Memorial Day

I want to thank everyone who has served/is currently serving in the armed forces for their service. Both of my grandfather's served during WWII, Marines and the Army, so I was raised to be very thankful for those serving.
This year is especially important, as I lost a friend only one week ago. He was serving his third tour, and was three days away from coming home on leave. RIP Sgt. Mike Knapp. He was a great man, husband, father and friend. You are gone, but never forgotten.
Let us honor those who have gone before us, and pray for their families peace and strength.

2 more days of construction.

Two more days of construction at the office! We have been packing and gearing up for Tuesday when the movers bring everything over to our new space. Here is what the space looked like on the first day of construction.

...and here it is in it's almost complete state.

I'm excited for the finished product, and I should be able to post a picture of our mural wall tomorrow when the artist finishes it. Thanks to everyone for listening to me talk about work all the time.

Riddle Me This?

Thanks to Josh for posting Einstein's riddle. It completely distracted me from finishing my other homework, and almost made me forget about posting a second blog for the week.

Definitely a welcome distraction from my racing mind. Have a great weekend!

Hope

I've only been in my current job for about four months. I am passionate about nonprofits serving the Kansas City area, so I feel like this organization really speaks to me. Since I've started here, it's been a constant state of transition. I started in mid-January, the construction on the new office space started the beginning of February, the Executive Director gave her notice at the beginning of March, she left in April, and here it is May and we are in the process of completing construction and moving in to the new space.

While it has been exhausting, and at times hard to see the light, I have a renewed hope. I have hope that this new space is a new beginning and a fresh start. I have hope that through this change we can continue to grow, and serve the nonprofit organizations in Kansas City. I have hope that through our work we can continue to impact our metro region.

The Look Ahead

Now that my event is over I have to refocus my energy. So often I feel like I am just putting out fires, I don't really get a chance to make any real headway. I have actualy been banned from using the phrase, "When things finally slow down we can..." at home. I look forward to the days when I won't be so freaked out about school, even though I know some other responsibility will just creep into it's place.

What is one thing you are really looking forward to doing after you graduate?

It's over!

So, I'll apologize first for the fact that my posts are a day late this week. But... My event is finally over! I managed to work 32 hours between Wednesday and Thursday getting the final prep work done, but it was worth it. Thank you to everyone who said such encouraging things on my first post of this blog. This has been a truly exhausting week, and I almost had my own "Chuck E Cheese" moment yesterday in the midst of the chaos. I feel so very blessed to work for such a great organization that impacts so many other great organizations in Kansas City!

Something for Myself

Working full time, going to school, planning a wedding, and just trying to keep up with the day-to-day needs of life is exhausting. Every now an then you have to allow yourself to escape inside your mind, and be free of the stress even if it's only for a few fleeting hours.

I'm an avid reader. There is just something magical about letting yourself become immersed in a story and letting your imagination run wild piecing it all together. When I was younger, I would stay up all night to finish a book because I so desperately wanted to know how it would end. As I've gotten older those moments have become more infrequent. Last night I was inspired to resurrect this old habit. I downloaded a series of three books that a friend had recommended and got to reading.

To say I lost myself in the story would be putting it lightly. I allowed myself to completely forget about what was happening in my life and focus only on the story in front of me. I needed that escape. I'm exhausted today, but I read two of the three books, and for now I feel less stressed.

Tomorrow will be a different story...

Seating Assignments and Table Layouts

My days and weeks have been filled with table layouts and seating charts. I'm sure the first inclination is to assume this is because of my impending wedding. That is where you would be wrong...

Our awards luncheon is Friday, May 11th, and this event has become my life. My background is in events and sales, so when our ED gave her notice to leave, I had a feeling I would be stepping in to help with the transition. This added responsibility hasn't been any different from what I've done in the past, so I've been able to be effective.

There are times when I enjoy the rush of it all, talking with sponsors, working with the committee, laying out the room. But then, just as quick as the moment appeared, I am flung into the cement wall of reality. Someone sent in their sponsor form after the deadline, and they don't understand why they weren't listed in the invitation. So far, my personal favorite- We can't place Company A near Company B, because they will end up scratching each other's eyes out, only further reaffirming the statement, "High School Never Ends."

In the end, it will be a beautiful event, honoring some great individuals. When it is all over with, and I have a drink in my hand, I will smile and know I helped make that happen.