October 5, 2024 • 26 mins
What happens when dreams shift and lead to unexpected, fulfilling journeys? Join us as we unravel the inspiring stories of Nadia Bozzi and Jennifer Larson from On Your Mark. Jennifer, once on the path to becoming a doctor, found her true calling in the nonprofit sector where she now plays a crucial role in community support and direct services. Nadia's journey from sociology and anthropology studies to spearheading fundraising and community outreach adds depth to our discussion on how life's twists and turns can lead to rewarding careers. Their narratives highlight the power of resilience and adaptability in pursuing meaningful work.
Our conversation also sheds light on the vital contributions of Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) at On Your Mark, a cornerstone of support for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities since 1979. We delve into the organization's commitment to fostering independence and community for those it serves, emphasizing opportunities for career advancement within its ranks. With 13 group homes and comprehensive services, On Your Mark remains steadfast in its mission to promote growth and well-being. Discover how the organization’s dedication to internal development and community involvement not only transforms lives but also offers a path for those seeking a meaningful career in support and care.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Hi everybody.
I'm Brian Licato with MarvelConsult, and I'm here today with
Nadia Bozzi from On your Markand Jennifer Larson from On your
Mark, and thank you for tuningin.
So first, why don't we do this?
Why don't we hear your officialtitles and I'm sure they're
long, but let's see what you got.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Jen, you first.
Thank you, Nadia.
My name is Jennifer Larson.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
I'm one of the associate executive directors at
On your Mark and my name isNadia Fabozzi.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
I'm the director of development at On your Mark, so
I know titles in nonprofits arelike you have a bag and you pull
things out and try to put themtogether.
What does an associateexecutive director do?
Speaker 2 (00:44):
We wear many hats.
That's what we do.
Good prop.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
We wear many many hats.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
What I always say is you know, getting to observe all
of our programs, know how ourprograms run, help expose what
we do to the community.
You kind of have your hand in alittle bit of everything and
you say we're doing a great job,but how can we do a little bit
better?
How can we increase ourworkforce?
How can we improve our training?
How can we have professionaldevelopment and learn different
(01:10):
ways to support our individualsto gain their independence?
That's my job.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
So, jen, are you direct services or are you more
like that supervisory, likeadmin side of On your Mark?
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Little bit of both, I have to say.
I'm very, very happy that I'mgoing to Sleepaway Camp next
week, so I still get to do a lotof those fun DSP things.
I'm still a DSP at heart.
One of the perks of working inour office is being right above
our cafe and being able tointeract with our day program,
our small businesses every day.
But the majority I would say90% of my work is supervisory
and administration.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
And now you said director of development.
Yes, what is a director ofdevelopment?
Speaker 3 (01:47):
Many hats as well.
In the development departmentwe focus on events, fundraising,
grant writing, communityoutreach and public relations.
We also do all the marketingand social media for the agency
we help with, like the brandingand all of our community
relations as well.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
So more like the development, but you're talking
about the monetary developmentand you're talking about the
social media development of theorganization.
Yes, Did either of you?
Is this what you went to school?
Speaker 3 (02:19):
for no, not at all.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
So I went originally for accounting.
I like numbers, I didn't wantto do accounting.
I switched and went for history, and I'm not a history teacher,
so I zigged and I zagged.
But now, what did you both goto school for?
Speaker 2 (02:37):
If you bear with me my origin story, I did go to
school to be a doctor and thatdidn't really work out.
I got a D in physics and I saidthat's kind of tough.
But the whole time I was incollege I was also working at On
your Mark.
I was a respite staff since Iwas 17 and I decided to double
major.
My junior year I picked upFrench.
(02:57):
I am also not a French doctor,but I was able to double major
French and biology and reallyuse a lot of those critical
thinking skills and writingskills and presentation skills
to formulate a career where Iended up being a translator for
a major bank in Manhattan.
Oh, wow.
And I did that for a few yearsand very quickly realized my
favorite day of the week wasSaturday when I was doing a
(03:18):
recreation program with AnyaMark and you know, running for
that ferry, missing the ferry,trying to do the Indiana Jones
slide through to catch it.
It got old pretty quickly andone day I asked my boss in the
city if I could have a setschedule because I wanted to go
back to school to studydisability studies and he said
no and I went downstairs and Istarted to cry.
(03:40):
But when one door closes,another one always opens,
literally.
My phone rang minutes later andit was Jim Alaco, one of my
greatest mentors, and he passedaway last year.
But I opened my flip phone, itwas 2003.
And he was calling becausethere was an opportunity for
residence management with, onyour Mark, a full-time position.
And I threw my name in the hatand I never looked back.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
So you kind of grew up with nonprofits, yes, and
that went there, but so that'san interesting one.
It's not exactly, you know atons of zigs and zags, but it's
not linear either.
It's not like you went tocollege and immediately went
into this field.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
It was always a side thing, something I did for fun,
something I did on the weekends.
Most of my friends my friendsto this day, I've made through
On your Mark.
You know, you go on tripstogether, you do sleepovers
together, you work through asnowstorm together, right, and
you really get to know eachother and build those
friendships because you rely onone another to make sure the
people you're supporting arehaving the best time possible.
(04:38):
So I did try a lot of otherthings while still keeping my
foot in the Onyemark water, soto speak, but it just always
brought me back.
There was something in it and Ialways say I fell into it, but
I fell in love with it is whathappened.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
So how about you, Nadia?
I mean, did you come right outof school and go to work for
Onyemark?
Is this what you studied inschool?
Speaker 3 (04:57):
I didn't.
When I graduated and I'm fromSyracuse, new York I moved down
to Staten Island.
I graduated with a major insociology and anthropology.
They were combined at ourcollege and I had a
communication studies minor.
I was always interested in likebroadcasting and writing and
(05:19):
news.
So I was like all right, if Ihave communication studies,
that'll kind of help me.
But then when I moved down hereI was kind of like, oh, you
know, when you go to college youthink like your major is going
to like just put you right in.
But I was like I don't evenreally know what I want to do.
So I got a job in HR.
My first job was in the city andI worked there until COVID
(05:40):
happened and then I got laid offand then I was on Staten Island
, which was like the first timeI'd been just kind of like
wholesomely here through movinghere and working in the city.
And I started working at thenursing home, seaview, in HR as
well.
And when I was there I realizedthat I didn't see myself
(06:02):
growing too much because Seaviewwas a really good experience.
