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05/16/2018 08:30 AMEvery non-profit organization has a story to tell—it’s what inspires volunteers, donors, and supporters to become part of that story and help advance the group’s mission. But how do non-profit groups make sure the story they tell remains relevant?
For many shoreline organizations, Lisa LeMonte is the critical bridge between the mission and the message. She is on the boards of both the Community Music School and The Connecticut River Museum in Essex.
In addition, she has a special connection to Essex in an entirely different way. She and her husband Lamar purchased Essex resident Herb Clark’s boat, a Grand Banks trawler, which they now keep in Florida at Long Boat Key.
“It’s a beautiful old classic boat,” Lisa says.
In fact, it was a love of boating that originally brought the couple to the shoreline 10 years ago.
Lisa says that each of the non-profit boards on which she serves has a mission that speaks to her personally in some way. Whether it�s health and wellness, affordable housing, arts education, cultural enrichment or history, each group tells a story that’s relevant and important to her.
Currently, in addition to the Community Music School and the Connecticut River Museum, Lisa serves on the boards of the Valley Shore YMCA, HOPE Partnership, and The Kate, and as corporator on the Board of Corporators for Middlesex Hospital. She’s currently chief volunteer officer (CVO) at the Y, a position akin to chairman of the Board of Directors.
She sees value in serving on more than one board because sometimes, this can spur collaboration between the groups.
“There are commercial condos in Centerbrook that were struggling with occupancy. Because I was on the board of both the Community Music School (located there) and HOPE Partnership, I saw a need and a solution that could bring them together. The option now under review is to make the site mixed use with affordable housing apartments and the music school and perhaps retail there. It’s very exciting to connect the dots,” Lisa says.
Similarly, she points to The Kate’s Camp for Kids. This is a popular summer youth program that is a collaboration between the music school and The Kate, with each sharing in the revenues, helping both to improve their bottom lines while also providing a valuable service to area youth.
Telling a convincing story that people will buy is what Lisa did every day in her first career working in advertising in New York City at the end of the Mad Men era. An example of one brand positioning campaign on which she worked: Remember AT&T’s “Reach Out and Touch Someone”? After the advertising years, in 1990 she was tapped to work for World Cup Soccer. For four years, it was 24/7 work to plan games in nine cities in the U.S. and develop sponsorship packages for field ads and merchandising deals.
When she came to this area, Guilford Savings Bank hired Lisa as its first marketing and community development manager. In this role and through her own personal commitment of time and talent, she works with local non-profit organizations. She finds the time she devotes to serving on the non-profit boards to be rewarding and important work.
“‘If [as a non-profit] you are relevant, you have a story to tell that’s relevant. And that’s the key to fundraising. Fundraising is not asking for money, it’s telling a relevant story,’”’ Lisa says.
If that story touches people, convincing them of the organization’s value, they will support the non-profit with donations of their volunteer time and money.
“My job is to know the non-profit community so that we can form mutually beneficial relationships and not just write checks. We [at Guilford Savings Bank] feel our resources can be allocated and have more impact if we know the organizations and understand their missions and needs,” Lisa says. “Over my 11 years here, the bank has let me construct this new position. I am so proud of the bank that they are bold enough to invest in a full-time commitment to developing non-profit relationships.”
Amidst news of still more cuts to federal and state grant funds, non-profit organizations more than ever need the professional advice and advocacy that a strong volunteer leadership board can provide. All non-profit boards need members who can contribute their professional expertise in disciplines like finance, accounting, marketing, sales, and even facility management and operations to a non-profit’s paid staff, but finding these members willing to devote their time and energy to this effort can be difficult.
“Everyone is concerned with board development. It’s hard to build a pipeline of volunteers who believe in your mission, will get involved, and will serve on a board. It’s also a challenge for non-profits to find board members with specific skills,” Lisa says.
As with many committed volunteers, Lisa’s parent’s modeled for her the value of service to others. Her father was a member of civic clubs and served as president of the board of the Girl Scouts of South Carolina. Her mother’s service was as a nurse. Through Lisa’s job and her many personal hours of volunteer contributions, she provides a model for another generation.
Lisa says that her mother was a gifted pianist who modeled for Lisa the value of discipline. From age 5 through high school and college, Lisa took lessons and practiced to perfect her skills as a classical guitarist. In high school and college, she added folk guitar to her repertoire. When younger, she applied her skills and discipline also to be a competitive golfer.
Those days may be behind her, but in front of and ahead of her is a life strengthening non-profits so they can succeed and, oh yes, perhaps a return to the classical guitar. If she takes that path, you can be sure she will apply the same dedication, energy, enthusiasm, and perseverance that she’s applied to guiding non-profits to success.
-Rita Christopher contributed to this story.