LIVE UNITED Y’All!

The first of this year I began to revisit a ritual I had not practiced regularly since I lived at home with my parents. I began to eat dinner at the kitchen table…no T.V., no phone, no distractions, at least three times a week. I have embarked on rediscovering the importance of uninterrupted meal time and I somehow feel better for it. 

I have started my own little version (sans children) of the family meal.

Of course, this is no new concept; families have been eating meals together even before grilled woolly mammoth was on the menu. But I think we can all agree that if the concept of the family meal doesn’t get some support real soon if may join the woolly mammoth on the extinction list.

Research has shown that when adults and children eat together good things start to happen:

·        Children do better in school

·        Children have fewer behavior problems

·        Teenagers are less apt to use drugs and alcohol

·        Children and teenagers say they like having time to talk to the adults in their lives

·        Communication between adults and children improves

·        Children understand their family’s values and traditions

·        Traditions are created around food and meals

Also…

·        Meals are usually more nutritious and healthful

·        Food dollars are better utilized with larger sized purchases

·        Time is better utilized because the family only cooks one meal

Source: http://nutrition.wsu.edu/ebet/why.html

Here are some tips to get you started:

1.    Aim for four or more meals a week

2.    Make family meals a priority

3.    Cook it quick and eat it slow

4.    Work toward happy, relaxing conversations at meals

5.    If time is an issue, make meals quick and easy

6.    Shop for food and cook together

7.    Take telephone calls later

8.    Turn off the T.V

9.    Respect each individual’s right to decide how much to eat

Source:  http://nutrition.wsu.edu/ebet/toolkit.html

There is no doubt that participating in the family meal is often easier said than done. Conflicting schedules, limited time for cooking, or limited knowledge of cooking techniques can make it difficult for some families to provide a good, wholesome, sit-down meal. The point is to be flexible, be patient, and do what you can to make meal time special with your family, whatever that looks like.

Want to learn more?

www.mealsmatter.org

http://nutrition.wsu.edu/ebet/index.html

http://www.childtrendsdatabank.org/indicators/96FamilyMeals.cfm

Advocacy, Health, Income

As I write this blog, I’m reflecting on spending several days recently at United Way of America’s Staff Leaders Conference held in Detroit, Michigan.  With 1400 individuals from large and small community United Way organizations across the US (and several from other countries,) it was a time to convene and leverage best practices, experience camaraderie and learning with peers, and to share how we can change things for the better in tough economic times when we put our energy into programs that impact education, income and health.

I have a long list of learning moments and a shorter list of nuggets and a-ha’s that came back with me from time in the Big D. For the Millennials and Gen X’ers out there I will share them here in a format of my 10 random thoughts on the SLC experience…

1.  Detroit is a really beautiful river (I think it was a river) city that looks over at Windsor Canada.

2.  Arne Duncan, our US Secretary of Education, is an amazing advocate for education who has many great ideas on how to strengthen schools and communities.

3.  Eli Lilly, Kellogg, Wells Fargo and General Mills walk the walk and talk the talk when it comes to caring about the community and advancing the common good in their workplace and the world …kudos for Spirit of America award winners

4.  We need to LEAN IN to our work during these times and be proactive about speaking up, creating change, and inviting others to join the work and make a difference

5.  The high school drop out rate in Detroit is currently over 70% … so alarming!

6.  You can more successfully bridge generational gaps when you understand the unique perspectives and differences between the four generations and how this also plays out in how and why different generations give of their time and resources

7.  United Way has worked with the American Human Development Project to develop a tool called the Common Good Forecaster™ which will empower our communities across the nation to track our progress in areas of health, education and standards of living.

8.  To get around you can catch the People Mover which is remarkably running very low on people in Detroit right now due to the extremely depressed business environment they are experiencing

9.  Chris Gardner’s the real deal when it comes to a motivational and authentic speaker

10. Black T shirts with white LIVE UNITED lettering are eye-catching and you don’t just want to wear the shirt…you live it!

