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Member Spotlight: Elyse Smith

Elyse learned about Impact 100 SJ through her friend and neighbor, Jennifer Alleva, who is a 2018 charter member. Hearing of Jennifer’s continued involvement throughout the past years, Elyse wanted to learn more.  After learning about the collective giving concept among women along with the opportunity to help people in her own backyard, Elyse decided she wanted to be a part of this organization. Elyse joined Impact100 SJ for the 2021 membership year.

Prior to joining Impact100, Elyse had a passion to give but didn’t have a deep knowledge of how nonprofits truly operate.  What she loves about Impact100 is the opportunity to learn about nonprofits organically, especially as she begins to serve on various committees.  Currently, she is on the Nonprofit Outreach Committee and serves as the Grantee Liaison for Family Promise.  She is learning more and more about nonprofits through Family Promise’s Executive Director, Rosemarie Parker.  She states that “it warms her heart to be able to talk about the great work Family Promise is doing for the community”. What she finds rewarding is watching the impact a grant award makes for the grantee. It is so powerful to see the pictures, to see the collective good that Impact100 is making. She sees firsthand the great job Impact100 does of vetting the grantees to ensure that the funds are going to something worthwhile. Being at a point in her life where things have calmed down and she has more available time, her hope is to also volunteer with some of the grantee organizations.

Elyse’s professional life is in pharmaceutical consulting where she owns her own consulting firm that helps businesses understand how to comply with FDA regulations. With a 50% client base in India, she travels there about four times a year. Elyse describes herself as a hard working person who follows a practice of determining what the goal is and then gets in and gets it done!  This explains her 22 years as a successful business woman!

With her and her husband, Mike, becoming empty nesters now, they are moving from their long time residence in Southampton to their shore home in Sea Isle.