Your Nonprofit Life – Details, episodes & analysis

My guest for this episode is Founder and Executive Director of H.U.T.C.H. (Help United Through Caring Hands), Armishia Wiley-Adams.

Armishia was raised by her grandmother and uncle after her mother died when she was eight. She became pregnant in high school and dropped out. After having two more children before the age of 22, Armishia became determined to get off government assistance. She earned her GED followed by a Bachelor’s in Organizational Management with a specialization in Human Resources Management and then a Master’s in Organizational Management with a specialization in Organizational Leadership.

Over her decades of working in HR and making job placements, she was keenly aware of the gaps and flaws in the system where women were consistently referred for jobs that they were unqualified to keep. Armishia’s passion for helping women break out of poverty drove her to found her nonprofit H.U.T.C.H. Their mission is to teach women of all ages to become self-sufficient and workforce ready.

During this interview, Armishia and I talk about everything from referrals and assessments to job training and placement; from George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks to voter suppression and what it’s like being an African-American mom in the Atlanta area, and we also talk about the pandemic’s impact on programs and the board. Through it all, Armishia generously shares her triumphs and struggles of running a nonprofit all while holding down a full time job in HR.

As you know, I finished recording all the podcasts for this year months ago, and yet, each one has been released at a specific time for a specific reason. And I’ve been holding this interview until now because my guest holds a Vision Board Workshop every January…and I want you to consider sponsoring at least one woman to attend this because it will literally change her life.

https://yournonprofitlife.com/s2-ep-18-armishia-wiley-adams/

I’m about to introduce you to a woman who is proof positive that the mission her organization passionately pursues on a daily basis works amazingly well.

My guest, DeLashea Strawder, is the Executive Director and Artistic Director of the Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit—a creative youth development organization. In other words, Mosaic is a nonprofit organization which helps to unleash and explore the creative talents of young people all while developing leadership skills which will serve them the rest of their lives.

DeLashea first learned about the organization in middle school, and after much prodding in high school by friends and teachers, she auditioned for and was accepted to Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit and participated until she graduated. And though she never planned to return to Mosaic after graduation and heading off to college, the universe had other plans.

As you listen to DeLashea’s story, you’ll be inspired by her strong commitment to both her career and her family, and you might be surprised how a turn in her grandparents’ health turned DeLashea’s plans upside down...but her journey into discovering her purpose in life right side up.

I really appreciated DeLashea’s vulnerability as she shared about the intersectionality of being a young, black, woman running an established nonprofit in Detroit and the courage she has every day to lift up other people and make sure that the conversations that need to be had are had.

You’re gonna love this interview with wife and mother of four, DeLashea Strawder, the Executive and Artistic Director of Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit.

https://yournonprofitlife.com/s2ep17-delashea-strawder

Today’s guest is Henry Burrell, the founder of the Jonesboro Business Association. Originally from New York, Henry relocated to Louisiana and now resides in Jonesboro, Arkansas—and we’ll talk a little bit about the difference between life in Queens as opposed to life in the South.

Here’s what you need to know about Henry. First and foremost, he is a successful businessman. He has been in the hospitality industry for decades developing leaders and pouring his life into his community. After moving to Jonesboro, he recognized a gap in the local business sector and began brainstorming how to fill it in such a way that the community would be stronger AND locally owned businesses would collaborate for a bigger impact — especially with the students in Jonesboro.

And isn’t that the way it happens with nonprofit Founders? They see a gap or a need, envision a way to address it while changing lives, and then they rally other leaders to join them for greater impact?! You should be nodding your head up and down right now, because that’s exactly how nonprofits get started.

I can’t wait for you to meet Henry and hear his story about what it’s like to develop leaders in both the for profit and nonprofit sectors of Jonesboro, Arkansas.

https://yournonprofitlife.com/s2ep10-henry-burrell/

Rutgers is the 8th oldest college in the U.S. having received its charter in 1766—10 years before the Revolution. Recent research documents the university's foundation on land taken from the indigenous Lenape people and at one time benefited from slave labor and funds derived from purchasing and selling slaves.

As you can imagine, it’s not easy creating a sense of belonging for students whose ancestors were directly impacted by this. And for decades...centuries, really... there was no association dedicated to serving the alumni of African descent. But that all changed when students banded together in 1989 to form the original Rutgers African-American Alumni Alliance on campus.