As you know, at Metro United Way we work to create the most vital caring community. It takes all of us doing our part to connect to friends, family, neighbors, and the world – to make sure we create opportunities for a better life for all.  You ready to lean in and make a difference?

General making a difference

It takes a village to raise a child.  This old adage holds a wealth of truth.  None of us can stand alone.  We are all dependent on each other and the responsibility to ensure that our children live happy, healthy lives belongs to all of us.  It is our responsibility to make sure this next generation succeeds.

In these trying economic times, community isn’t always what it is supposed to be. We’d all like to think we live in a place where people care about others, where people pitch in to help when things get rough and where it’s safe to leave the doors unlocked and let the kids play outside.  This is what our parents wanted for us and what we want for our children, but is it really what we have?  We can make the change for our future and for our children.

Living in a good neighborhood has nothing to do with the price you paid for your home or the amount of your monthly rent.  Living in a good neighborhood depends on the support system that exists within the neighborhood.  We need to look at the way we treat each other and the children who surround us.  We need to take the responsibility of truly being a good neighbor and looking out for one another.  Every child should have a caring adult in their lives. That person is not always a parent or family member.  Sometimes it is a friend or neighbor.

During the Great Depression of the 1930s, there was plenty of poverty and misery.  People had lots of reasons to feel sorry for themselves, but people connected with each other during that time. They had family and friends around them.  People helped each other out, not only with physical needs like food, clothing and shelter, but also with spiritual and emotional needs.  They looked out for each other and they banded together to make it through.

We are in a rough patch again.  While no where near the magnitude of the Great Depression, still we all seem to be affected by this latest downturn in the economy.  With the housing and financial crises and ever increasing unemployment, it is easy to feel sorry for ourselves.  What we need to be doing is looking outward, reaching out a helping hand to our neighbors and ensuring our children live happy, healthy lives in a good neighborhood.  Life is a lot easier when you are part of a network of friends and family, a community, a neighborhood.

It takes a village to work with the family, to raise our children and weather the trying times.  If we want that kind of support, the place to begin is with ourselves, in our own neighborhoods.  Community, like charity, begins at home.  You start building a good neighborhood when you decide that you will be a good neighbor.  If you don’t know anyone on your block, you can always introduce yourself.  Host a gathering in your back yard.  Wave to your neighbors and stop to say hi at the curb.

There are many things that we don’t have much control over. But building a good neighborhood is something that you can do, right now, in the place where you live now.  You can reach out and touch your neighbor and find a new sense of purpose and life on your street. Make your neighborhood your village and ensure that our children will thrive.  Understand the truth that America was founded on, united we stand, divided we fall.  LIVE UNITED.

What do you think we need to do?  What are you doing in your neighborhood?

Photo credit: Samuel_Leo

General Children, Community, Live United, making a difference, Neighborhoods

Metro United Way is at the crossroads of business and philanthropy, with more area employers choosing to make their charitable impact through United Way than any other organization. Locally, we work with over 2,000 area businesses – like UPS, GE, Ford, Humana and many others – to facilitate opportunities for employees to give, advocate and volunteer.

As a LIVE UNITED Club merchant, your business will be connected to our 80,000+ donors who support the mission of Metro United Way through their workplace campaign.

What does this mean? The LIVE UNITED Club is our way of saying “thank you” to our loyal donors who give at least $3 per week or $156 per year.

How does it work? Area businesses that partner with us will offer discounts to donors who are enrolled in the Club. For example, you could offer a percentage or dollar-off discount, buy-one-get-one-free or free service or product with a purchase. Participation as a LIVE UNITED Club merchant is FREE!

As a LIVE UNITED Club merchant, you will have the following benefits:

• Marketing to over 100,000 potential customers, including over 80,000 Metro United Way donors and numerous non-donors
• Partnership with the United Way brand (worth an estimated $34.7 billion) for turn-key cause related marketing
• Listing on Metro United Way’s website
• Community Recognition
• Opportunity to display LIVE UNITED Club/Metro United Way signage at your business or a logo on your website!

