My four year old loves it when we read to him before bed. Usually we read the regular books like "Meet Heatwave the Rescuebot" or "Are You Grumpy, Santa?" (yes even though it's now spring.) His favorite though is when I tell him the story of the Three Little Pigs. Stories allow us to have fun, use emotion, and put emphasis on certain aspects. The amazing thing is that it rubs off on the listener!
At St. Mark Youth Enrichment, we always have stories to share. Sweet moments when a staff member and student really connect and laugh together, inspiring moments when a student accomplishes something they were struggling with, and moments that surprise all of us. Earlier this week I had the chance to speak at the Resources Unite and Chamber's Community Connection meeting about donor devotion (aka donor retention). One part of my presentation was about the importance of telling and sharing stories and I shared a few of my favorites. One of them was about a student who had to write why he would like a new bike from one of our donors. He wrote just a few sentences but it said, "My daddy would buy me a bike but he is in heaven and mommy works hard so she can pay the bills." He is definitely getting a bike.
After my presentation, I had one of the attendees approach me. She shared that she was so thankful for what we did at St. Mark Youth Enrichment and said that it made a huge difference in her nephew's life and means so much to their mother. Overall, it wasn't my story that made the impact, it was hers.
We always try to tell our stories so we can share what it means to us to have community support to continue to grow and strengthen our programs. This is one reason behind our newest awareness campaign. Check out our Twitter page and Facebook page and see what St. Mark Youth Enrichment means to so many people. These stories would not be possible without your support and help. Stories truly do make a real life difference.
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