Like Sands Through the Hourglass

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If you catch me in a chatty mood—which, let’s be honest, isn’t all too rare!—you may hear me discuss my fascination with the passage of time. Where does it go? Time always seems to come at us too slowly or fly past us too quickly. I reflect on this here because this month marks three years since I joined the Weitz Family Foundation. How is this possible? Truly, I feel like I hopped on my first introductory Zoom meeting with the team just yesterday!

My surprise by how long I’ve been with the Foundation is met with humble pride as I consider all that our team has accomplished since then. When I first started, we lacked a functional, informative website where partners and community members could learn about our history, values, work, and resources. I’m thankful to have been a core part of building, and now maintaining, our website and communication platforms! The last three years have also seen the implementation of a new grants management system, WFF-supported professional development opportunities, and annual programs like the Grantee Gathering to celebrate the accomplishments of our partners. Thanks to our collaboration with Mynesha Spencer at All of Us Together Co., we have been able to reflect and act upon our own diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility practices individually as well as internally and externally as a Foundation. I’m eager to see what the future holds, including our structured multi-year grants, reimagined Weitz Fellows program, and other chances to further increase nonprofits’ capacity.

One of my greatest pleasures as part of this work, though, is bearing witness to organizations’ growth. The impact our grantees have on our community is undeniable, and hearing about behind-the-scenes efforts it takes to continue pushing for change is amazing. The capital campaign that started as an aspirational idea two years ago? Already making huge progress! The data management system that would really help organize and translate information? Finally secured a platform! The survey sent out to clients and community stakeholders? Getting ready to publish results this quarter! The big things are big things—and the little things are big things, too! I appreciate being able to hear about successes, challenges, and how we as a Foundation can support our partners beyond grant dollars. If there is anything on your minds about how we can better do so, please don’t hesitate to reach out to myself or other members of our team.

The last three years have flown by like sands through the hourglass, and I’m delighted to say that I remain inspired, passionate, and refreshed with every passing grain!