I was not very good at retirement. My husband had retired and was ready to travel. So was I…and we did. But after a while it was clear that total retirement was not my future. People called wanting consulting help and I answered. A good friend had much the same path and as we considered working together. A third partner arrived at the same time. The three of us started EMD (Experience Makes the Difference) Consulting Group in 2002. We focused on the needs we had seen in the nonprofit community—mainly fundraising and strategic planning. We later added more partners and more services. We now have 10 partners and 15 senior consultants. Services include the original fundraising and planning, and also leadership (search, coaching, board development), general nonprofit management. Our mission is to “build organizational strength” so organizations can better serve the community.
With nonprofits having many women in leadership, fundraising, and programmatic roles, fitting into the nonprofit sector has been comfortable. However, I have seen that boards and staff are willing to pay men more for the same services. Pay equity is an issue everywhere.
One of my personal passions has always been equality for women in all aspects of life. In 2006 a group of us started talking about why St. Louis didn’t have a Women’s Foundation. The movement began in the 1960’s when it was clear that foundation funding for women’s issues was about 6%. There are about 150 Women’s Foundations around the world. This, sad to say, has not changed. This was the beginning of the WFSTL. Many people worked to make it happen … although we were all happy! I had time and was willing to volunteer as the first president/executive director—we were all volunteer, no staff. As programs grew, we knew we needed to add staff to make the organization sustainable. And it has grown. My hope is that it will be a very strong voice for women in the St. Louis region.
I’m trying to retire, once again, but haven’t quite made it. I will always have an interest in the WFSTL, EMD, and the nonprofit community. Just more time to travel and enjoy other things.
Pat