Homeward Executive Director Awarded YWCA Outstanding Women Award
Last week, I was honored to be recognized with an Outstanding Women's Award in Nonprofit Management from the YWCA Richmond. Here are the remarks I shared at the event (and a picture from my formative time in Moldova).
I wanted to share three things I learned as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Republic of Moldova almost 30 years ago that I still use today
Homeward working to reduce homelessness in our community and country.
1) I spent a lot of time during my Peace Corps service sitting on porches and helping the older women in my village. I was particularly close to Auntie Varvara. She lived alone in her family’s house and did not have much of an income but loved being a host. I would buy small bags of sugar and quietly put them in her cabinet as a way to repay her hospitality. One day, she told me that if I insisted on doing this, I could buy paint so that she could brighten her home to be more pleasant for her visitors. That’s what mattered most to her.
By listening, I learned to focus on what mattered to her and not what I thought she needed.
2) I also learned that sometimes we don’t have to listen—especially to nonsense. At the end of each day, the students would gather at the edge of the village and wait for the cows to come home from their daytime pasture. The boys would play soccer. The girls wanted to play but were not allowed. So, as a future nonprofit leader, I assessed the power dynamics and resource situation and bought my own soccer ball. As “the Amerikanka” with a ball, I could change the rules and we played co-ed soccer games from then on.
3) Finally, I learned about focusing on the most important thing and how to center my work and life on what matters most. I joined the Peace Corps and went to Moldova in the mid- ‘90’s because I was fascinated by a country and a region in transition. I wanted to be a part of the change to a more democratic and optimistic future. I didn’t really have talent as a middle school English teacher. I didn’t have clear goals for my role and I can’t say I excelled in that role. At the end of my service, my students shared that I had helped them feel safe and treated them with dignity and respect.
And, with that and learning when to listen and when to challenge community conditions, I started on my current path. Thank you to everyone here who has been a part of that.