But it was like an old soul forme, like I was young and I kind
of was looking for like asocial life but also like
growing in my career, and I feltlike I was just going to be
like plateauing.
So actually I had met Johnthrough my husband, sal.
(06:25):
They're in the Kiwanis group.
Together we were at CampChilauea for like a New Year's
Eve gathering and I had told himthat I was, you know, looking
for something else and if heknew anything or had anyone he
could pass my resume along toand then, like probably a month
or two later, he was.
They invited me to come in foran interview for development.
They were adding a coordinatorto the department and they
(06:48):
really took a chance on me.
But I have been so happy withthem and they really just like
opened the door for me.
Not being from Staten Islandand being able to come there and
like immerse myself in thecommunity has been like just
like a 360 for me.
It's really like I've come tolike love Staten Island and
before I was like, oh, statenIsland, like I love upstate so
(07:09):
much better but I really love itnow and I'm part of the
community and I know people andthe people know me and being so
involved with like theindividuals and going into the
cafe and the chocolate shop likeit's been so heartwarming.
I just like love that.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
I think they took a chance on me and I'm really
happy about it so I know that,uh, I work with a lot of, uh,
high schools and colleges andyou know they bring me in to
talk to the students about, liketheir career pathways, and you
know the fact is, you took justthree of us sitting here.
None of us really went toschool for the thing that we're
doing right, which I think issomething actually we really
talk about, because high schoolkids and college kids don't
(07:46):
really get exposed to that.
But I want to come back and Iwant to actually talk a little
bit about On your Mark.
So tell me about On your Mark.
Pretend I don't know anythingabout On your Mark.
You know, what do you guys doover there?
Like, when did you guys start?
You know the population youserve.
Like when did you guys start?
Speaker 2 (08:06):
You know the population you serve.
Like, hit me with everythingyou got it I'm going to.
It's funny you brought up highschool because one of the joys
that I get is I get to interviewall of our high school staff.
So I'm going to kind of tellyou about our agency like I
would tell one of our interviews.
So On, your Mark got startedhere on Staten Island back in
1979.
And it started with a smalllittle karate class in a dojo
back in 1979, and it startedwith a small little karate class
in a dojo, very tiny littleclass for people with autism.
(08:28):
And to this day, we'reapproaching 50 years now we're
serving over 800 people onStaten Island, their families.
We also have a presence inBrooklyn and it's to provide
support for people withintellectual and developmental
disabilities.
So autism, down syndrome,cerebral palsy is not a
developmental disability but itcan be linked in as well.
A wide, wide spectrum of peoplethat we support and out of our
(08:51):
program services, I say all ofthem.
The goal is to promoteindependence and whatever that
might mean for that person.
Some people are working ongaining their independence as
they're aging and moving intothe community, getting a job,
things like that.
On the other end too, we have alot of our older individuals
that they're working with thechallenges of losing some of
their independence as we all ageand our bodies betray us along
(09:13):
the way, but making sure thatthey can still be as independent
as possible in their preferredsetting.
So whether that's residentialor if we support them with a
community hab worker in thecommunity, if they're living at
home on their own or withmembers of their family, our day
programs.
We have a wide variety there.
Sometimes people come right outof high school and they come to
(09:33):
our day HABs because they wantto learn vocational skills
Custodial, cooking, maintenance,clerical skills, horticulture.
We have people that are comingto work on those basic job
skills so that they can seeksupported employment
opportunities.
But not everybody's looking forwork.
Sometimes people are comingbecause we have therapeutic art
programs, music therapy.
(09:54):
We have pools that we use aswell, so it might be another
outlet to provide supports forthe families somewhere for their
loved one to go during the dayand get some active programming
and actually learn on their ageappropriate levels as well.
We're always presumingcompetence with everyone that we
support.
What I didn't mention is respite, and that's where we started
right.
That's the only program thatthe goal is not to promote
(10:16):
independence.
The goal is fun.
And I say that the goal is tohave fun because respite's
really a program for the family,for the caregivers, the moms,
the dads, the brothers, sisters.
It's to know that their lovedone is having a great time with
us, and so the caregiver can nowgo to the grocery store, take a
nap, go on a date, go onvacation, you know things like
that.
So respite is where we startedand it's still a growing and
(10:40):
developing program.
But the heart of what we doright now is really, you know,
helping everyone to gain theirindependence in the community.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
You have respite, you have day help, you have
residential, you have therapyprograms.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
We have Comhab employment services.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
So if a family member wants to reach out, what age do
most people start programs at?
On your Mark, Great question.
Speaker 2 (11:05):
We start as young as five years old.
However, we do see that mostpeople start their programs upon
graduating high school.
We've made a big effort thispast year two years now to go
into local schools to work withthe PTAs parent transition
coordinators to make sure thatthey understand Medicaid waiver
being part of the process ofreceiving our services.
(11:25):
A lot of families don't knowabout that until they're looking
for the service and they don'tunderstand.
Sometimes it can take sixmonths to a year to get the ball
rolling on that.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
So it's not just like signing your kid up for a sport
.
Do they go through theirdoctors?
What's the policy or theprocedure if I had a child and I
wanted to actually enroll them?
Speaker 2 (11:49):
We have and maybe we'll put it on the screen later
Elizabeth Sorolla.
She does all of our intakes andwe have an intake committee, so
she's the point person.
If you're interested inservices for Anya Mark, you
reach out to her or you reachout to any of us on the team.
We'll connect you to her andshe'll gather all the required
documentation, all thebureaucracy, right.
We need a current life plan, acurrent psychological,
(12:11):
psychosocial and a medical, andfrom that we just look to see if
there's any immediate glaringthings, that maybe there's a
severe medical issue that ourstaff may not be trained in how
to handle.
We also make sure the person isMedicaid waiver eligible and
that would be determined bytheir primary physician or
psychologist, just that theirdevelopmental disability, you
know, is identified.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
So you said it's a long process, like months or
years or.
Speaker 2 (12:31):
The waiver side was we don't do the waiver
enrollment.
That would be with their caremanager or their care
coordinator.
That can take quite a bit, butonce they reach out to On your
Mark, we usually are able toturn over a case within about
six weeks.
So we really it is.
We make sure we meet every twoweeks so we can review our
packets.
And then the next step is weschedule clinical intakes.
We meet with Ellen Murray she'sour director of clinical
(12:54):
services.
