I recently cracked open a fortune cookie to find my personal fortune, “The world will soon be ready to receive your talents.” Pondering this, I wondered why the world wasn’t ready for my “talents” earlier in my life. Sure, my position at Loaves & Fishes as the Donor Relations Officer has created new opportunities, but wasn’t the world ready for me earlier? Thinking about my talents, I realize that in life we have talents that we utilize at work, talents we utilize at home, talents we utilize when we are with friends and talents that are multi-functional in any situation. One of my multifunctional talents is my gift of conversation (some may say “gab”). I am able to converse with anyone anywhere and I genuinely enjoy their stories. As a matter of fact, I actually like “cracking” the exterior shell of the people I meet in order to have a more meaningful conversation.
I guess I learned the gift of gab from both of my parents. My mom would talk to the cashier at Jewel and know how many children they had and their ages before our groceries were loaded into our cart. My dad had a wonderful sense of humor, so the stories he would tell (sometimes more than once) would have you rolling on the floor. I am proud to say that I am the product of both of my parents’ talents. I not only like to hear the stories of the people I meet, but also like to tell them the latest escapades in my household that will bring them to tears – happy tears.
Recently, I attended a two day conference focused on molding an advancement program that works for your organization. The information was very helpful in understanding my role in the big picture of advancement here at Loaves & Fishes. Advancement is a crucial part of any non-profit organization. This is not to say that every “spoke in the wheel” of a non-profit organization is not crucial, but in order to keep the lights on and serve the community, I must spread the word of the importance of our mission and “ask” for support from everyone I engage.
As I alluded to earlier, I enjoy speaking to people and hearing their story. I have no problem talking to 1 or 1,000 people about Loaves & Fishes because I am beyond proud to be a “spoke in the wheel.” However, I am also aware that one of my weaknesses (yes, I am admitting this “flaw” to all of you), I am not always the best listener. This is not due to a lack of interest in your story; it is my unrestrained enthusiasm to tell you my story (our story). I do want to know why you choose to support Loaves & Fishes. It might be that you are a volunteer; it might be that you once used our services; or it just might be that you so enjoy my storytelling that you would definitely want to support us. I would like to believe it’s the latter.
Most importantly, the stories of our clients have touched you as much as they have touched all of us and for that we are thankful. Your support helps us to help others and isn’t that what community is all about? So, next time I stop to talk with you, please feel free to remind me to listen to your story because your story is important to me!
Diane Ramonas, Donor Relations Officer