DON’T LET THE CORONAVIRUS DICTATE YOUR FUTURE

Take charge of what happens next for your nonprofit organization.

Andrea McManus, ViTreo Group Inc
May 26 2020

At ViTreo, we are fortunate to have an incredible team of dedicated and knowledgeable people who work with us. Some of them we have worked with us for many years now and for our predecessor companies. Scott, Vincent and I work hard to create a culture with family-like values built on the principle of ‘“we are all in this together”. And no, we didn’t invent that tagline, but it’s the basis of how we all collaborate as a team. And how we take the time to support each other and reach out to one another when it’s needed.

Every month we hold a late afternoon Wine N Learn at the ViTreo offices. And it’s like a family gathering around our big rectangular board table. We offer wine (but not too much — we are here to share and learn from one another, after all) and the most delicious charcuterie and cheese boards from Peasant Cheese, a neighbourhood cheese shop, plus many sweet treats. Due to COVID-19, our last meeting was held virtually. No cheese or sweets were on offer — it was BYO. It wasn’t quite the same but still fun to connect with the team.

Our April 2020 meeting included, of course, discussion about the impacts of the Coronavirus. After the meeting, one of our team members who has been with ViTreo since the beginning (four years now), Adriana Simon sent an email around to our group. Adriana was born in communist Romania, and she lived under communism her entire childhood and part of her youth. She wanted to share with us what helped her to get through this incredibly challenging situation which, fortunately, most of us will never experience, with the hope of helping us through the pandemic.

FIRST, SOME BACKGROUND ON ADRIANA. IN HER WORDS:

I was 24 years old when the Berlin wall fell, and a path was open for us and other communist countries to stand up and fight to bring democracy in our part of the world. Like most of my friends, on December 22nd 1989 I joined the masses in the revolution against the communist government and our dictator leader. We were determined to either win, or give our lives trying, which were our really our only two options.

I was at work when it started and I was one of the first arrested and detained in my office in the first minutes of the revolution. You can't imagine how angry and upset I was to be missing out and furious that I couldn't join everyone outside and do more! So, while I waited, locked in my office for the police van to come and take me to jail, I thought that I had nothing to lose anyway, so I prepared to fight them, no matter what.

I looked around, and gathered everything that could become a weapon: the stapler, the three whole punch, a pitcher of hot water, the hot plate that the pitcher was boiling on, a metal rod that for some reason was left behind the door since forever…

In the end, I didn't need any of those, because I was rescued by a colleague through the window. I ran away and joined the fight in the plaza in front of the government building. We were out there for two weeks, with very little food and water... but, for some reason, tons of coffee... I knew we won - or at least we made a decisive step ahead - when I saw the tents of Médecins Sans Frontieres/ Doctors Without Borders and the International Red Cross set up on the edge of the plaza where the uprising was taking place.

If anyone doubts the power that nonprofit organizations have, and what they mean for someone in any kind of distress, the hope they bring, and the strength they give, I'd like to tell them that they are wrong. 

Their help is immeasurable, through what they do, but also through what they imply – that there are people out there who care about you, who are cheering for you, and want you to succeed in what you’re doing. We are the lucky ones, those of us working within or for the nonprofit sector. Every day I think how my work can somehow bring hope and strength to someone in need, and this is a really beautiful thing.

The message she sent is valuable for all of us — in fact, everyone around the world who has been impacted. And that is the entire human race. Her courage in sharing her hard-won wisdom moved everyone on our team and we wanted to share it with you. We hope her story and her message will also help you.

ADRIANA’S MESSAGE TO THE VITREO TEAM:

In search for optimism in these times of profound and most likely lasting changes in our lives, I thought back to that other time when I witnessed firsthand a major change in the collective lives of people in my country. We went from communism and dictatorship to democracy and free speech almost overnight, with no warning and no way to prepare ourselves.

You may argue that this is very different, in the sense that we went from something we hated, to something we greatly desired… while now we see ourselves and the world seemingly going from something that was working just fine for most of us, to something we fear.