She's a registered nurse andColleen McKeever.
She's our assistant director ofclinical.
She oversees all of ourbehavior specialists and she's
also a social worker.
Speaker 1 (13:03):
So you have a lot of people that work there.
I mean, what would you say likeat peak time?
How many total employees do youhave?
Speaker 2 (13:10):
We always say just about 500.
There's people coming in andsome people stay, some people
leave, but we're always rightaround 500.
So it's mind blowing to thinkof how we started so small.
Speaker 1 (13:20):
It's strange because a lot of the nonprofits on
Staten Island are the biggestemployers.
Like, when you really thinkabout it, we have tons of small
businesses.
If they have five workers,that's a lot.
But you know, you don't reallysee that many private companies
on the island that employ thatmany people 500 people and I
mean you know.
So I would imagine that there'sgot to be this 500 people, a
(13:45):
couple hundred different titlesof jobs that you have.
Speaker 2 (13:48):
The majority of what we have are part-time direct
support professionals.
Our DSPs they're the meat andpotatoes.
They're our frontline peoplethat are providing the direct
support to our individuals.
They're making sure that we'regetting our community engagement
.
They're making sure thateveryone feels happy with how
they look when they go out forthe day and proud of themselves
or that they have someone totalk to if they've had a tough
(14:10):
day.
We're making sure that our DSPshelp our individuals to have
healthy relationships with theirfriends, with their parents,
siblings, like that.
So our DSPs are the core ofwhat we do and then from there
we have so much room for growth.
You know, I'm just one example,but so many people our
(14:32):
directors, our managers, all ofour administrators started at
entry-level positions in On yourMark as direct support
professionals.
So some people they work asDSPs part-time while they're
going to school, so they've goneon to become nurses and doctors
, special education teachers, ot, pt, speech, nutrition, all of
those.
We even have people in ourfinance department and our HR
department that started as DSPsand they're still working,
respite sometimes too, which isgreat.
Speaker 1 (14:53):
That's the thing that I think is so interesting about
nonprofits that it's not likeyou only hire one thing, you
only have accountants, right.
You have all these differentpeople who are looking for jobs
and I mean, how often would yousay that you guys are actually
hiring or having fairs oranything like that?
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Do you want to talk about our hiring event coming up
?
Speaker 3 (15:10):
Yeah, so once a year we do like an all-office
encompassing hiring event, butwe host a new hire every two
weeks regularly throughout theyear at On your Mark.
Two weeks regularly throughoutthe year.
On your mark.
We have walk-in Tuesdays andThursdays so that people can
just come by the office with aresume and they'll get an
(15:31):
interview right on the spot.
We've modified the hiringevents Going into this year
we're just doing one inSeptember, but the last couple
of years we did two, so one eachin the beginning of the year
and then in the end of the year.
Um, but we kind of found outthat with the walk-in days we
only really need like one bighiring event throughout the year
(15:52):
.
Um, we had all of our directorscome to the hiring event when
we first started doing them andwe've been like working our way
to get it all perfect for theone coming up.
But we realized it's kind of alot when you pull the directors
to have them there for the dayto meet everyone that's coming
in.
But it is so important becausethey can see like, wow, I'm
(16:13):
coming into On your Mark and Iget a chance to meet the
director of every department andhave a conversation with them
and if I don't know exactly whatI want to do, I can kind of go
through the room and chat witheveryone and see like where I
see myself being here.
So this year with the in-officeevent, we will have the
directors that are in the officeare going to be there.
(16:33):
Our day hub is really our onlydepartment that's not like in
our main offices with us, so wemight be able to pull a director
that day, but at the eventwe'll be able to just have
everyone walk in.
Our directors and assistantdirectors and managers will be
able to be in the office andchat with them and we will host
it in the conference room and ifwe feel like it's fit, we'll
(16:55):
pull them into an interview, doan interview and get like the
paperwork started, depending onlike their interest do you have
some positions that you'realways hiring, like more for
like?
Speaker 2 (17:05):
I would imagine you don't need a lot of executive
directors.
No, no, no, John has got thatcovered.
No, I have to say like ourexecutive team is strong and I'm
very happy to be a part of it,but we look for nurses often.
I mean, we're really blessed inour nursing department that we
have nurses to oversee eachgroup home and each day program.
But sometimes people will cometo us and then they get a job in
(17:28):
a hospital and that's okay.
You know, we understand thetransition.
We are always looking fordirect support professionals not
as often but it does come up.
We'll look for someadministrative roles in our day
have program and our residentialprograms because, having 13
group homes across Staten Islandplus two large apartment
complexes, each home has a andeach home has an assistant
(17:49):
manager, pardon me and we tendto promote from within whenever
we can because we want to beable to see people that have
grown through the ranks andreally understood the mission of
On your Mark.
So those are always open jobcoaches, definitely.
We're getting more and morepeople paid employment in the
community and sometimes, whensomeone is new to that position,
they're going through a programcalled Pathways to Employment
(18:11):
and that's really a one-to-onekind of a coaching.
So we want to make sure that wehave the right people there to
support them.
Speaker 1 (18:16):
So you have 13 residences.
Speaker 2 (18:18):
We do yes.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
Now I'm going to say this, and it sounds so funny
when you say it, but so thereare 24 hours.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
They certainly are.
So you have to have staff 24.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
Hours.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
All three shifts, eight-hour shifts.
Yeah, that's why 500.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
But that makes perfect sense when you really
think about it.
But I mean for people that arelooking for, you know, night
jobs because of their kids, youknow, or for people that have a
job and are looking for a secondjob.
I mean, balancing shifts issomething that really comes into
play, but for a DSP.
So what are the requirements tobe a DSP?
Excellent question.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
So, with the exception of respite, where we
have a program where we do hirehigh school students, so that's
the only program you can beunder 18 and not have a high
school diploma or GED.
But all of our other programsyou do need to be over the age
of 18, have either a high schooldiploma or a GED.
We do prefer, if you have adriver's license, a valid
driver's license.
It just makes life so mucheasier.
(19:14):
Think about living in aresidence, going to medical
appointments, birthday parties,out to eat.
It's a lot easier when you havesomeone who can help you drive.
So we do prefer drivers, but ifthey don't drive, we work it out
.
And they do go through a newyork state background check.
Again, the people we supportare considered vulnerable
persons, so we want to make surethat anyone who's under our
(19:35):
care is protected at all times.
