NONPROFIT
- by Jon Devin
Karyn Waxman
Karyn Waxman of East Memphis had one of those moments that everyone fears, sitting in a doctor’s office, test results in his hands, and he says to her, “I think you should call your husband.”
Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) had erupted painfully across six organs in her lower abdomen causing massive swelling. Though it’s been almost a decade since the day when she was diagnosed with this relatively unknown, life-threatening disease, there is still no cure or treatment. Still Waxman says her glass has always been half-full.
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- by Jon Devin
Most non-profit volunteer managers would agree that their job titles are far more all-encompassing than one would guess at first glance. For some it’s more like volunteer- recruitment- recognition- training- media- fundraising- database- manager. It’s a job known for low pay and high turnover despite the non-monetary reward of helping people. One Memphis group though, hopes to make volunteer management more staff-friendly by networking and providing resources.
Directors of Volunteers in Agencies (DOVIA) gives area volunteer managers a great forum for idea-sharing, according to its current president Barbara Dawson, herself a program manager for Memphis City Schools’ volunteer tutoring program, Our Children, Our Future.
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- by Peggy Rowland
At the top, Director Ann Illsley holds new arrival Daisy. On the bottom, one of the permanent cats, Harper.
Besides the uniqueness of being surrounded by cats, cat antics and cat merchandise, at Mewtopia Cat Rescue and Gift Shop, there’s also the feeling of being surrounded by compassion.
Director Ann Illsley holds Daisy, a scared orange cat and recent addition to the Mewtopia family of cats waiting for adoption. Mewtopia was Daisy’s last hope before being euthanized simply because she was abandoned. Now she’s taken care of by Illsley and more than 25 loyal volunteers who keep the Mewtopia cat residents fed, petted and in a clean home.
Relying solely on donations and sales from the gift shop, Illsley runs Mewtopia, located at 734 Mount Moriah, without any paid staff. For Illsley, keeping the rescue in top shape is an 80-hour-a-week job that comes with no personal monetary benefits. “I’ve worked many a job, but this is what I wanted to do, and it’s the most enjoyable, pleasurable job I’ve ever had,” Illsley proclaims.
Mewtopia is not only operated with compassion, but it’s the compassion of the community that keeps the doors open. From the veterinarians who offer discounted services, to those who bring in donations of bleach, litter or paper towels, it’s the kindness of cat lovers and volunteers that allows the Mewtopia feline family to live happily until they find their forever homes.
“We think of this as a happy place, because the kitties are happy here,” Illsley says. Some people tell her that they don’t want to come by because shelters are sad places. She responds, “No, we’re a happy place here.”
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- by Peggy Rowland
At the top a drawing of the TERRA house, a sustainable home being developed by the University of Memphis. Photo courtesy of the University of Memphis Center for Sustainable Design.
“We like to say our green building mission statement is, ‘Oh, come on, it’s not that hard’,” says Sarah Hadskey, chair of the steering committee for the Memphis Regional Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). Hopefully that message will begin to take root in the Memphis community as the environmental movement gains momentum and exposure worldwide.
The formal mission statement of the chapter is to “educate the Memphis Metropolitan and Greater MidSouth community in the art and science of sustainable design and construction practices, and to guide the community into regular implementation of such practices.”
USGBC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding sustainable building practices, has more than 70 regional chapters across the country. The two-year-old Memphis Regional Chapter of USGBC has around 60 members and gained full chapter status in June of this year. Hadskey, one of several founding members of the local chapter, expects the membership to double next year.
“Sustainable design is a very old idea,” says Hadskey. “It’s just a matter of remembering how to do it.”
She likes to compare green building to building in the 1850s, before the luxuries afforded by electricity, air conditioning, cars and overnight delivery.
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- by Mary K. Levie
Anyone can be a youth mentor, says Emily Dupree, mentor liaison for the newly created Governor’s Mentoring Initiative, a program created by Governor Bredesen in partnership with Youth Villages.
“A lot of people think, ‘I don’t have anything to offer; I wouldn’t make a good mentor; I’m not a role model’,” says Dupree. “Every single person has something to offer, and all you’re doing is just being a friend to this person.”
The Governor’s Mentoring Initiative was created to provide teenagers in foster care with a positive influence at a challenging point in their lives. The program also provides a rewarding opportunity for people wanting to make a significant impact on the trajectory of a teenager’s life.
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