Rebound

What a rebound! We’ve impressed everyone, Dyan and I. She’s brand new to the position of chair, and right away, she/we come out with a great looking newsletter. And I am now in charge of the mailing list. I’m going to add all our 52 groups and societies that are part of the health and wellness community, and I’m also going to add donors. I’m coding everyone on the mailing list so that we can mail to parts of the list.

So, now I’m the writer, the resident graphic artist, the mailing list manager and social media. manager. How would anyone else dare volunteer to chair the communications committee. The board meeting is on Wednesday. This job was made for me. I’ve become, like all the other seven board members, indispensable! 

This is perfect timing, the beginning of a new fiscal year at the Foundation. I’ve a very meager budget, but the website renewal is its own line item. Soon, we’ll start fundraising, more writing for me, more social media, more graphics, more data, more members, etc. Whoa.

I did this kind of work for a living, but I learned it doing arts projects, entirely in the not-for-profit world, writing grant applications, interim reports, spread sheets, and final reports. It feels really good to be using old skills again. I was absolutely dreading importing the mailing list so that I could send the newsletter. I had absolutely no faith in myself. But due to incredible advances in newsletter software, I basically opened an application new to me and within a few hours I had our first newsletter formatted and ready for sending.

With no family, and at home 97% of my life, I have hours for work and no interferences. I’ve created a little kingdom at the Foundation. Dyan and I have brought active communication to the table by having a communications director. Think of this, my dear friends: I responded to the ad for volunteers because the clinic here shared nothing. Not even that doctors were leaving. Nothing. Nada. Nyet! 

Now I’m the communications guy, and we have a quarterly newsletter that invites questions, comments or suggestions, and soon, we’ll have a new smart interactive website. We are going to be extremely good at sharing information.

I once developed an incredible relationship with a magnificent woman named Marilyn Baker. I met her one day, at her request. She was the mayor of the District of North Vancouver, and she wanted me to know that she, personally, would be analyzing my expenses and evaluating the worth of my work. She was a harsh taskmaster.

I was tasked with creating a cultural centre worthy of her investment. She was watching. But I built a theatre at not a cent of cost to the District. And I changed the gallery from operating at an annual loss of fifty grand, to a profitable operation by focusing the mandate of the gallery on photography. When I was done, I started visiting Marilyn and her husband, Dick. One of their children had come out and I became a resource for the family. I grew to passionately love Marilyn.

I told you that because she pushed her kids in an interesting way. She was the mayor, don’t forget. One day, one member of the family was ranting about the ferry service. Then Dick and another kid chimed in on the subject. Marilyn turn to them and asked, “What are you going to do about it?” She made her kids write to fix wrongs in their lives, and to be a part of an effort to fix your community.

Marilyn would be very proud of me right now. I did something just as she would and she as she expected of others. This island community is awash in people doing something. Thank God I left Vancouver. I loved it, but now I am passionate about rural life. And doing something.