Helpful Advice from Non-Profit Workers
By Shea Northcut
A three-person-panel of Elon University alum came to speak to students on Thursday night about their non-profit experiences.
Elon alumni Kevin Gilmore, Tony Roper and Andrea Sjogren share their non-profit experiences with students.
Kevin Gilmore, executive director for Habitat for Humanity in Delaware, explained his involvement while at Elon. He was the first coordinator for service learning at Elon and traveled to Guatemala with Habitat for four years.
But when it came down to deciding what to do for the rest of his life, he had to ask himself a serious question.
“You have to ask yourself where you motivation comes from,” explained Gilmore. “I had more energy from recruiting volunteers rather than being in the office doing the business side of things.”
Tony Roper, director of Alamance County Services, told students about his journey at Elon beginning with a business major. After shortly realizing that business didn’t make him happy, a psychology major was on the horizon and non-profits interested him.
No matter what job he was going to do, he knew that there was one thing he absolutely had to become good at: marketing.
“The more you have to make yourself marketable, the better off you will be no matter the economic times,” said Roper. “It is also about who you know and the contacts you can maintain, no matter the occupation you choose.”
Lastly, Andrea Sjogren spoke about her experience with the American Red Cross. She did a work-study program while in college, averaging 100 hours a week on top of her school work. All of her hard work came to fruition when she was offiered recruitment chair for the American Red Cross two days before graduation.
“My suggestion would be to go out and find your niche,” said Sjogren. “You don’t really know what it is like until you just do it.”
In closing, Kevin Gilmore offered insight into his lifestyle with a non-profit as he talked about the choices a person must make.
“Non-profits do have normal salaries, but there are choices that you have to make in life as to how you want to spend that money,” said Gilmore. “I feel like I have a very simple life but also a very full life.”
Watch as Kevin Gilmore speaks more on making a living while working for a non-profit:
Filed under: Local EVents | Tagged: Alamance, Elon University, Gilmore, Habitat for Humanity, non-profit, Roper, Sjogren | 1 Comment »
Shea Northcut 