So, uh, they'll do a backgroundcheck, a driver's abstract um,
something called a ppd, kind ofantiquated from the health care
system, but it's a test fortuberculosis.
Uh, it's required in our field.
And then, like Nadia said,we're doing orientation every
two weeks.
So, from when you apply, eitheronline or a walk-in day, you're
(19:56):
filling out the paperworkwithin about 24 to 48 hours.
If you apply it online, you'regetting interviewed within 24
hours, and Joe DeVivo is mydirect supervisor.
He's our deputy executivedirector.
He interviews every singleperson that comes through into
our agency and that's such ahigh level of commitment.
But his big word is engagement.
Right, if someone applied on aFriday, they're in your office
(20:17):
Monday filling out paperworkTuesday.
They're more likely to staybecause we're all fishing in the
same pond here, right?
There's a big need for DSPs onStaten Island.
So it takes about four weeks toprocess your background
paperwork and then you areinvited to new hire orientation.
It is two full days full ofinformation, some pretty cool
teachers Nadia and I but it'sgreat.
(20:37):
Each section of the orientationis taught by a different
director.
So, besides your usual welcomeand professionalism, we talk
about abuse prevention.
We talk about the history ofWillowbrook and the history of
the field that we're in.
Why are we doing what we'redoing and why is it important to
advocate and make sure peoplehave their rights?
We talk about fire safety,positive behavior supports,
(20:57):
right?
You want people to catch youbeing good.
You don't want someone waggingtheir finger at you.
So how do you help people tolive their best life without
treating them or talking down tosomeone Like, how do you really
engage with that person?
So, paid training and day two,we cater lunch from our cafe and
during your lunch you get tomeet your supervisor, set up
your schedule and you hit theground running.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
So I would imagine nurses I mean, you're talking
advanced degrees there.
Speaker 2 (21:25):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (21:26):
But you're saying a DSP could be anybody that you
know, whether they have a GED orthey graduated high school or
even graduated college.
They could become a DSPAbsolutely.
And we're talking about, youknow, like I said, nonprofits.
You don't go to school andmajor in nonprofits, but you
have social workers,psychologists, you have people
who majored in sociology,education.
(21:48):
These are all transferablevenues where something that I
went to school for could carryover, and I might not be a DSP
forever, but it's a good jobwhile I'm in college.
It's a good job when I'm tryingto figure out what it is that I
want to do.
Or, like you just said, I couldalso grow with the company.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
It offers so much flexibility and, like Nadia was
saying in our prior, we tried wegave each applicant a passport
and you would go to eachdepartment and meet with the
director and learn about whatdoes it mean to work in day hab?
What are the hours on anovernight in residential?
How does comm hab work on theweekend?
Is that flexible enough?
And you would get stamps onyour passport and then you
(22:24):
entered for a contest.
It was very interactive but Iliked it because it gave each
applicant an understanding that,all right, I'm not available
Monday through Friday eight tofour, but I heard you need
overnights Friday, saturday,sunday.
I can do that.
That works for my needs and myfamily and we do prefer to hire
full time whenever possible.
But we understand a lot oftimes people this is their
(22:44):
second or third job and theyhave families to take care of
and other other things they haveto do.
But when they come to us we doeverything within our power to
retain them and really just makesure you know that they have
the mentoring that they need andthe support they need.
We've even been flexible.
A lot of times people come tous while they're in college and
your schedule changes.
Okay, well, or they go away tocollege doesn't mean you're
(23:06):
fired.
We're going to put you on leaveand then when you come back for
the holiday break, come on back.
So we have our summer subs, ourholiday subs.
But being flexible in thoseareas has really helped us to
retain our staff and make peoplefeel valued, I believe.
Speaker 1 (23:20):
I mean listen, the fact that, first off, I did not
know that you guys started withkarate classes.
That is great and I'm justtrying to picture that now.
But a lot of the nonprofitsthat came out in the late 70s
were because there weren'tafter-school programs.
I mean, united Activitiesstarted off with basketball
night programs.
(23:40):
Huh didn't know that they'reactually a sports nonprofit.
That would freak Sal out if youtold him that.
But then they transitionedbecause there were other
programs.
There were other programs.
You know, it's the same thinglike you're telling me, like On
your Mark grew based on what thecommunity told them they needed
Exactly, but now your need isthat you need more workers,
(24:02):
right, you know, to fill all ofthose different things.
So if I'm looking for a job, Iguess it's onyourmarkorg Correct
, yes, okay.
If I'm looking for a job, Iguess it's onyourmarkorg Correct
, yes, okay.
So if you're looking for a jobon Staten Island, whether it's
full-time or part-time, and youhave every other Tuesday, Every
Tuesday and Thursday, every week, every week.
(24:25):
Every Tuesday and Thursday at Onyour Mark on Forest Avenue.
You can visit onyourmarkorg seesome of the job openings that
they have put in an application.
Then you can go there for theirTuesdays and Thursdays when
they have their regular nights.
They have a big hiring eventcoming up in September.
Try not to miss that.
If you see this beforeSeptember, make sure you go to
that.
But I would say, if you'reinterested in learning more, you
(24:45):
can always go on their website.
We'll make sure to throw outall the socials.
Thank you.
This way people can seesomething.
I'd say that if there's a callto action here, it's support,
right, Volunteers, great.
Speaker 3 (24:59):
Volunteers matter.
We love the volunteers too, andour staff are rock star
volunteers.
There is no even need for me toreach out to my friends and
family sometimes, because whenwe have events going on and I
reach out to the staff in theoffice, they could not come
answering my emails faster.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
But that shows that they like what they do and they
like the organization.
Otherwise they wouldn'tvolunteer.
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (25:23):
And it's a great way for us all to come together and
interact.
When I go into new Hire, Ialways let the New Hires know
that when I have events going on, you will see me in your inbox,
but I tell them that you knowyou're in this room together and
once you leave and everyonegoes into their new department,
sometimes you don't see eachother as much.
So when you come to the eventswhether you're volunteering or
(25:44):
supporting, coming and buying aticket it's another way for us
to all reconnect and catch up,and that's nice because you'll
see some new faces, some oldfaces and you all get to just
hang out.
Speaker 1 (25:53):
Well, if you can't volunteer, we also like money.
So I would say visitonyourmarkorg, whether it's a
gala, whether it's a golf outingor any of the other events that
they have.
