread water. What would happen if there was a down year for the paper mill and funding was decreased?

The other part of the ongoing struggle for non profits and schools is finding enough volunteers.
“Hmmmm…there are several thousand people directly connected to this mill…what a fabulous resource.”
And so the brainstorming began. Could we mobilize employees to volunteer? Would the management team allow it? Would the employees embrace it?

YES! YES! YES!

Week after week I met with small crews within the mill, describing the ideas in detail. We would partner with Big Brothers Big Sisters and have employees mentor school children. The response was amazing. Do you know what I heard about 99% of the time? No one ever asked me to volunteer before! You want me?!

I will never forget the day the first fifty employees met their mentoring buddy or ‘Little” as they were called. There were tears in the eyes of many of the ‘Bigs” as their name was called to come up and greet their Littles. Hand in hand, these new friends found a space to sit and get to know each other. Over the course of the next six months they would spend hours together reading, drawing or just talking. The last day was so emotional, as you can imagine. I expected that many employees would ask to be matched again next school year with the same child. That was a no brainer. What I didn’t expect was for so many of them to thank me for asking them to volunteer!

This T-Day, June 6, ask people to help you with your project. Don’t just put out flyers or emails, personally ask people. You’ll be amazed at the response.

Our monthly Together We Can Change The World Day is about joining together to make a conscious difference.
Please visit our website at www.togetherwecanchangetheworldday.com and scroll across available service projects and add your own.