My organizational brain loves a new start up project, and my latest one is one I’m super proud of (and probably also resulted in more grey hair).
I reviewed six months of Mailchimp data, interviewed tons of current and former advocates, and rewrote the onboarding and engagement program. The plan is to roll it out this week, but there was a hiccup today in that I have to teach myself Mailchimp automation and manage it solo. But I was in graduate school for eight years, so I think I can figure out email automation. Bonus points that I am also good at following instructions.
I have met some of the coolest people over the past few months. I came up with names for each of them.
The board member who is my personal cheerleader. When I shared my goal of getting to 500 advocates by the end of 2026, she said “I’m rooting for you!”
The connector. She knows EVERYONE and is connecting me with people and possible partners daily.
The poet. She said she couldn’t be an advocate because she didn’t have the tech skills. I convinced her otherwise. One of her poems became the first Voices from FTAG post on social media.
The blast from my past. I saw her profile in our FB community and we had 76 mutual friends. Turns out she married someone from my hometown and is friends with all of my high school friends. And I can send her a text with a video request for why FTAG is important, and she responds with a resounding YES.
The early childhood educator. She opened my eyes to what it looks like for girls with ADHD in S Africa. She and her colleagues are devoting their professional development hours to ensuring all families at their childcare center know what ADHD looks like.
My sister from another mother. We connected instantly, confiding in each other the way close friends do. I usually close my texts to her with “I do this bc of support from people like you.”
The pragmatic problem solver. She’s been around since the inception of FTAG and always has the best advice and suggestions, even for challenging topics.
The resource finder. Like the connector, she can find a resource for almost anything. She was the first person I asked to be on our leadership team. And of course her answer was YES, sign me up!
Volunteers are usually just good people, and I love that my job is finding and supporting them to make the future better for girls with ADHD.