You can donate 365 days out ofthe year.
Money is needed because thestate does not give enough money
for any of these nonprofits todo their work.
(26:14):
Jen Nadia, I just want to saythank you for being on today my
pleasure this is great I learnedabout on your mark and I think
that's actually interesting.
When you know someone like mefinds out these little things
that they didn't know, thatmeans that there's so much more
out there means we can stillkeep making an impact in the
community, for sure.
Exactly.
Well this has been great.
Definitely tune in for our nextepisode and we look forward to
(26:36):
hearing more from you.
Hi everybody.
I'm Brian Licato with MarvelConsult, and I'm here today with
Nadia Bozzi from On your Markand Jennifer Larson from On your
Mark, and thank you for tuningin.
So first, why don't we do this?
Why don't we hear your officialtitles and I'm sure they're
long, but let's see what you got.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Jen, you first.
Thank you, Nadia.
My name is Jennifer Larson.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
I'm one of the associate executive directors at
On your Mark and my name isNadia Fabozzi.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
I'm the director of development at On your Mark, so
I know titles in nonprofits arelike you have a bag and you pull
things out and try to put themtogether.
What does an associateexecutive director do?
Speaker 2 (00:44):
We wear many hats.
That's what we do.
Good prop.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
We wear many many hats.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
What I always say is you know, getting to observe all
of our programs, know how ourprograms run, help expose what
we do to the community.
You kind of have your hand in alittle bit of everything and
you say we're doing a great job,but how can we do a little bit
better?
How can we increase ourworkforce?
How can we improve our training?
How can we have professionaldevelopment and learn different
(01:10):
ways to support our individualsto gain their independence?
That's my job.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
So, jen, are you direct services or are you more
like that supervisory, likeadmin side of On your Mark?
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Little bit of both, I have to say.
I'm very, very happy that I'mgoing to Sleepaway Camp next
week, so I still get to do a lotof those fun DSP things.
I'm still a DSP at heart.
One of the perks of working inour office is being right above
our cafe and being able tointeract with our day program,
our small businesses every day.
But the majority I would say90% of my work is supervisory
and administration.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
And now you said director of development.
Yes, what is a director ofdevelopment?
Speaker 3 (01:47):
Many hats as well.
In the development departmentwe focus on events, fundraising,
grant writing, communityoutreach and public relations.
We also do all the marketingand social media for the agency
we help with, like the brandingand all of our community
relations as well.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
So more like the development, but you're talking
about the monetary developmentand you're talking about the
social media development of theorganization.
Yes, Did either of you?
Is this what you went to school?
Speaker 3 (02:19):
for no, not at all.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
So I went originally for accounting.
I like numbers, I didn't wantto do accounting.
I switched and went for history, and I'm not a history teacher,
so I zigged and I zagged.
But now, what did you both goto school for?
Speaker 2 (02:37):
If you bear with me my origin story, I did go to
school to be a doctor and thatdidn't really work out.
I got a D in physics and I saidthat's kind of tough.
But the whole time I was incollege I was also working at On
your Mark.
I was a respite staff since Iwas 17 and I decided to double
major.
My junior year I picked upFrench.
(02:57):
I am also not a French doctor,but I was able to double major
French and biology and reallyuse a lot of those critical
thinking skills and writingskills and presentation skills
to formulate a career where Iended up being a translator for
a major bank in Manhattan.
Oh, wow.
And I did that for a few yearsand very quickly realized my
favorite day of the week wasSaturday when I was doing a
(03:18):
recreation program with AnyaMark and you know, running for
that ferry, missing the ferry,trying to do the Indiana Jones
slide through to catch it.
It got old pretty quickly andone day I asked my boss in the
city if I could have a setschedule because I wanted to go
back to school to studydisability studies and he said
no and I went downstairs and Istarted to cry.
(03:40):
But when one door closes,another one always opens,
literally.
My phone rang minutes later andit was Jim Alaco, one of my
greatest mentors, and he passedaway last year.
But I opened my flip phone, itwas 2003.
And he was calling becausethere was an opportunity for
residence management with, onyour Mark, a full-time position.
And I threw my name in the hatand I never looked back.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
So you kind of grew up with nonprofits, yes, and
that went there, but so that'san interesting one.
It's not exactly, you know atons of zigs and zags, but it's
not linear either.
It's not like you went tocollege and immediately went
into this field.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
It was always a side thing, something I did for fun,
something I did on the weekends.
Most of my friends my friendsto this day, I've made through
On your Mark.
You know, you go on tripstogether, you do sleepovers
together, you work through asnowstorm together, right, and
you really get to know eachother and build those
friendships because you rely onone another to make sure the
people you're supporting arehaving the best time possible.
(04:38):
So I did try a lot of otherthings while still keeping my
foot in the Onyemark water, soto speak, but it just always
brought me back.
There was something in it and Ialways say I fell into it, but
I fell in love with it is whathappened.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
So how about you, Nadia?
I mean, did you come right outof school and go to work for
Onyemark?
Is this what you studied inschool?
Speaker 3 (04:57):
I didn't.
When I graduated and I'm fromSyracuse, new York I moved down
to Staten Island.
I graduated with a major insociology and anthropology.
They were combined at ourcollege and I had a
communication studies minor.
I was always interested in likebroadcasting and writing and
(05:19):
news.
So I was like all right, if Ihave communication studies,
that'll kind of help me.
But then when I moved down hereI was kind of like, oh, you
know, when you go to college youthink like your major is going
to like just put you right in.
But I was like I don't evenreally know what I want to do.
So I got a job in HR.
My first job was in the city andI worked there until COVID
(05:40):
happened and then I got laid offand then I was on Staten Island
, which was like the first timeI'd been just kind of like
wholesomely here through movinghere and working in the city.
And I started working at thenursing home, seaview, in HR as
well.
And when I was there I realizedthat I didn't see myself
(06:02):
growing too much because Seaviewwas a really good experience.
But it was like an old soul forme, like I was young and I kind
of was looking for like asocial life but also like
growing in my career, and I feltlike I was just going to be
like plateauing.
So actually I had met Johnthrough my husband, sal.
(06:25):
They're in the Kiwanis group.
Together we were at CampChilauea for like a New Year's
Eve gathering and I had told himthat I was, you know, looking
for something else and if heknew anything or had anyone he
could pass my resume along toand then, like probably a month
or two later, he was.
They invited me to come in foran interview for development.
