As I begin my term as president of the Board of Directors for The Cat Connection, one question I’ve gotten quite often is “How does someone become President of The Cat Connection?” Quite frankly, I’ve even asked myself that question because sometimes I’m still not quite sure how I got here!
Here’s my story:
I first joined TCC in the fall of 2020 because, like many people at the height of the pandemic, I knew I needed to find something more purposeful to do with my time outside of the work-week and seeing my pod members on the weekend. My first role with TCC was as a foster counselor, a great start for me because it allowed me to leverage my nearly two decades of experience as a cat mom and gave me the opportunity to connect with our fosters one-on-one. I learned a great deal, especially when one of my fosters took in a mom and five three-week-old kittens, and I started to meet other volunteers at TCC.
I realized the skills I developed during my day job, managing teams of data analysts as well as collaborating with and influencing a diverse group of stakeholders could be an asset to the Board and I knew I wanted to get even more involved.
As I continued to volunteer with TCC, a few related things happened in the spring of 2022. The first was that I learned more about the TCC’s operations and impact beyond just the fostering program. This also allowed me to learn more about the challenges we were facing at TCC. I realized the skills I developed during my day job, managing teams of data analysts and collaborating with and influencing a diverse group of stakeholders, could really help and I knew I wanted to get even more involved. As luck would have it, the next TCC newsletter had a piece about openings on the board, including the Director of Data and Informatics role, and I immediately thought, “Oh, I can do this!” And so, I applied for the role and joined the board soon after.
Joining the board really opened up the TCC world for me. I got much more involved in our shelter, have helped plan events, have gotten deeper insight into the challenges of running a nearly-all-volunteer nonprofit, and have built strong relationships with the other board members, our shelter director, and many of our incredible volunteers. And as we approached the end of the year and board elections, I realized I could run for President and it was a job I could do – with the help and support of an amazing board around me.
Joining the board really opened up the TCC world for me.
And so, that’s how you become President of The Cat Connection – or at least how I did! As I begin my term as President, I am excited about what the year ahead holds for TCC. One of my key goals this year is to expand the size of our Board of Directors. Having a larger Board with diverse skill sets is critical to our continued success. If you’re reading this, I know that you’re excited, motivated, and enriched by what we do at TCC and I hope you’re intrigued at the prospect of joining the Board, too. No matter what your “day job” is, you have transferable skills that we can use as part of the board. I invite you to learn more about all of the current board members here, where you can also apply to join the board, and reach out to me or any of the other board members to learn more!
What will your TCC story be?