Why not put your business in the spotlight with Metro United Way by serving as a LIVE UNITED Club merchant? To let us know we can count on you, or for any questions or additional information, contact Angela Champion at 502-292-6116 or at angela – dot – champion – at – metrounitedway – dot – org .  

Giving LIVE UNITED Club

General

Hi ya’ll! Did you know that May 11-17 is Children’s Book Week? … I didn’t think so (well, ok, I’m sure some of you knew).

For me, I can’t think of a more perfect time to take a look at the wonderful no-cost early literacy opportunities that exist in our community. If you have a little person in your family, you may want to consider taking advantage of one of the following:

·         Download the new edition of the 100 Books to Read in Kindergarten brochure (click on Success By 6 Resources) that is maintained by our friends at the Jeffersonville Township Public Library.  Several families have been having fun checking off the whole list by checking-out and reading books from their local library.

·         For older kids, check out this list of recommended books from the Horn Book.  I like to consider these before making purchases for young people.

·         Participate in one of the many storytime activities or other educational events for children at your local public library:

o        Bullitt County

o        Clark County/Jeffersonville/Clarksville

o        Floyd County

o        Harrison County

o        Jefferson County

o        Oldham County

o        Shelby County

*Don’t forget to sign up for summer reading programs while you are there.*

·         Join us for upcoming Family Workshops coordinated by Success By 6 and held at Lois A. Kratz Wellness Center at Clark Memorial Hospital in Jeffersonville, IN.  Each one hour session is designed to be interactive, so both parent and child can participate together.  Every child that attends will receive a book or other educational item at the end of the session.

Are there other good opportunities that you know about? If so, reply with your suggestions!

Education Children's Book Week, Clark Memorial Hospital, Family Workshops, Library, Success By 6

Success By 6 offers parent workshops in partnership with a few local hospitals. This effort recently expanded to include monthly workshops at Norton Suburban. I decided to attend the first workshop to make sure everything ran smoothly and because I was interested in the topic. Dr. Jeanette Nunnelley presented her workshop, “Powerful, Practical Practices in Behavior Guidance.” I generally think that I do a pretty good job in the positive discipline arena, but I thought that I should see how I compare to the advice of an expert.

I was pleased that so many of the strategies that she described were ones that I already use with Luke. Here are a few of them:

• Ignore inappropriate behavior and/or redirect. If what he’s doing isn’t going to hurt him and it is just annoying me I try to walk away. And if he is not making the best choice, it is easy to “trick” him into focusing his attention on something else.
• Catch your child being good. When he uses good manners or is sweet to another person I praise him and tell him how proud I am of the behavior I want to see more of.
• Use simple preventative measures. No one likes to be rushed. In our frantic family one of the most valuable strategies that we use is to give five minute warnings (followed by a countdown of minutes) when it is nearing time to move to our next activity.

Of course, I have had the opportunity to sit in on countless early childhood training sessions when I worked in the child care field, and I have real-life experience with lots of other people’s children who I have cared for. So, I should already know these techniques. The part that pleases me the most is that I almost always put them into practice. Don’t get me wrong, everyone loses their patience sometimes. I know that I have fussed at him in a less than appropriate way on at least a couple of occasions.

I can think of one bedtime in particular. We had gotten all set: all clean from bath, pajamas on, lots of books thrown into the bed waiting to be read, and goodnight kisses for Daddy. In my mind we were all set for a typical bedtime. Apparently Luke had other things in mind. He kept getting out of bed to go get stuff telling me, “I be right back.” He would come back, get back into bed, think of something else and jump out of the bed again. I probably ignored this behavior for a little too long because I finally had enough and told him in a raised voice that if he didn’t get into that bed then we weren’t reading any books at all and I was leaving the room. My overly-sensitive child cried. He hung his head and wouldn’t look at me. He finally said, “I’m mad.” I felt bad about hurting his feelings, but I was impressed with his ability to name his feeling. We snuggled and read books after that, but it still wasn’t an exchange that I felt good about.

