In Her Words…
We have several mother-daughter pairs among our 155 members.
- Nancy Weber and her daughter Kelly Smith
- Cynthia Quinton and her daughter Carly Kubat
- Marie Messina and her daughter Christine Messina
- Lee Albright and her daughter Georgia Quinn
- Patricia Jones and her daughter Megan Griffault
- Emily Orel and her daughter Katherine Hammer
Passing down the legacy of giving back is one thing our members value greatly. Here is Emily Orel’s story of passing her love of giving back to her daughter.
The energy at this year’s Annual Meeting was palpable and I was excited to share the experience with my daughter Katherine. Philanthropy has always been a core value in our family. She has seen me support every cause I strongly believe in with time and money since she was a little girl. I would take her (and my daughter Olivia) along to volunteer, talk about how much it means to make other people’s lives better and encourage her to do her part, as well. In college, Katherine volunteered in alternative spring break groups and in sorority activities. Now that she moved back to South Jersey, I was thrilled to introduce her to the empowering community I found in Impact100 SJ. Sure, she heard me talk about Impact100 – a lot – but being there with over 155 other inspired women “wowed” her (in her words).
Feeling our members’ passion for the work we do and seeing our mission come to life as we award our grants is an incredible opportunity for our members, prospective members and grant recipients. I showed Katherine how good it feels to make a difference. We know that when a group of committed women gets together in a purposeful way to change our part of the world, we make it happen. That’s a powerful message and a cause for celebration! I think it’s crucial for young women to see other women making philanthropy a priority in their lives. She could find a whole group of role models in Impact100 SJ.
Chairing the Events Committee and organizing our Annual Meeting was amazing for me because I had the chance to get to know and connect with so many of our members. Clearly it’s our members who make our organization so dynamic. I wanted Katherine to understand that it took the enthusiasm, support and hard work of many people to achieve our Annual Meeting’s success. She had the chance to appreciate the large-scale event that evening and still talks about everyone’s genuine excitement and indefatigable efforts. When the awards were announced, Katherine, along with most of the room, was deeply moved. It was intensely emotional. I thought it was an ideal time for some mother-daughter bonding.
Of course our daughters, especially grown-up ones, appreciate the values we‘ve instilled in them when they see us living them ourselves. I hope Katherine envisions herself as a strong collaborator, a generous contributor and a good citizen. I’m honored to be an Impact100 SJ member and serve as our new Vice President and I’m proud that my daughter knows how much it means to me. I brought my daughter to the Annual Meeting because it’s important, it’s relevant and it’s inspiring. It’s Impact100 South Jersey!