They were adding a coordinatorto the department and they
(06:48):
really took a chance on me.
But I have been so happy withthem and they really just like
opened the door for me.
Not being from Staten Islandand being able to come there and
like immerse myself in thecommunity has been like just
like a 360 for me.
It's really like I've come tolike love Staten Island and
before I was like, oh, statenIsland, like I love upstate so
(07:09):
much better but I really love itnow and I'm part of the
community and I know people andthe people know me and being so
involved with like theindividuals and going into the
cafe and the chocolate shop likeit's been so heartwarming.
I just like love that.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
I think they took a chance on me and I'm really
happy about it so I know that,uh, I work with a lot of, uh,
high schools and colleges andyou know they bring me in to
talk to the students about, liketheir career pathways, and you
know the fact is, you took justthree of us sitting here.
None of us really went toschool for the thing that we're
doing right, which I think issomething actually we really
talk about, because high schoolkids and college kids don't
(07:46):
really get exposed to that.
But I want to come back and Iwant to actually talk a little
bit about On your Mark.
So tell me about On your Mark.
Pretend I don't know anythingabout On your Mark.
You know, what do you guys doover there?
Like, when did you guys start?
You know the population youserve.
Like when did you guys start?
Speaker 2 (08:06):
You know the population you serve.
Like, hit me with everythingyou got it I'm going to.
It's funny you brought up highschool because one of the joys
that I get is I get to interviewall of our high school staff.
So I'm going to kind of tellyou about our agency like I
would tell one of our interviews.
So On, your Mark got startedhere on Staten Island back in
1979.
And it started with a smalllittle karate class in a dojo
back in 1979, and it startedwith a small little karate class
in a dojo, very tiny littleclass for people with autism.
(08:28):
And to this day, we'reapproaching 50 years now we're
serving over 800 people onStaten Island, their families.
We also have a presence inBrooklyn and it's to provide
support for people withintellectual and developmental
disabilities.
So autism, down syndrome,cerebral palsy is not a
developmental disability but itcan be linked in as well.
A wide, wide spectrum of peoplethat we support and out of our
(08:51):
program services, I say all ofthem.
The goal is to promoteindependence and whatever that
might mean for that person.
Some people are working ongaining their independence as
they're aging and moving intothe community, getting a job,
things like that.
On the other end too, we have alot of our older individuals
that they're working with thechallenges of losing some of
their independence as we all ageand our bodies betray us along
(09:13):
the way, but making sure thatthey can still be as independent
as possible in their preferredsetting.
So whether that's residentialor if we support them with a
community hab worker in thecommunity, if they're living at
home on their own or withmembers of their family, our day
programs.
We have a wide variety there.
Sometimes people come right outof high school and they come to
(09:33):
our day HABs because they wantto learn vocational skills
Custodial, cooking, maintenance,clerical skills, horticulture.
We have people that are comingto work on those basic job
skills so that they can seeksupported employment
opportunities.
But not everybody's looking forwork.
Sometimes people are comingbecause we have therapeutic art
programs, music therapy.
(09:54):
We have pools that we use aswell, so it might be another
outlet to provide supports forthe families somewhere for their
loved one to go during the dayand get some active programming
and actually learn on their ageappropriate levels as well.
We're always presumingcompetence with everyone that we
support.
What I didn't mention is respite, and that's where we started
right.
That's the only program thatthe goal is not to promote
(10:16):
independence.
The goal is fun.
And I say that the goal is tohave fun because respite's
really a program for the family,for the caregivers, the moms,
the dads, the brothers, sisters.
It's to know that their lovedone is having a great time with
us, and so the caregiver can nowgo to the grocery store, take a
nap, go on a date, go onvacation, you know things like
that.
So respite is where we startedand it's still a growing and
(10:40):
developing program.
But the heart of what we doright now is really, you know,
helping everyone to gain theirindependence in the community.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
You have respite, you have day help, you have
residential, you have therapyprograms.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
We have Comhab employment services.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
So if a family member wants to reach out, what age do
most people start programs at?
On your Mark, Great question.
Speaker 2 (11:05):
We start as young as five years old.
However, we do see that mostpeople start their programs upon
graduating high school.
We've made a big effort thispast year two years now to go
into local schools to work withthe PTAs parent transition
coordinators to make sure thatthey understand Medicaid waiver
being part of the process ofreceiving our services.
(11:25):
A lot of families don't knowabout that until they're looking
for the service and they don'tunderstand.
Sometimes it can take sixmonths to a year to get the ball
rolling on that.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
So it's not just like signing your kid up for a sport
.
Do they go through theirdoctors?
What's the policy or theprocedure if I had a child and I
wanted to actually enroll them?
Speaker 2 (11:49):
We have and maybe we'll put it on the screen later
Elizabeth Sorolla.
She does all of our intakes andwe have an intake committee, so
she's the point person.
If you're interested inservices for Anya Mark, you
reach out to her or you reachout to any of us on the team.
We'll connect you to her andshe'll gather all the required
documentation, all thebureaucracy, right.
We need a current life plan, acurrent psychological,
(12:11):
psychosocial and a medical, andfrom that we just look to see if
there's any immediate glaringthings, that maybe there's a
severe medical issue that ourstaff may not be trained in how
to handle.
We also make sure the person isMedicaid waiver eligible and
that would be determined bytheir primary physician or
psychologist, just that theirdevelopmental disability, you
know, is identified.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
So you said it's a long process, like months or
years or.
Speaker 2 (12:31):
The waiver side was we don't do the waiver
enrollment.
That would be with their caremanager or their care
coordinator.
That can take quite a bit, butonce they reach out to On your
Mark, we usually are able toturn over a case within about
six weeks.
So we really it is.
We make sure we meet every twoweeks so we can review our
packets.
And then the next step is weschedule clinical intakes.
We meet with Ellen Murray she'sour director of clinical
(12:54):
services.
She's a registered nurse andColleen McKeever.
She's our assistant director ofclinical.
She oversees all of ourbehavior specialists and she's
also a social worker.
Speaker 1 (13:03):
So you have a lot of people that work there.
I mean, what would you say likeat peak time?
How many total employees do youhave?
Speaker 2 (13:10):
We always say just about 500.
There's people coming in andsome people stay, some people
leave, but we're always rightaround 500.
So it's mind blowing to thinkof how we started so small.
