The person I chose to interview was my dad. During the interview I learned some new things that I deem important. My dad talked about hard work and how someone could have so much going for them but be lazy, so in the end it means nothing. Hard work is one of the most important things and people undermine or estimate its importance. When shopping for a winter jacket or even just with friends, quality always trumps quantity, the same goes for organizations. No matter how much you have of a certain thing, it will not have any value if the quality is not the best. Even if there are sacrifices needed to get a good product, friend, or charity, it will be worth it all. Lastly, my dad talked about giving back and how important it really is to give. I have always known donating money or time was important, but even giving back to friends or peers around me is key. By the end of the interview, I had a better understanding of my father. Money has never meant anything to my dad, he holds family and friends before any materialistic object which I believe is important. I also learned that my dad gives back more than I thought. I always knew he gave back to the community but I never knew the lengths he’d gone or how many charities he’s help. I don’t really think I was changed by the interview, but I do think I learned a few things about my dad and money.

As of now, Qudsiya and I have spoken to Jane Latini over the phone once but have emailed back and forth. The ideas that came from the conversation were very helpful and pointed us toward our fundraising idea. After speaking with the owner of Dunkin Donuts, Qudsiya was able to get the gift card, for free, we are using as the reward. The next step is getting the jelly beans for the fundraiser so we can go out and start raising money. Working with Jane Latini was helpful, but definitely was not needed, I believe. For some groups, working with their charity may be very helpful because they could have access to so much more stuff, but because Interfaith Caregivers is located so far away, I don’t really feel as though it was essential.

During the call, I talked to Jane Latini about fundraising ideas. She gave us some ideas but informed us more about different obstacles we would face. She provided us with a great idea about finding a company willing to double our funds. Our call was more than 15mins long but we were able to communicate a bunch about our different ideas. In the end, we decided on a fundraising event that we think would draw people in and generate money for Interfaith Caregivers.

The Higher Help’s mission is almost exactly what the Interfaith Caregivers are working towards. They are an interfaith organization raising money for elder people in need, which we are really look for in a charity. Jane Latini seems very interested in Interfaith Caregivers, so her enthusiasm fits what we need to have a successful fundraiser. I’m excited to raise money and work with her before she leaves.

After meeting with Jane Latini in person, I feel more connected with her than after just talking on the phone. Speaking in person has a more emotional meaning behind it because you get to see someone’s expressions when they talk.

I would love to also work with Home for Good Dogs Shelter, if the other team would want to. I really love their message and think the three groups could really raise a lot of money in the end.

I wouldn’t mind recommending Interfaith Caregivers because they are a great charity who seem to have really enthusiastic volunteers and workers. After speaking with Jane Latini, I feel like many other people would get the same sense.

Having one person from two different charities, in my opinion, made it a little awkward. I felt like the representatives were trying to talk over each other at moments. While it was interesting to hear Jane talk about Interfaith Caregivers, I felt like she talked a majority of the time and might have made it a little more difficult for the other woman to speak.

Jane had a great reasoning for joining Interfaith and hearing why she joined stuck with me. I liked hearing that a majority of the people working there are volunteers. It was nice getting to hear from both reps, but I did feel uncomfortable because Jane did do a lot of talking and it did not seem like the other woman did not get to speak as much and one of the groups got a rushed response to their question they asked. It went well I think, but I felt like Jane could have been interrupted a little because she did do a majority of the speaking. Her talking a lot did benefit The Higher Help, but a bunch of the stuff she said did not answer questions we asked.

In order to know which organization to invest in, you must understand their spending habits. How a company spends its money shows what it is prioritizing. By going through their tax returns, we discover what the donations are being spent on. If you invest in a charity that uses a majority of their earnings on workers, then you might not want to continue talking with them. It is a little shady when companies put so much money into workers but not as much into their programs because the whole part of the organization is to give to those in need. For a non-profit to work, it has to distribute their revenue properly.

Interfaith Caregivers put a little more than half of their earnings into the program, which is not the best. I would hope to invest in an organization that puts a little more than 60% into their programs. Interfaith Caregivers received a 10/15 which is pretty good, but I was hoping the score would have been a 12 or 13. Maybe The Higher Help needs to look into finding a higher scoring organization.

Looking for different charities to add to our list was not difficult. The hardest part wasn’t even calling the organizations, it was locating their contact information. I am used to talking to people and well worded, so calling the organizations was pretty simple. Each call was similar and started the same way so they were not difficult. A challenge I made while making the calls though were locating the contact information. Some sites only had the main location’s phone number so it took some more digging to reach the executive director’s number.

What this program has taught me, so far, about working in teams is it is not possible to force people into doing something they do not want to do. If people are not interested in the same things as you, then you cannot make them take initiative. When working with others, you just have to do your part to the best of your ability and encourage your teammates to do the same. By trying to include the other people in my group, call organizations, and set up a charity event, I am doing my part which is all I can really do. I am looking forward to the panel and interviewing the representative we have contacted.

Once receiving the packet and discussing what would be best way to raise money, we decided to do multiple fundraisers. One of our ideas was to collect change from people at school during lunch. By getting people’s change, The Higher Help will raise money but not as much as we want. In order to raise even more money, we chose to do a 5 v. 5 basketball game with the teachers. At the event we would make money from ticket sales and a bake sale before, during, and after the game. We figured the more fundraisers we have, we would generate even more money. There was a list of steps I came up with also.

Step 1. Find a day to host the game (preferably on a half day)

Step 2. Talk to Dr. Miron and the AD

Step 3. Ask teachers who would be interested in participating

Step 4. Talk to Kings about donating baked goods

Step 5. Promote the event

I talked to my mom, dad, and sister about the Main Street Philanthropy program and even watched the video with my mom. Both of my mom and dad thought it was a great way for me to become aware of how philanthropists work and become more knowledgable/understanding that I don’t need to be a millionaire in order to be a philanthropist. My dad, I think, sounded more enthusiastic for what lies ahead with the program than my mom, however, she did ask questions about what we are currently doing and is excited to see what I update her with in the future. Because I have an interest in the Financial field my dad saw this as a great opportunity to understand the world of mathematics a little bit better as well. All-in-all, both of my parents find Main Street Philanthropy interesting and are intrigued in what else will come from the program. Lastly, my sister found Main Street Philanthropy to be a program that is definitely fit for a class like Math Analysis. She also wishes that she was able to participate in Main Street Philanthropy when she was in the class because she definitely would have been interested in learning a little bit about philanthropy.

In order for a team to be affective and actually do what it is intended to do, members need to be on the same page. Without shared interest, a team is no longer a team, they are just a group. The difference between a group and a team is while a group is people placed together, a team is a group with people who have a common goal. Without the same interests or passions, the whole team aspect is no longer there. Respectfully, in order to have a team, you need a shared vision, which The Higher Help struggles to find. While we did come up with a mission statement, it did not involve all of the member’s work.

As I have said before, I believe The Higher Help has an opportunity to make great change by helping the youth and elderly, and also spreading the word of different religions. On the first day working with our team, Qudsiya and I were the only members there and we worked together really well. We were both considerate of each other’s opinions and were respectful to one another’s religions. Even though we do not practice the same religions, we both view our religions as one of the most important parts of our lives. Again, I’m excited for what will come out of this because I know certain people will definitely work hard to create a great outcome.