Sometimes, says Sue Andrews, the light comes on.
“I’ve been active in SMC forever and we do all sorts of good things for other people,” said the Mattamy Homes site agent. ‘What were we missing? Doing things for our own members.”
The light came on after a member’s son had a terrible disease and Andrews wanted to raise money through the Sales and Marketing Council. The answer: if we do it for one, we’ll have to do it for all.
“So, why not do it for all?” said Andrews, and SMC Cares was on its way.
Andrews and her partner of 20 years, Sharon Pacetti, went to the organization’s Charity Committee. The idea: when a member is in need, someone would reach out. It may be no more than a call, it could be money. But the person would know that the organization cared.
“Mark (Carlson, the SMC president) said he’d raise money,” said Andrews. ‘We got approval at the May meeting and, right then and there, he asked for money. We got $100 from one person, $400 from another. It kept coming in. Maybe $3,700 in all.”
That money is used in whatever means is appropriate: cash, a card or a dish garden are examples.
The main thing, Andrews said, is to let the membership know that a fellow member has a problem: it may be the death of a pet (yes, that’s happened) or a deadly disease.
SMC Cares has its own logo, designed by public relations specialist Cynthia Montello, and enough awareness among the SMC membership to keep the phone lines flowing with news that needs to be disseminated in the weekly email blast - yes, SMC Cares cares about good news, too.
“Melissa Sams, the chairperson of the SMC Charity Committee, came forward with this definition of CARES,” said Pacetti. “This is what we live by.”
C = Committed to each other
A = Available when needed
R = Responsive to the groups needs
E = Empathetic to everyone’s situation
S = Supportive to the end
Information on participating is available from Andrews and Pacetti at 940-9222.