Reflections
Now that it has been a couple days I want to share some of my thoughts on how our event went. Like Sabrina talked about it started off a little slow with people showing up. We knew that people were going to come but we really wanted them to be there for Kris’s speech. Senge talks about people being driven by their passion. We felt that if people were able to hear her story then they would be more likely to give mone,y buy raffle tickets, and be more sympathetic to the cause. In the efforts to raise awareness her story would have done hte most to touch people.
Her story was wonderful. Her daughter had a disease (I am not going to say which one for privacy issues) that caused her to be hospitalized again and again. Room to Dream Foundation came in and redid her room in a “Secret Garden” theme. They put in a swing and gave the room an outdoor feel. They constructed it so it looked like an awning that went outside but was in fact indoors. They also put in climate control equipment because her disease made it difficult for her to regulate temperature. This effort had a huge impact on their lives. Kris said having this wonderful room to come home to made each trip to the hospital easier. The room was built so she could use her computer and play without her mother’s help and so it gave her greater independence and helped her self esteem. The physical space of the room made her happier and made dealing with her disease easier. Today Kayla is going to school everyday and remains pretty healthy.
Hearing this story reminded me as to why we were doing all of this. Kayla’s room was a leverage point in her life and changed the nature of her relationship with her family and her perception of self. She became more independent and was happier as a result. The Room to Dream Foundation had a huge impact on her life. I am incredibly happy to have been able to do this for them.
The event itself went well and I think everyone had a great time. I was able to meet Stefan for the first time and he is an incredible guy. He has such passion for the children he is helping. He was also very appreciative of our efforts even though our small fundraiser is a very minor in comparision to their overall efforts. I look forward to meeting with him to debrief and talk about what we could have done better. I also spoke to Joann about working at their gala on December 13. I am really looking forward to that opportunity to give more but also meet many other people who care about this cause as much as I do.