My Summer Reflections: Leaving Completely Moved

By Chelsea Gaesser

Stepping into the city of Charlotte for the first time was a scary experience for a rural Kentucky girl. My first day of the Women’s Impact Fund internship was filled with smiles and explanations from the illustrious Fielding Williams. I met Patricia Massey-Hoke a few moments later and I have never been prouder to be a Davidson College student. Patricia is a remarkable alumna who has already done amazing things. I had no idea what to expect coming into this experience, but it has changed my outlook on nonprofits and I have had the most wonderful time.  

Towards the beginning of my time here, Patricia lent me a book titled, “The Movement of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World,” written by Melinda Gates. A quote I think that encapsulates my summer is, “Sometimes all that’s needed to lift women up is to stop pulling them down.” I have learned so much in such a short amount of time but the positivity in Women’s Impact Fund between members to the board chair is illuminating. Everyone has been so incredibly kind, and I have met wonderful new mentors. Patricia and Fielding emphasize connections and believe it to be a foundation in life itself and the connections I have made this summer, I believe to be lifelong. I had several wonderful opportunities to have coffee chats with many members this summer and learned so much about not only Women’s Impact Fund but life as well.

My main task was to encourage members to update their profiles (sign in here to update yours!) as we have added several ways within your profile under “Membership Directory Profile” to share if you are interested in serving on a nonprofit board, volunteering your expertise with WIF, and any areas of interest. This will only be seen by the office staff who gets requests for board members from our nonprofit partners, and requests for connections for possible pro bono or consulting work. I have also spent time with social media creating graphics, assisting Fielding with operational tasks, and organizing information on past educational topics.

I never realized how much work went into the little details such as website organization, social media posts, filing, member updates, etc. I have had many hats working this summer and my bosses have made it very enjoyable but what astonishes me the most are the members at Women’s Impact Fund. I attended a board meeting at the beginning of the summer and watching the organization of women working together in collaboration for the betterment of the nonprofit was incredible. This was a second job for most of the board members and they treated it with importance. I learned that these women feel passionate about being a part of this organization and believe in what they do. I feel as if I am walking away from this experience completely moved.