“One of the marvelous things about community is that it enables us to welcome and help people in a way we couldn’t as individuals. When we pool our strength and share the work and responsibility, we can welcome many people, even those in deep distress, and perhaps help them find self-confidence and inner healing.” Jean Vanier
When Leslie Schraeder sent this month’s topic to me, I had no idea what World Listening Day was. According to National Today’s website, “The aim of the day is to cultivate better listening and understanding, and learning from the underrated act.” Basically, talk less; listen more.
It was the summer of 1978 when my friend, I’ll call her Dinah, called me to tell me that she couldn’t come to my house again because my parents were friends with Bill and David, and they, on occasion, visited my parents in our home. Confusion, anger, frustration and disbelief describe some of the feelings that my 12 year old self felt. She asked if I would spend the night with her instead, and I did, but it was the last time. I remember resenting her mother that evening and left first thing the next morning. Her mother lectured me about the evils of homosexuality and about how my parents’ condoning homosexuality was equally as evil.
The nonprofit organization Mental Health America’s “work is guided by its Before Stage 4 (B4Stage4) philosophy – that mental health conditions should be treated long before they reach the most critical points in the disease process. When we think about diseases like cancer or heart disease, we don’t wait years to treat them. We start before Stage 4—we begin with prevention, identify symptoms, and develop a plan of action to stop and hopefully reverse the progression of the disease. Like other diseases, it is critical to address symptoms early and plan an appropriate course of action on a path towards overall health.”
The Learning Exchange has announced, “The National Volunteer Week theme for 2022 (April 24-30, 2022), Volunteering Is Empathy In Action, affirms the strong connection between volunteerism and empathy. This profoundly human connection is at the heart of healthier individuals and stronger communities.”
I have spent the majority of my professional life in the company of women. The women have come from all walks of life and come in every color, shape and size. The majority have dedicated themselves to working in the nonprofit sector – suffering a lifetime of low pay, long hours, and little thanks for their work. Many have poured their lives into their careers helping to make Mobile and Southwest Alabama a better place to live.
Every new year brings hope for me that I will morph into the best me; obviously, this has not occurred, so for 2022, I look forward to new possibilities for the United Way of Southwest Alabama (UWSWA).
December brings a hope for all that is good in the world to manifest itself, a hope for joyous days celebrating family and traditions, a hope for peace and love, a hope for happiness for those we love.
In November, the Nonprofit World Celebrates itself – Nonprofit Awareness Month. I have struggled to write this Blog and still am. I have spent the majority of my life working in the nonprofit realm and see daily the amazing work that occurs in our community because of the generosity of individuals and businesses and because of the individuals who have dedicated their lives to improving the quality of life through social services, health care, the arts or the environment – nonprofits in our community work in all of these fields and do improve the quality of life.
The month of October hosts 111 National Awareness Campaigns – everything from National Go on a Field Trip Day (which sounds really good as I stare out my window at the beautiful sky) to National Toilet Tank Repair Month (which mine needs repaired at the office – Mark Burnett where are you?).