The biggest take-away for me from Dr. Nunnelley’s workshop was her reminder to be an appropriate role model for your child. This is actually something that I am trying to be intentional about in everything that I do: Be the change that you want to see. So, of course it makes sense for me to be the kind of person that I want my son to be.

What works with your child?  When have you been frustrated?

photo credit:  brungrrl

Education Children, early childhood, parent workshops, parenting, Success By 6

I’m a big list-maker. Right now as I sit at my desk typing this blog I count six without digging under piles of papers: 2 to-do lists, 2 phone lists, a list of contacts for my company accounts, and a list of companies (that shall remain nameless) with pledges still out for the 2008 campaign.  Making a to-do list has proven to be the most effective way for me to organize tasks and get my work done.  And I’ve found there’s nothing more satisfying than being able to cross an item off the list once the task has been completed.  In fact, I relish those times when my complete tasks outweigh my incomplete ones – it’s rare, but all the more satisfying! 

Oddly enough, it didn’t occur to me until very recently that perhaps the same system would work well for my life outside of work.  I was constantly disappointed by my inability to accomplish “life tasks.”  Even simple things like setting aside time to call out-of-town friends or cleaning out the closet were unsuccessful.  My so-called life tasks only got more complicated and lengthy with the planning of my upcoming wedding (just 16 days away now!).  And so, my fiancé and I sat down at the beginning of this week and made a list of everything we need to do by May 23^rd.  This week’s list looks something like this:

- Schedule wedding gown fittings

- Discuss ceremony music with organist 

- Finish designing the ceremony program 

- Create a must-play list for the DJ

- Purchase jewelry and garter

- Obtain marriage license

- Get directions from church to reception

- Send thank you cards for bridal shower gifts

Though the list is long, now that it’s been populated I’m more confident in my ability to get it all done.  I have a plan and I can visualize how I’m progressing and reward myself when I do well.  But more than that, it serves as a reminder for me that prioritizing my personalize life is just as important as prioritizing my work life. 

What about you?  Do you have “life tasks” you’ve been putting off?  What are they?  Where would your community fall on your personal priority list?  If we had a to-do list for our community, what would you add to it?

And now if you don’t mind, I think I’ll go cross this blog off my list . . .

General how to, lists, to-do

Yes, my dad listened to Paul Harvey as I was growing up and I was well aware of Mr. Harvey’s famous tagline “and that’s the rest of the story.” This week I have been thinking about people’s stories and how important the story is to fully understand people and even things.

 
Judy O’Bannon wrote in a newspaper column about how she has been busy labeling items around her house with small notes telling of that item’s history or origin. She thinks it is important that her children and grandchildren retain the knowledge of where that item originated and what the story is behind it.

While cleaning out my deceased mother-in-law’s basement we sometimes found items with a small scribbled note pinned to them. The notes might say “Lisa’s Easter dress 1964, Bernice made” or “quilt Grandma Holsapple made.” My husband and his siblings found more joy in the scribbled notes from their mother than they did box after box of outdated fashions. But the notes or stories behind the items definitely increased the “value” of each item.

My Aunt Barbara took a writing class and in it she worked on writing down her life story. She wrote of tales of growing up in rural Illinois and teen years in Indianapolis with her brother, which is my father. The writings are priceless to my siblings and I especially since dad died in 2001. It is an enlightening look into his upbringing and his story. This writing inspired me to do the same with my mother. I had heard about a StoryCorps project on NPR. On their site they have a list of great questions to spark conversation http://www.storycorps.org/diy/

 
I visited mom several evenings and used the NPR questions and my laptop to record her story. I had a great time pushing her to speak a little more about subjects we had never talked about before. I asked; What was the worst thing you did? What are you proudest of in your life? Did you have any favorite aunts or uncles? I bound these writings up into a folder and gave to my 4 siblings at Christmas 2008. I challenged them to talk to mom and explore more stories and record them for our binders.

 
When dealing with family, friends and coworkers consider that what you see on the surface isn’t all the story going on. Take some time to listen to someone’s story and maybe they’ll take a minute and listen to yours.

General