But, the fear and anxiety that great changes like these are bringing, are the same. We keep hearing “life will change forever” and “nothing will be the same”, and “this is the new normal”. This is very scary. The loss of the familiar territory and the knowledge that you cannot go back to the way things were, is frightening.

So, here are a few things I have learned:

1. Every day you feel like the ground beneath your feet is moving, but don’t forget that everyone else feels the same

2. Things that up until now seemed “forever” may not even be relevant in the future

3. You can choose to stay scared and to want to go back to the way things used to be, or you can find a way to turn this into an opportunity

4. It will take more time than you think to feel that things have stabilized (have become normal), so get used to shifting your plans often and making decisions fast

5. It is normal to feel like a growing snowball is chasing you; you just have to make sure you run faster – in other words, don’t waste too much time in assessing the situation and making an elaborate, long-term plan – set short term goals, take action and assess and adapt as you go

6. Go back to your core values and beliefs and find out what you really want, and go for it, no matter how difficult it may seem

7. This is a time to be bold and think big. Think “impossible” – and then go and achieve it

8. This is a time when you can reinvent yourself. Become a leader, an influencer, a changemaker

9. This is a time to be true to yourself and others

10. This is the time to be innovative and take chances. It is okay to fail, but make sure you get up and try again

11. Everyone is going to be more accepting of mistakes, and they will applaud and cheer for you for taking big and impossible chances

12. New people will raise to the challenge – sometimes they won’t be those you expect

13. Help others

14. Try to stay informed and always search for credible sources

15. Draw your own “big picture” and do not lose sight of it

And… in case you forgot already, or you missed it in #1 – everybody is going through the same crazy times at the same time as you!

The eternal optimist in me believes strongly in what Adriana is saying. As nonprofits and fundraisers our work is critical to the well-being and survival of the human race on many levels. We need to rise up, we need to be “change-makers” and we need to keep going, no matter what and how that presents itself — in our existing form, in a “new abnormal” form, or as a new entity altogether or no entity if that is what is required, depending on our mission. I echo what Adriana wrote, “Be Bold. Think Big. Think Impossible. And then go out and do it.”

Thank you again Adriana for this! We can view ourselves as pandemic victims, organizationally or individually, or we can, as she writes, create our own future, trust that this too shall pass, help others and do the best we can and more.

It really is up to us as nonprofit organizations and fundraisers (and all human beings) to decide how we think and behave around this crisis. And we can start to think of it in other terms. Not just as a crisis, but as an opportunity.

Where are the opportunities for your charitable organization? Did this blog help to put things into a better perspective for you?

We are here to walk with you and be your partner through this situation, for as long as it’s needed. Please feel free to reach out to anyone of us.

Adriana has worked and volunteered in the nonprofit sector, both in Europe and in Canada, for more than 20 years. She has most recently worked with ViTreo clients on a variety of projects, most of which have involved team leadership, general fundraising, special event and third party event planning, sponsorship, fund development assessments and planning, prospect research, and feasibility studies. 

Growing up in communist Romania, Adriana dreamed of coming to Canada and to work for the Red Cross or UNICEF, organizations that made a huge impact on her country and her personal development. Over the last two decades, she has achieved those dreams: first, by working with the Canadian Red Cross as a new immigrant in Canada; and then by spending four years as Community Partnerships Manager at UNICEF.

A passion for social justice, human rights, integration and respect, and building a strong community where everyone feels welcome, led Adriana to fight in the revolution against the communist regime in Romania. Following that time, she became one of the first fundraisers and founders of the nonprofit sector in Romania.

We are hosting a series of Fundraising Ask Anything Events where you can connect and ask questions of your peers and the ViTreo team. Learn more and register here.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andrea McManus, Chair, Board of Directors, Partner
ViTreo Group Inc

Andrea McManus is a Partner with ViTreo with over 30 years’ experience in fund development, marketing, sponsorship and nonprofit management. A highly strategic thinker and change maker, Andrea has worked with organizations that span the nonprofit sector with particular focus on building long-term and sustainable capacity.