[fsf60k] Re: From Fran re: Words from Carol for meeting
- From: Carol Werblin <cwerblin@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <fsf60k@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 19 Sep 2011 21:09:35 +0000
Fran-
Thanks so much for taking the time to respond to my letter- it is always
thought provoking to hear what others are thinking. My letter was quite
emotional (not as thoughtful as yours), as it was written right after a very
discouraging meeting with just the 3 of us- Kate, Peter, and me. As you all
know, I am the newbie here and so I think I am expecting more concrete actions,
as I don't have the same long-time involvement as you all do.
I am looking forward to moving forward and doing whatever we can to help us to
grow as a committed group of adults, and to continue to reach out those
dealing with poverty- both here and in Nicaragua.
Carol
To: fsf60k@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [fsf60k] From Fran re: Words from Carol for meeting
From: akillelea@xxxxxxx
Date: Sat, 17 Sep 2011 21:19:16 -0400
Hi Carol and everyone,
Thoughtful and thought-provoking letter, Carol, thank you
for taking the time. I guess I have some comments along with others
of us…
First of all, I want to say, having been around from early
on, that in my view both Students for 60K
and Friends of are really unique
on Long Island– lots of people I meet express that they wish such things
existed in their school districts and their communities. The groups are the
shining fruits of the ideals, hard labor and intense dedication of
two people, Dick Streb and Pete White, and then Dick W., and we can never
recognize that enough, and then their
continuation and the continuation of our projects are thanks to the ideals and
hard work of many others – we all know who you are and we thank you all for
your work and your sacrifices. I
think it’s important to note that people who will set aside much of their own
personal life and needs for others these days are HARD TO FIND (myself
included). We saw that when looking for
new advisors for Students, and we see
that in our meetings at times, which is the frustration Carol refers to, and
she is right, but that’s a hard thing to solve.
I think the mission of both groups is still absolutely
valid, and I am signed on – to help the poor and underserved wherever they may
be, with a special focus on the truly poorest poor (so that would be in the
developing world, of course, for example Nicaragua). I for one don’t feel we
want to change our
mission’s focus, just to see where we want to focus our energies and time.
And of course that time, for most people, is limited. Particularly with a
small group like Friends of.
I think there are many who would sign on to our group if they knew
of its existence, so that is probably a good argument for example for holding
our film festival at the Cinema Arts Centre, so we can cull HIHI people and
other like-minded folk who want to commit their energies to helping others less
fortunate but don’t necessarily have or know of a group to do it with. Perhaps
limiting ourselves to the Northport
area has been limiting. PR and letting people know that we are here,
I think, is key. Let’s broaden our
publicizing of our mission and activities somehow, I’d say. Of course we need
grants, and monies – there
is no doubt. And that’s not easy. And of course we have to continue our good
work in Nica and elsewhere, and add projects which make us passionate in line
with our mission. (What personally makes
me “passionate,” as Carol has asked, are dealing with poverty here and
elsewhere,
fighting racism against Hispanic immigrants here, and facilitating access to
health care for the poor.)
But I feel that we need to grow our membership first
and foremost, in every way we can think of, as it’s not fair to have Pete,
Kate, and a few others bear most of the burden of whatever projects we are
committed
to. So let’s brainstorm how to do that
at upcoming meetings? If we want to
suggest specific other projects while we are doing that, fine, but let’s above
all stay on mission and publicize that mission first and foremost, so we will
grow
our manpower (humanpower) for any specific projects.
I disagree a bit with Carol, in that I feel we have a huge
untapped membership potential in former Northport High School students and
their parents – they may not be local, agreed, they may not be able to or want
to come to meetings, they may not even go to class reunions, but they can still
be virtual members – and virtual members who pay a small fee annually for their
membership so that those of us who are local and can do things together in a
nonvirtual way can do our work. I think
many of those former SF60K folks would want to maintain their connection with
our group or with Students, and other
Northporters may wish to enhance their lives by such a connection – but we have
to aggressively find them, we
need to let people know more
aggressively that we are here, what we do, and how to get involved and stay
involved with us. We are the
followup to Students for those folks,
young or old, local or as close as a click of a mouse.
So in short, I personally think PR is the key to our group’s
continued and growing success, whatever our specific projects. Why don’t we
brainstorm ways we can do ongoing
PR, including to both younger and to older folks who may not use Facebook
and so on, out there in all our surrounding communities. I feel we need to get
our name and our group
out there – make the mission clear, and keep people updated on what we are
doing and our meetings and contact info, maybe monthly. Maybe use libraries,
newspapers, pennysavers,
garage sales, and the like in addition to the Internet. It takes time, but it
could pay off in my
view. People at different stages in life
have more or less time, this is true and that’s OK. But everyone has time to
write a check or
check an email, to “participate” virtually in our projects and contribute
something. There is so much work to be
done helping those less fortunate – it is far too much for one person, or 6
people, to do. But the need remains
clear, we just need more help, and that means more people who know we’re here
and want to sign on for whatever they can contribute.
This is the way I see it, maybe some agree with me?
Best to all,
Fran Killelea
-----Original Message-----
From: Craft155 <Craft155@xxxxxxx>
To: fsf60k <fsf60k@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wed, Sep 14, 2011 9:48 am
Subject: [fsf60k] Re: Words from Carol for meeting
Dear Carol,
Great letter. What I hear you saying is that we need more specific goals. I
agree. I too have felt frustration at what I feel is a stagnation in the
process. frankly, I see a need to connect more with the STUDENTS.
Hopefully we can talk more about that at the Oct. meeting. I will certainly
think more about goals and motivations before then.
Best regards,
Jo-Anne
Other related posts:
