Donors
1. How long have you lived in this community?
I’ve lived in Cape Girardeau for more than 12 years. However, I have family here and spent a lot of time in Cape growing up, so it has always felt like my second home (now it’s my first!). When I moved here, I planned to live here for a couple of years and move on for my career, but this community has a way of making you never want to leave – now I don’t plan to!
2. What is your occupation?
I’ve been the Director of Marketing & Wellness at Broadway Prescription Shop for 7 months. This is both a new job and career for me. I was previously at KFVS-12 for almost 12 years. It has been a busy, growing, learning 7 months for me and I’m loving it! Working for a local business, as well as a place that contributes to a healthier community, is so rewarding.
3. What are you passionate about?
I’m passionate about creating a life that I love and spreading that to others. I think too often we get caught up in the stress of every day. I definitely do that myself sometimes too, but at the end of the day I try and make sure I’m doing the things that make me happy and try to be an influence in the lives of my kids, family, and friends to make sure they’re doing that too. For me, enjoying the simple things with the people I love, working at a job I’m proud of, doing the things on my bucket list now, or being part of an organization like the United Way and other worthy causes makes me feel like I am truly making a difference in people’s lives.
4. What are your hobbies?
Most of all I like to spend time with my family and friends. I have a tight knit family and group of friends and I love to be around the people I love, preferably over a meal and maybe a glass of wine! Other than that, I enjoy shopping (local, of course!), traveling, and reading.
5. What do you love most about this community?
I love the people. Cape is big enough to give you the opportunity to meet a lot of people in many different walks of life and have a chance to be involved in so many different ways, but small enough that you don’t get lost in the crowd or have trouble making those connections. People here are just friendly and you truly feel like you are part of a community, not just living in a town. I love that I can go out to dinner and see at least a couple of people I know and they’ll always have smiling faces or kind words. I also love our downtown. It’s the heart of the community and it has been exciting to watch it grow in so many ways…giving me more and more reasons to spend my time there!
6. How long have you been a United Way donor?
I have been giving to United Way, whether through monetary donations or volunteer time, for about 8 years. I first learned about the organization and its local efforts through a workplace campaign. I was so moved that a couple of years later, I decided to start an event that could help give in an even bigger way – the 5KFVS. My work through that event and the money it raised for United Way was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life!
7. Why do you choose to support your community through United Way?
We all know that there are economic, social and financial needs in our community and that some of our neighbors need our support. Sometimes it’s hard to figure out how you can be that help and make a real impact at solving those needs. The United Way is the perfect place to do that. I love that one organization impacts so many! From serving seniors to helping kids to giving to those in rough times, the United Way is there. They go above and beyond and learn how to fix those problems rather than just put a band-air on them, which makes our community stronger. That’s a group you want to be part of!
