The “Other” News

I’m tired of bad news and as a result I am very selective about what I read in the newspapers and I don’t watch news on television before I go to bed.  Well let me clarify because I don’t want you to get the impression that I have my head in the sand.  There’s a lot of news having to do with the economy and its impact on people we care about and that’s important to what we’re trying to accomplish at the foundation.  The bad news I’m talking about is what I observe to be a growing trend to spotlight hate , violence, fear, and disrespect…  You get it. 

I guess this is on my mind today because I just returned from our second Women of Compassion award luncheon where we honored six extraordinary women who are making a real difference to lives of many, but who might otherwise go unnoticed.  The stories ranged from feeding the hungry, empowering cancer survivors, educating our youth, advocating for the elderly, balancing college with social engagement and turning the tragedy of a lost child into a movement to cure brain tumors.  Wow!  And none of these women gave any indication that they thought what they had done was special.

Sometimes I think the only reasonable reaction to a world described in the “traditional” news is to lock our doors, distrust everyone and isolate ourselves from all the bad folks out there.  What a different feeling I have from the event today.  This “other” news left me inspired, empowered and ready to roll up my sleeves and do something for someone else. 

I’ve heard the argument that “bad news sells” but I also know it doesn’t build community.  Just knowing that for every honoree today there are probably hundreds of others doing great work to build up our County gives me hope.  It’s too bad their stories aren’t told more often.

The joy of caring and working together

We’ve written about it in Sprouting Hope, our eNewsletter, and on our website, but I just have to say a bit about our project in the annual United Way Day of Caring this year – IT WAS GREAT.  We’ve always done something on the Day of Caring, partially to support our neighbors and colleagues at the United Way and partially because we like getting our hands dirty.  But usually, some of our staff were off picking apples with pre-schoolers and some were painting a group meeting room and others may have been weeding the garden at a senior center. 

This year our staff decided early that we wanted to do a project together and we wanted it to be something significant.  So we contacted our friends at the Lorain County Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services and they told us that they really needed a room where new mothers could learn to bond with their children while dealing with recovery from their addiction.  Perfect!  Our staff was good with painting and minor rehab and absolutely shined when it came to shopping, but we needed a hole cut in the wall and a two-way mirror installed, not to mention some major disconnection of plumbing.  No problem, our friends at the Business Industries Association came through to make the project complete.  And what better inspriation for our work and the final product but The Giving Tree by Shel Silversteen.   I see the talents of our staff of ten day in and day out, but I learned that each has hidden talents that I haven’t yet experienced.  I’m confident that in some small way the fruit of our labor will help break the cycle of addiction for a few families in Lorain County, but I know that the labor itself has made our team appreciate each other just a little stronger.  If you’ve got 5 minutes check out our video chronicle of the day.

Board (not bored) Retreat

Nineteen Board members and five management staff spent last Friday evening and Saturday morning looking out into the future for our Community and our Foundation.  On Friday we spent time describing the current status of Foundation finances and efforts and then looked ahead a few years to forecast the impact of the Recession on operations and grantmaking.  Small groups spent the remainder of Friday evening discussing some hypothetical situations in the year 2013 and how the Foundation might react.

 On Saturday morning our Governance Chair, led Board Committees through an exercise to begin the process of crafting a Foundation Diversity and Inclusion strategy.  The remainder of the Retreat was spent comparing our community leadership strengths and capacity to a Leadership Framework created by CFLeads and then applying those strengths to some current work with our Community Development Corporations.  My reaction – the retreat affirmed both the direction we are headed and our desire for continuous improvement.  We also have some great new ideas to explore.

The level of engagement, depth of understanding and commitment, and certainly the creativity of ideas from our Board and staff continue to inspire me.  Plus it speaks volumes that we had such as strong turnout on a summer weekend (out of 20 board members and 5 mgmt staff) .   I sometimes have colleagues who lament that their boards “don’t really get” their community foundation beyond taking in contributions and making grants.  This weekend certainly proved that is NOT the case in Lorain County and we are a stronger community and foundation because of it.  The CFLC is a tribute to the commitment of current and past board members and staff.

Sprouting Hope

Those who know me have heard me say that a significant part of my job is cheer-leading.  Not the rah-rah-sis-boom-bah type but sharing real stories of positive opportunities in our community.  Opportunities derived from organizations that are down in the trenches trying to alleviate distress for our friends and neighbors who are suffering.  Opportunities that are emerging from the numerous entrepreneurial businesses popping up all over our area.  Opportunities from the many generous people who continue to invest in our community despite the fact that the recession is impacting their own bottom line.  My theory is very simple – people will only engage and be part of the solution when they feel hopeful.  And there are many reasons for hope even in this difficult economy.

In our continuing efforts to find new, better and more effective ways to communicate with our community, the Community Foundation has debuted a new eNewsletter called appropriately, Sprouting Hope.   The monthly newsletter is free and features positive stories about people and organizations that are making a real difference in Lorain County.  We will regularly highlight local nonprofits and include wishlists of ways people can directly assist their efforts as well as an events calendar.  Additionally, we will include videos from people you may know, and some you may not, talking about their visions for our community and what gives them hope.  You can sign up online through our website.

I invite you to join us in spreading hope in Lorain County.

Sparking (or maybe Spotlighting) Government Efficiency

For the past six years the Community Foundation of Lorain County has been a proud founding member of the Fund for Our Economic Future, a 100+ collaborative of organized philanthropy in NE Ohio.  Beyond the unprecedented accomplishment of getting more than one hundred foundations, colleges, universities and such to agree on a data driven, unified approach to regional economic developement; the Fund has had a part in remarkable impact including more than a billion dollars of venture investment transforming the region into an entrepreneurial hot spot. 

But what has captured my excitement today is not the millions in dollars awarded to our grantees, or our mayors, city managers, and councils who are pushing regional land use planning and revenue sharing through the Regional Prosperity Initiative – it is a small initiative that has leverage not just changes in attitude but changes in behavior.

EfficientGovNowis intended to encourage, spotlight and reward real government collaboration. More than 60 applications were received for projects involving two or more public collaborators.  A committee reviewed public input on the applications and selected nine finalists, three of which will receive up to $100,000 from the Fund.  During the month of July, 2009 residents of Northeast Ohio will vote to determine which of the projects receive funding. 

The nine competing projects are:

1. Mahoning River Corridor Interactive Web site: “Rollin’ on the River”
2. “Sustain a Greener Ohio,” A Collaboration to Map the Storm Water Conveyance System in Stark County
3. Combined Dispatch to Use New Technology to Save Lives and Money (Ashland County)
4. Westshore Regional Fire District Project (Cuyahoga County)
5. Mahoning/Youngstown Regional Information System (MYRIS)
6. City/Township/School District Fleet Management Collaboration Project (Oberlin, New Russia)
7. Creating Efficiencies and Cost-Savings through Consolidation of Public Health Services in Summit County
8. Rittman and Orrville Schools Administrative Compact
9. Master Plan for the Western Reserve Joint Economic Development Zone of the Cities of Cuyahoga Falls, Hudson and Stow

We know that some of the projects had been under discussion prior to the initiative, but we also know that several of the projects were crafted specifically for the application.  Regardless of their genesis, what inspires me is the desire by so many public leaders to shed the confines of our traditional boxes and to explore new and better ways of working together.  It may be the realities of the current economy that triggers change, or it may be the grant dollars from the Fund, but whatever the cause – I’m glad to see it happening.