Speaker 1 (13:20):
It's strange because a lot of the nonprofits on
Staten Island are the biggestemployers.
Like, when you really thinkabout it, we have tons of small
businesses.
If they have five workers,that's a lot.
But you know, you don't reallysee that many private companies
on the island that employ thatmany people 500 people and I
mean you know.
So I would imagine that there'sgot to be this 500 people, a
(13:45):
couple hundred different titlesof jobs that you have.
Speaker 2 (13:48):
The majority of what we have are part-time direct
support professionals.
Our DSPs they're the meat andpotatoes.
They're our frontline peoplethat are providing the direct
support to our individuals.
They're making sure that we'regetting our community engagement
.
They're making sure thateveryone feels happy with how
they look when they go out forthe day and proud of themselves
or that they have someone totalk to if they've had a tough
(14:10):
day.
We're making sure that our DSPshelp our individuals to have
healthy relationships with theirfriends, with their parents,
siblings, like that.
So our DSPs are the core ofwhat we do and then from there
we have so much room for growth.
You know, I'm just one example,but so many people our
(14:32):
directors, our managers, all ofour administrators started at
entry-level positions in On yourMark as direct support
professionals.
So some people they work asDSPs part-time while they're
going to school, so they've goneon to become nurses and doctors
, special education teachers, ot, pt, speech, nutrition, all of
those.
We even have people in ourfinance department and our HR
department that started as DSPsand they're still working,
respite sometimes too, which isgreat.
Speaker 1 (14:53):
That's the thing that I think is so interesting about
nonprofits that it's not likeyou only hire one thing, you
only have accountants, right.
You have all these differentpeople who are looking for jobs
and I mean, how often would yousay that you guys are actually
hiring or having fairs oranything like that?
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Do you want to talk about our hiring event coming up
?
Speaker 3 (15:10):
Yeah, so once a year we do like an all-office
encompassing hiring event, butwe host a new hire every two
weeks regularly throughout theyear at On your Mark.
Two weeks regularly throughoutthe year.
On your mark.
We have walk-in Tuesdays andThursdays so that people can
just come by the office with aresume and they'll get an
(15:31):
interview right on the spot.
We've modified the hiringevents Going into this year
we're just doing one inSeptember, but the last couple
of years we did two, so one eachin the beginning of the year
and then in the end of the year.
Um, but we kind of found outthat with the walk-in days we
only really need like one bighiring event throughout the year
(15:52):
.
Um, we had all of our directorscome to the hiring event when
we first started doing them andwe've been like working our way
to get it all perfect for theone coming up.
But we realized it's kind of alot when you pull the directors
to have them there for the dayto meet everyone that's coming
in.
But it is so important becausethey can see like, wow, I'm
(16:13):
coming into On your Mark and Iget a chance to meet the
director of every department andhave a conversation with them
and if I don't know exactly whatI want to do, I can kind of go
through the room and chat witheveryone and see like where I
see myself being here.
So this year with the in-officeevent, we will have the
directors that are in the officeare going to be there.
(16:33):
Our day hub is really our onlydepartment that's not like in
our main offices with us, so wemight be able to pull a director
that day, but at the eventwe'll be able to just have
everyone walk in.
Our directors and assistantdirectors and managers will be
able to be in the office andchat with them and we will host
it in the conference room and ifwe feel like it's fit, we'll
(16:55):
pull them into an interview, doan interview and get like the
paperwork started, depending onlike their interest do you have
some positions that you'realways hiring, like more for
like?
Speaker 2 (17:05):
I would imagine you don't need a lot of executive
directors.
No, no, no, John has got thatcovered.
No, I have to say like ourexecutive team is strong and I'm
very happy to be a part of it,but we look for nurses often.
I mean, we're really blessed inour nursing department that we
have nurses to oversee eachgroup home and each day program.
But sometimes people will cometo us and then they get a job in
(17:28):
a hospital and that's okay.
You know, we understand thetransition.
We are always looking fordirect support professionals not
as often but it does come up.
We'll look for someadministrative roles in our day
have program and our residentialprograms because, having 13
group homes across Staten Islandplus two large apartment
complexes, each home has a andeach home has an assistant
(17:49):
manager, pardon me and we tendto promote from within whenever
we can because we want to beable to see people that have
grown through the ranks andreally understood the mission of
On your Mark.
So those are always open jobcoaches, definitely.
We're getting more and morepeople paid employment in the
community and sometimes, whensomeone is new to that position,
they're going through a programcalled Pathways to Employment
(18:11):
and that's really a one-to-onekind of a coaching.
So we want to make sure that wehave the right people there to
support them.
Speaker 1 (18:16):
So you have 13 residences.
Speaker 2 (18:18):
We do yes.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
Now I'm going to say this, and it sounds so funny
when you say it, but so thereare 24 hours.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
They certainly are.
So you have to have staff 24.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
Hours.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
All three shifts, eight-hour shifts.
Yeah, that's why 500.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
But that makes perfect sense when you really
think about it.
But I mean for people that arelooking for, you know, night
jobs because of their kids, youknow, or for people that have a
job and are looking for a secondjob.
I mean, balancing shifts issomething that really comes into
play, but for a DSP.
So what are the requirements tobe a DSP?
Excellent question.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
So, with the exception of respite, where we
have a program where we do hirehigh school students, so that's
the only program you can beunder 18 and not have a high
school diploma or GED.
But all of our other programsyou do need to be over the age
of 18, have either a high schooldiploma or a GED.
We do prefer, if you have adriver's license, a valid
driver's license.
It just makes life so mucheasier.
(19:14):
Think about living in aresidence, going to medical
appointments, birthday parties,out to eat.
It's a lot easier when you havesomeone who can help you drive.
So we do prefer drivers, but ifthey don't drive, we work it out
.
And they do go through a newyork state background check.
Again, the people we supportare considered vulnerable
persons, so we want to make surethat anyone who's under our
(19:35):
care is protected at all times.
So, uh, they'll do a backgroundcheck, a driver's abstract um,
something called a ppd, kind ofantiquated from the health care
system, but it's a test fortuberculosis.
Uh, it's required in our field.
And then, like Nadia said,we're doing orientation every
two weeks.
So, from when you apply, eitheronline or a walk-in day, you're
(19:56):
filling out the paperworkwithin about 24 to 48 hours.
If you apply it online, you'regetting interviewed within 24
hours, and Joe DeVivo is mydirect supervisor.