RAAA was re-launched in 2001 (and incorporated in 2006) as an all-volunteer organization serving the African, Afro-Asian, Black/African-American, Afro-Caribbean & Afro-Latinx alumni encompassing all of Rutgers University's undergraduate and graduate schools in New Jersey.

In this episode, my guest, Kendall Hall, shares her passion for building unity and developing camaraderie among students, faculty, and staff of African descent—not only as alumni, but possibly just as important, while they are are actively enrolled in studies at the University. She explains how a student’s experience of belonging while studying at the university directly impacts their involvement as alumni which indirectly impacts the experience future students have at Rutgers.

And it makes sense, right? If you don’t feel like you belong at your university, when you matriculate, you walk away.

Envisioning a more inclusive future for both students and alumni, Kendall has actively been involved in running various aspects of RAAA, Inc. since 2001. Notably, she worked directly with the class of 1971 on the their class gift: the Paul Robeson Plaza to honor one of Rutger’s most famous graduates.

Kendall highlights why this project was so significant for the university, and why she was so intent on helping with it even though she graduated more than 25 years after the class of 71.

I can’t wait for you to meet Kendall Hall, President of Rutger’s African-American Alumni Association, Inc.

https://yournonprofitlife.com/s2e09-kendall-hall

It’s Mental Health Month, and I could not think of a more important way to wrap the month than talking with someone who runs an established mental health agency in Southern California.
I don’t know about you, but if you are like me, you are probably wondering what happens with the unaccompanied minors who have found their way to the land of the free and the home of the brave, right? And how does one cope when they’ve experienced trauma but cannot afford the professional help they need to start the healing process?

Let me introduce you to my next guest because she’s going to educate us about all of this and more.
Teddie Valenzuela is the Executive Director of Amanacer Community Counseling Service in Los Angeles. She’s a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and has been at Amanacer for more than 20 years starting as a therapist and currently serving as Executive Director. We’re going to unpack her journey over the course of this conversation and you’ll be inspired by what Teddie has been able to accomplish over the years in her different positions.

https://yournonprofitlife.com//s2e08-teddie-valenzuela

Sharnette Lewis, the Executive Director of Dogs Deserve Better, a nonprofit organization dedicated to freeing the chained or penned dog as well as helping the dog who is abused, neglected, homeless and abandoned. Their goal is to rescue, rehabilitate and help the dog find a home where they can live inside with a loving and caring family.

Dogs Deserve Better has multiple locations, and their main headquarters is located in Smithfield, Virginia on the property once owned by Michael Vick. During this interview, Sharnette shares the story of what they’ve done with the former dog fighting compound and how they have memorialized the dogs who died there. We also talk about how Dogs Deserve Better is working to break through cultural traditions and stereotypes to help people appreciate dogs as companions.

Please pay close attention to Sharnette’s words as they are sometimes hard to hear due to background noise. Her message is clear, powerful, and applicable across the sector, no matter what your mission is.

You’ll walk away from this interview understanding why it’s so important that we, as nonprofit leaders, meet people where they are and build relationships with them to spark change.

It’s the genuine relationship that creates the circumstances conducive to change in behavior, attitude, and expectation. I can’t wait for you to meet Sharnette Lewis, a woman who has a heart for all animals and a passion to break the chains of dog abuse and neglect. Let’s get started.

https://yournonprofitlife.com/s2e07-sharnette-lewis

This episode features one of the most unique nonprofit organizations I'm aware of. In fact, as far as we know, this is one of only two organizations with this mission in the entire world. Let's set the stage a little bit.

Like many of you, my family switched to watching Sunday Services online when the pandemic was declared. Last week's sermon was based on a passage in the book of Numbers in the Hebrew Scriptures where the people were being bitten by snakes. Not exactly the kind of story you're expecting to hear on a Sunday morning! Then the priest shared a story about her own experience being trolled by a snake in her backyard. She cannot stand snakes!

Maybe you're now thinking about all the movies you've seen where snakes are the representation of evil, or maybe even they're the villains themselves.

Well, today we're here to flip the narrative around snakes and learn about them from a completely different perspective.

My guest today is Melissa Amarello, the founder and executive director of Advocates for Snake Preservation (A.S.P.).

Asp! Isn't that a cool name for this organization?!

Melissa has been fascinated with snakes since she was a little girl, but it wasn't until she was in college that she saw her first rattlesnake out in the wild. And that experience changed the trajectory of her career.

