Tuesday, August 19, 2008

If I look a little crazy...

Hectic, stressed, crazy. That is going to be my next week and a half. Or wait, probably my next three months with three different fundraising events happening as well as many other work projects. Remember how I said summer is over? Oh yeah, I meant it!! Here is my schedule for until Labor Day:

Today--Executive Committee Meeting and Board Meeting



Tomorrow--Medical City roundtable discussion and "Back to School" night at Maggie school (seriously, how can we have Back to School night when we never LEFT??)



Thursday--Brandy's vet appointment (dread, dread, dread, but we think it's the surgery needed), 10:30 meeting, 1pm meeting. Home in the evening--yeah!



Friday--Meetings at 8:30am, 1pm, and 3:15pm.



Saturday--Trip to San Antonio for Camp Discovery Planning Committee Debrief Meeting


Next Week...
Sunday--Maggie and I drive to Austin to meet my cousin Michelle who will be in Texas for two days. Haven't seen her in two years, so I'm excited! Spend the night with Tracey.



Monday--Mad rush back to Dallas as I hope and pray that Maggie doesn't vomit all over the car with her car sickness issues, drop her off, then two meetings in the afternoon.



Tuesday--Breakfast meeting and hopefully lunch with Dana Eisenberg. Probably will schedule an afternoon meeting that day too.



Wednesday--All day travel to Houston for our first Heroes and Handbags meeting for our 2009 event (oh yes, you start that early!)



Thursday--Lunch meeting, office time to hopefully catch up(!), and then evening cocktail party for the Hold'Em for Heroes committee.



Friday--All day business trip to Austin to investigate their needs. We will be meeting with the hospital as well as a professor of social work at UT (Thanks, Tracey!! I can't wait to meet her)



Saturday--Block party with the neighbors



So, yeah, it's a little nuts. I'm not used to quite this much travel. Three cities, four flights in less than seven days. Yikes!! It's definitely mid-August and time for our crazy Fall! And luckily, I love it!



Maggie and her GaGa are going to be participating in the race. I have not yet had a chance to customize her fundraising page, but it is here if you would like to support their efforts.



Time to go and pick up Maggie so we can have at least an hour of time together before my meetings tonight.

7 comments:

Unknown said...

holy crap!! I'm tired just reading that...seriously, your super woman!!
Oh I had a Jenny inspired moment last night. The loop on my remote for my car broke so I totally made a little key chain holder for it out of duck tape!! It's pretty cool!!
I LOVE YOU!

Gretchen said...

I couldn't keep up with that schedule. I'd need a month in bed to recuperate!

Love the Golden photo. :) Ours carries dolls around everywhere, too.

Anonymous said...

Try to find SOME time to relax amidst the chaos! Praying for safe travels for you!

Quick question, and if it's too personal to discuss, I understand. I am not familiar with NPO's and all of the small technicalities of becoming one. This question might seem dumb, but that's why: my lack of knowledge. Anyway, do you get a paycheck? I know you have bills, and Andrew does a great job supporting your family, but you do still have those bills. I know that the money that HFC raises goes directly to families, so how does that work? I know that receiving a paycheck from a NPO is the least of your concerns, and I hope you are not offended by my question. I was just wondering. I know that "non-profit" means something, I just don't know where the government draws the line. Thanks in advance!

Jenny said...

Mum's the Word--that's not a stupid question, but actually one I get quite frequently. Yes, I do have a salary as do my other employees. No, it isn't glamorous and it is never going to make me a rich woman, but it does pay.

Nonprofit organizations must spend the most amount on the "greater good" or the mission of the organization. At the end of the year, they aren't walking away with a profit but spending funds on program services to benefit their cause. A standard is that most nonprofits, especially those as they get a little larger, will spend a minimum of 70% of their dollars on their programs. That will be equivalent of a minimum of 70 cents to every dollar spent on the mission. But, there are other costs that are still related but not directly benefitly the clients such as printing, postage, fundraising costs, administrative costs of salaries, or costs related to keeping an office such as rent.

Some salaries are considered apart of the mission and not an additional cost. For example, I have one employee whose soul position is to work on what we refer to as mission related activities. She is our Program Services Coordinator and runs our major social assistance programs and volunteer projects to benefit families. Her salary is considered per IRS standards and nonprofit standards and guidelines as an additional part of our mission.

I hope that makes sense. Nonprofit work is interesting but can be a bit complicated. I am constantly learning something new and spend time researching information and attending continued education classes whenever possible. There is very little higher education institutions in the US that focus on nonprofit work. They might have a few classes offered but few offer it as a major. Most find resources such as the Center for Nonprofit Management in Dallas to supplement their learning in other fields (many come from business or marketing backgrounds to the nonprofit sector).

I truly love it even though my head is currently swimming in stress!

HollyH said...

whew....Jenny! First, I hope Brandy is okay. After reading your schedule, methinks maybe we should meet for lunch after the HFC walk? You need to take a breather, woman! We might need to start calling you SJ for Super Jenny!

Lyndsay said...

i just noticed on your 'twitter' comment thinger (shamefully, I have no idea what that's all about) that Brandy will need the surgery. Sorry about that! Not a good day for dogs today as MY munchie had to say goodbye to her favorite one...
Hope your busy days are going well.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for your quick reply, Jenny, especially in the middle of your crazy schedule! It did make sense and you have piqued my interest in the non-profit field!

I read the previous poster's comment that Brandy will need surgery...I'm so sorry! Keep us updated on my "namesake" lol!

~Brandy