He's our deputy executivedirector.
He interviews every singleperson that comes through into
our agency and that's such ahigh level of commitment.
But his big word is engagement.
Right, if someone applied on aFriday, they're in your office
(20:17):
Monday filling out paperworkTuesday.
They're more likely to staybecause we're all fishing in the
same pond here, right?
There's a big need for DSPs onStaten Island.
So it takes about four weeks toprocess your background
paperwork and then you areinvited to new hire orientation.
It is two full days full ofinformation, some pretty cool
teachers Nadia and I but it'sgreat.
(20:37):
Each section of the orientationis taught by a different
director.
So, besides your usual welcomeand professionalism, we talk
about abuse prevention.
We talk about the history ofWillowbrook and the history of
the field that we're in.
Why are we doing what we'redoing and why is it important to
advocate and make sure peoplehave their rights?
We talk about fire safety,positive behavior supports,
(20:57):
right?
You want people to catch youbeing good.
You don't want someone waggingtheir finger at you.
So how do you help people tolive their best life without
treating them or talking down tosomeone Like, how do you really
engage with that person?
So, paid training and day two,we cater lunch from our cafe and
during your lunch you get tomeet your supervisor, set up
your schedule and you hit theground running.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
So I would imagine nurses I mean, you're talking
advanced degrees there.
Speaker 2 (21:25):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (21:26):
But you're saying a DSP could be anybody that you
know, whether they have a GED orthey graduated high school or
even graduated college.
They could become a DSPAbsolutely.
And we're talking about, youknow, like I said, nonprofits.
You don't go to school andmajor in nonprofits, but you
have social workers,psychologists, you have people
who majored in sociology,education.
(21:48):
These are all transferablevenues where something that I
went to school for could carryover, and I might not be a DSP
forever, but it's a good jobwhile I'm in college.
It's a good job when I'm tryingto figure out what it is that I
want to do.
Or, like you just said, I couldalso grow with the company.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
It offers so much flexibility and, like Nadia was
saying in our prior, we tried wegave each applicant a passport
and you would go to eachdepartment and meet with the
director and learn about whatdoes it mean to work in day hab?
What are the hours on anovernight in residential?
How does comm hab work on theweekend?
Is that flexible enough?
And you would get stamps onyour passport and then you
(22:24):
entered for a contest.
It was very interactive but Iliked it because it gave each
applicant an understanding that,all right, I'm not available
Monday through Friday eight tofour, but I heard you need
overnights Friday, saturday,sunday.
I can do that.
That works for my needs and myfamily and we do prefer to hire
full time whenever possible.
But we understand a lot oftimes people this is their
(22:44):
second or third job and theyhave families to take care of
and other other things they haveto do.
But when they come to us we doeverything within our power to
retain them and really just makesure you know that they have
the mentoring that they need andthe support they need.
We've even been flexible.
A lot of times people come tous while they're in college and
your schedule changes.
Okay, well, or they go away tocollege doesn't mean you're
(23:06):
fired.
We're going to put you on leaveand then when you come back for
the holiday break, come on back.
So we have our summer subs, ourholiday subs.
But being flexible in thoseareas has really helped us to
retain our staff and make peoplefeel valued, I believe.
Speaker 1 (23:20):
I mean listen, the fact that, first off, I did not
know that you guys started withkarate classes.
That is great and I'm justtrying to picture that now.
But a lot of the nonprofitsthat came out in the late 70s
were because there weren'tafter-school programs.
I mean, united Activitiesstarted off with basketball
night programs.
(23:40):
Huh didn't know that they'reactually a sports nonprofit.
That would freak Sal out if youtold him that.
But then they transitionedbecause there were other
programs.
There were other programs.
You know, it's the same thinglike you're telling me, like On
your Mark grew based on what thecommunity told them they needed
Exactly, but now your need isthat you need more workers,
(24:02):
right, you know, to fill all ofthose different things.
So if I'm looking for a job, Iguess it's onyourmarkorg Correct
, yes, okay.
If I'm looking for a job, Iguess it's onyourmarkorg Correct
, yes, okay.
So if you're looking for a jobon Staten Island, whether it's
full-time or part-time, and youhave every other Tuesday, Every
Tuesday and Thursday, every week, every week.
(24:25):
Every Tuesday and Thursday at Onyour Mark on Forest Avenue.
You can visit onyourmarkorg seesome of the job openings that
they have put in an application.
Then you can go there for theirTuesdays and Thursdays when
they have their regular nights.
They have a big hiring eventcoming up in September.
Try not to miss that.
If you see this beforeSeptember, make sure you go to
that.
But I would say, if you'reinterested in learning more, you
(24:45):
can always go on their website.
We'll make sure to throw outall the socials.
Thank you.
This way people can seesomething.
I'd say that if there's a callto action here, it's support,
right, Volunteers, great.
Speaker 3 (24:59):
Volunteers matter.
We love the volunteers too, andour staff are rock star
volunteers.
There is no even need for me toreach out to my friends and
family sometimes, because whenwe have events going on and I
reach out to the staff in theoffice, they could not come
answering my emails faster.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
But that shows that they like what they do and they
like the organization.
Otherwise they wouldn'tvolunteer.
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (25:23):
And it's a great way for us all to come together and
interact.
When I go into new Hire, Ialways let the New Hires know
that when I have events going on, you will see me in your inbox,
but I tell them that you knowyou're in this room together and
once you leave and everyonegoes into their new department,
sometimes you don't see eachother as much.
So when you come to the eventswhether you're volunteering or
(25:44):
supporting, coming and buying aticket it's another way for us
to all reconnect and catch up,and that's nice because you'll
see some new faces, some oldfaces and you all get to just
hang out.
Speaker 1 (25:53):
Well, if you can't volunteer, we also like money.
So I would say visitonyourmarkorg, whether it's a
gala, whether it's a golf outingor any of the other events that
they have.
You can donate 365 days out ofthe year.
Money is needed because thestate does not give enough money
for any of these nonprofits todo their work.
(26:14):
Jen Nadia, I just want to saythank you for being on today my
pleasure this is great I learnedabout on your mark and I think
that's actually interesting.
When you know someone like mefinds out these little things
that they didn't know, thatmeans that there's so much more
out there means we can stillkeep making an impact in the
community, for sure.
Exactly.
Well this has been great.
Definitely tune in for our nextepisode and we look forward to
(26:36):
hearing more from you.
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