You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”
--Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962)
American Stateswoman

Ancient wisdom holds that things that come in threes are good luck. Three years ago Impact Austin was born. Three women pledged $1,000 each and made a commitment to inspire others to serve Austin. We are now 350+ women strong, and we have truly left our mark on our community.

CVM Success Story

This story is taken from the Community Voice Mail Newsletter and accompanied by a release form signed by Senobia Allison.

Senobia Allison entered Goodwill’s Job Source program in March, 2006. She had moved to Austin three years ago from Gary, Indiana to live close to relatives. Ms. Allison had little employment experience and even less knowledge about the social services resources available in Austin. However, she did possess a willingness to follow the suggestions made by her case manager about how to look for and secure a job. Employment was a critical concern for Ms. Allison who is a single mother living in public housing with her two children.

The first recommendation made to Ms. Allison was to set up a Community Voice Mail phone number and record her personal greeting. She soon realized the importance of having the ability to be reached. The potential job interview appointment request might not wait until she came home. Ms. Allison had a phone, but not voice mail technology or an answering machine. Without her CVM number, she may have been passed over for the next applicant. Within weeks she was offered and accepted a retail position with Goodwill Industries of Central Texas.

Ms. Allison’s determination was celebrated in September when she was honored as Achiever of the Month for the Job Source program at Goodwill. They recognized her for having made model use of the assistance offered.

The membership has adopted an
ice-breaker exercise called, "My Moments" where each member shares a talent or personal story with the group. Photographed above is Brittany Burch teaching the group how to lead a band. This activity teaches girls leadership skills along with the knowledge of talents such as band, dance, acting, etc...

Each Application Review Committee has finished reviewing its applications and will now cross-review other committees' applications.

As of 11/29/06:

Received: $16,350
Promised: $7,850

Thanks for your generosity!

We currently have 358 member commitments, but we're not done yet! We still have three coffees left:

Monday, 12/11, 7pm 78731
Wednesday, 12/13, 7pm 78735
Thursday, 12/14, 7pm 78735

Do you have financial experience? Are you interested in sharing your expertise by participating on our newly formed Grant Review Finance Committee? This is a separate and independent committee from the Focus Area Committee. It is primarily responsible for reviewing the financials from grant applicants and for fielding financial questions from the Focus Area Committees during the grant review process.

Even if you aren't planning to send your membership payment until the last minute, but you want to serve on a Focus Area Committee, please sign up now! We want to know your committee preferences, and you must also sign up for training if you have not participated on an FAC previously. Please click on 'Join Here' below.

All Impact Austin members are cordially invited to attend our first member education forum where local community leaders will share their professional insights about the most urgent needs facing our region; what needs are being funded/not funded; how our grants could make the biggest impact; and other pertinent topics. Focus Area Committee members will find this especially helpful for the upcoming grant review process. Please look for an email in early January with more details and the final schedule.

I cannot sit on a Focus Area Committee because it takes more time than I can give. Are there other ways I can share my talents with Impact Austin?

Signed, Interested

Dear Interested,

You bring up an excellent point! In the early days of Impact Austin, a small group of board members did all of the work because we were learning as we grew. Now that we have completed three grant cycles, we have a good grasp of our processes and how members can help us in various aspects of running our organization -- making it a more inclusive operation. Please look for a survey in your email inbox in January that will ask you to tell us what your abilities/experience/interest areas are. We look forward to hearing from you!

Regards,
Daisy

Shop at Sweet Charity on Wednesday, December 13th, and 25% of your pre-tax purchase can be donated to Impact Austin! You can get your holiday shopping done and give to Impact Austin at the same time! Sweet Charity is a project of Seton Medical Center, with proceeds benefiting charity care at Seton. The shop offers a variety of fun and eclectic gifts. It is located in the 26 Doors Shopping Center (1206 W. 35th St.) across from Seton Medical Center. Hours on December 13th: 9:00 am until 8:00 pm. Click below for more details.