pep talk

We were scheduled to take our third SECC group photo on Thursday, Nov. 10, but we’ve postponed it until next week. The memorial service for School of Medicine faculty member Dr. Stephen Hodson (victim of a tragic auto accident last week) is scheduled for Thursday at 11 a.m. Our condolences to his family, friends and colleagues; we want to be sure people are able to pay their respects.

The new date for the photo is:
Monday, Nov. 14, 2011
11:30 to 11:40 a.m.
(Please arrive a little early; we will take the photo close to 11:30)
Green Space at the University Plaza Parking Garage, above fountain (see map)

If you believe in the power of our people, and support the SECC and the good work it makes possible, COME STAND WITH US.

We’ll be taking a second group photo on the east end of the University Plaza Garage at 11:30 on Friday, Nov. 4. It will only take 10 minutes at most, and we’re hoping people will stop by on their way to lunch or the Field House. The photo will be used on the home page of the SECC site and in other communication, part of an animation (you’ll be able to watch the SECC effort grow, with more people in the shot each time).

Hope you can make it.

Stand with us Friday, Nov. 4

I’m always impressed and a little excited at the start of each year’s campaign, to watch the thermometer start its skyward climb. We had a great first 24 hours after Dr. Callender’s letter went out, getting close to $50K. It’s a great beginning and compares well with past years. The challenge is to keep the “needle” moving; usually giving during the campaign follows an inverted bell curve, with lots of activity at the beginning and a flurry again at the end, with a drop in the middle. I’m usually one of those coming in toward the end, but this year plan to do it earlier. With some holidays and a lot of work stacked up, the sooner I get it done the better. Hope you’ll follow my lead.

See where we are today

It seems strange to be writing in my blog for the first time in a year, and to look back at my last entry, and realize it’s my passion for the same subject that’s brought me back.

Dr. Protas did a great job with the State Employee Charitable Campaign last year; she brought energy, style and enthusiasm to the effort, and energized all around her. The effort showed; the final campaign tally for 2010 topped a half a million dollars in support from the remarkable people of UTMB ($528,278, to be exact).

So here we are in 2011, on the verge of launching another campaign, a new type of campaign. In 2011, it’s up to us: this year it’s the “People’s Campaign.” No official chair to lead, wrangle, plead, implore and cajole. As someone who’s been involved in some fashion in these campaigns for a while, the thought of not having a “fearless leader” arrived unwelcome; it inspired that knee-jerk that often acccompanies change. How could we do it without our combination quarterback and cheerleader? We’ve been fortunate to have some great campaign chairs (more on them in a later post), and they’d all been instrumental to success. But as the idea sunk in, it started to make a lot of sense. If one motivated person like Dr. Protas could do so much, what if we had a dozen, or fifty, people just as committed as she was to seeing the campaign be successful? What would the collective impact be? And what better time than now, when technology makes it so easy for large groups to connect, engage and share?

Bad governments have been toppled, social uprisings have spread like wildfire, people have banded in spontaneous response to help victims of fire, flood and earthquake. Why couldn’t we, as a group with such an incredible history of sharing and supporting our communities and important causes, be counted on to carry the campaign torch ourselves?

So, I’m no longer worried. I know we can do it, you and me and a few thousand of our closest friends, a few dollars at a time. Watch for ways to engage starting Nov. 1.