Over time, Melissa realized that she had a gift for helping people better understand snakes. She found that being face-to-face with people, she could break through the misinformation and help people care about the snakes they might encounter in their yards or out on a trail.

Melissa focused her passion, started a nonprofit from scratch, and is now the first paid staff at her organization, the Executive Director. Her story will inspire and educate you.

https://yournonprofitlife.com/s2e06-melissa-amarello

Today is International Women’s Day — March 8, 2021

Today's episode features an interview with a woman who, like the me, is someone with a strong faith and a desire to see more women in leadership roles—both secular and religious. My guest and I have had similar journeys fighting misogyny and patriarchy in our different religious traditions.

Fatima Sadaf Saied is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Muslim Women’s Organization in Orlando, Florida. She’s a wife, a mother, and a fierce advocate for the women in her community, but especially those in her faith community.

In this interview, Fatima shares how her parents immigrated to the United States from Pakistan and worked to establish a mosque for Asian Muslims who had also immigrated to the same area. We talk about everything from growing up in the nonprofit world and attending the University of Miami to getting married and being a full-time mom, and from that to starting an organization to empower Muslim women with service opportunities as well as trauma-informed training.

We talk about why some Muslim women wear a hijab, why she does, and how wearing the hijab changed her life. We also delve into what it takes to make real, tangible change in a system steeped in patriarchy, and I have to say, her approach is genius!

Fatima is the real deal. A strong woman of faith who works hard every day to elevate the voices of women in spaces where they are often silenced.

I just couldn’t be happier to bring you this interview today. Now more than ever, we need role models of strong women—especially in the faith community which can skew towards patriarchy. We need to hear their stories and see them in action. We need to be reminded that one woman CAN make a huge difference even when the approach towards making that change has to be indirect.

https://yournonprofitlife.com/s2eb1-fatima-sadaf-saied

There’s something you need to know up front about this particular episode: It’s for the birds! All of them! Raptors, Songbirds, Scavenger Birds, Owls, I could go on and on.

🐦🦅🦃🦉

Mainly because I love trying to identify different types of birds. In fact, one of my family’s favorite movies is called “The Big Year” with Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson. We watch it frequently and enjoy identifying the various birds who land on our fence or in the trees next to it. But this is nothing compared to today’s guest. Her whole life is birdified!

Wendy Perrone is the Founder and Executive Director of the Three Rivers Avian Center (TRAC) in Brooks, West Virginia. TRAC is located right next to the New River Gorge National Park in the southern portion of the New River Gorge National River down by Sandstone Falls Overlook.

Wendy and her husband Ron founded TRAC back in 1990, and they still run it to this day. That’s 31 years of bird rescue, rehabilitation, and reintroduction from the property on which they live. 31 years is a long time so you can count on my asking Wendy about succession planning and the future of the organization.

Wendy was a delight to interview. I always find someone’s path into the sector interesting, and you’ll be amazed at what Wendy and her husband did prior to starting TRAC! The thing is, now that they’ve had the organization for so many years, it’s hard to imagine them doing anything else!

With a rather remote location, you might be surprised to know TRAC receives injured birds from all over the state—I think you’ll be impressed with how the birds are transported. Can you say “volunteer coordination”?!

By the time you’re done listening to this podcast, you’ll be observing birds from a whole new perspective. I’m so happy you’re here to learn about the important work Wendy Perrone is doing at Three Rivers Avian Center and what her plans are to keep it going long after she’s gone--not that she’s leaving anytime soon!

Chay Neal is the Executive Director of Animal Liberation Queensland in Queensland Australia.

Animal Liberation Queensland exists to protect all animals from abuse, exploitation and suffering; to foster respectful and compassionate community attitudes towards animals; and to promote veganism as the most ethical and ecologically sustainable lifestyle.

During this interview, Chay reveals when he made the decision to go Vegan (he started at a younger age than you might expect) and how love for his first pet ignited something in him that turned into a lifelong passion of advocacy for all living creatures.

As we do in all our podcasts, we explore Chay’s journey into the nonprofit sector which began with volunteering and protests. He also shares his move from volunteer to board member and then what it was like transitioning from a long-time board member position to being the organization’s first paid staff.

Chay explains the organization’s strategic use of storytelling to help open the minds and soften the hearts of lawmakers inspiring significant change in the animal rights movement.

By the time you've finished listening to this interview, you'll know more about what you can do to make the world a more respectful and compassionate place for all living creatures.

https://yournonprofitlife.com/s2e04-chay-neal