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A Powerful Collective

It is hard to believe it’s been almost 20 years since I first heard about Fieldstone at a social gathering. I still remember the conversation vividly, listening to a San Diego nonprofit ED describe feeling so supported, talk fondly about the community she was part of, and how Fieldstone had recently helped her navigate a significant expansion at her organization  I remember driving home that evening and in true When Harry Met Sally fashion (I’m dating myself here, I know), thinking ‘I want what she has’ as someone who was both fairly new to San Diego and a new executive director – not an easy undertaking at the same time, especially without a support system.

Still, I wondered if Fieldstone was one of those exclusive, invite-only networking kind of groups that was not for me. It took one call with Janine to realize Fieldstone was anything but that; I could not believe there was an organization whose mission was to support my development, build the capacity of my organization, and strengthen our sector.

I always tell people that I have been fortunate to wear so many Fieldstone hats over the years. While in my role as an ED, I participated in an executive learning group, had two coaches, attended Courage to Lead retreats, was a regular at Fieldstone at 4s, and provided my team with the same opportunities. After leaving my ED role and going back to school, I continued to be involved through the book club and serving as an evaluator for the Clare Rose Sabbatical program. As anyone might imagine, over the last 20 years, I have worked through significant professional celebrations, challenges, losses and transitions, as well very personal ones. And, in looking back, there is one constant thread that has run throughout that time and that’s Fieldstone. And I cannot name Fieldstone without naming Janine. Truly, I do not know how I would have gotten through some of those challenges without support from my colleagues and support from Janine.

There are so many leadership lessons I have learned over the years from being involved with Fieldstone but in this moment, I am particularly grateful to Fieldstone for helping me learn how to do the following:

1. Lead in the both/and: Sure, I’ll always be a work in progress, but being introduced to the work of Parker Palmer and life on the mobius strip helped me understand just how stuck I used to be either/or thinking. I am grateful to live and lead now as a more whole person, drawing from my many skills, experiences, values, and identities. In fact, I still carry a letter I wrote to myself in 2007 at a Fieldstone retreat as an artifact and reminder of my values.
2. Rest in community:  Until coming to Fieldstone, I did not realize how little time I had for thinking and how tired so many of my colleagues were, including me. Having the opportunity to be vulnerable and to learn and reflect together in learning groups and retreats made me realize the restorative power of community. All these years later, I know that when I make time to rest in my trusted Fieldstone community (some of whom, I’ve known for 10+ years), I am more aligned with my values, bring a better version of myself to my work, and generate some of my best ideas.
3. Communicate beyond talking:  I can still remember hearing a colleague read William Stafford’s poem ‘The Way it Is’ at a Fieldstone event and the hair standing up on my arms because the poem helped click into place a better understanding of my purpose and the challenges I was facing.  Fieldstone’s additional offerings to leaders in the form of music, nature walks, and mindful practice have become my antidotes when talking is not enough to navigate paradox, sit with complexity, and not get paralyzed. I have realized these things plus my love for making are not hobbies, they are inextricably linked to who I am as a leader and the work I want to do in the world.
4. Deepen my commitment to the nonprofit sector: Although I chose to leave my ED role 10 years ago, my work in our sector is far from over. Having the opportunity to serve as an evaluator for the Clare Rose Sabbatical program gave me a sightline into the deep need and desire to advocate for greater investments in all nonprofit leaders – which has led to the focus of my dissertation and my role at the Center for Creative Leadership supporting the research and evaluation needs of current nonprofit clients and partners.

So, in the spirit of lesson #3, I have folded forty cranes for Fieldstone’s 40^th as part of my mindful practice that my Japanese/Ainu grandmother taught me when I was a young girl. When I zoom in and look at each crane, I think of each of us Fieldstone leaders and the organizations we represent and how we lead better, and our organizations are stronger in part, because of Fieldstone.

But when I zoom out, I realize what is happening at our individual level and organizational level, ripples out. And I can see an even more beautiful and complete picture. I see a network that is not always visible – a powerful collective, and ultimately a stronger community that can better make lasting change for everyone.

 

To my fellow Fieldstone colleagues, I invite you to both zoom in and zoom out. What do you see? What connections do you make?

 

Michelle Q. Schneider, Center for Creative Leadership

Michelle has 20+ years of academic and practitioner experience in nonprofit leadership and management, leader development, research and evaluation. She served the nonprofit sector in various leadership capacities, including as an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer, donor, program coordinator, program director, board member, consultant, and ten years as an executive director for a San Diego-based national nonprofit organization. She is currently a PhD candidate in Leadership Studies with a focus on Nonprofit and Philanthropic Leadership and her research examines how developmental experiences on-the-job impact leadership development. While completing her doctoral coursework, she served as a Doctoral Research Assistant at The Nonprofit Institute at the University of San Diego, where she provided client-focused research and evaluation services for leading-edge nonprofits in the San Diego and Orange County regions. She is also a certified leadership coach and maintains a small coaching practice working specifically with nonprofit women leaders. She has presented her own research at both academic conferences and practitioner events, and has presented multiple workshops on Investing in People is a Win-Win-Win for Funders, Nonprofit Leaders, and their Organizations. She currently works for the Center for Creative Leadership, whose mission is to advance the understanding, practice, and development of leadership for the benefit of society worldwide.  There, she works in the Societal Impact group where she serves as a Senior Evaluation Associate, specifically leading the evaluation design, data collection, analysis and reporting/visualization for nonprofit clients who are interested in understanding the impact of leadership development initiatives. She is also very passionate about equity, diversity and inclusion internally and externally, and as such, also serve as a co-lead for CCL’s LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group (ERG).   

She earned her bachelor’s degree at Cornell University and her Master’s degree in Nonprofit Leadership and Management at the University of San Diego, where she is also a PhD candidate in a Leadership Studies doctoral program with a focus on Nonprofit and Philanthropic Leadership. 

 

Each week during our 40th anniversary year, a member of our Network will share what Fieldstone means to them and how being a part of this learning and leadership community has impacted them and the work they do to serve the community.

If you have a story you would like to contribute to our collection, please contact Janine Mason.

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Celebrating the Life of Barbara Mannino Harris

Barbara served as the CEO of Vista Community Clinic for 30 years. During her tenure, she grew the organization from a staff of 30 with a $500,000 budget and one site to a $35 million budget with 530 employees and five state of the art medical facilities.  Barbara was an inaugural member of the Fieldstone Leadership Network and served as a coach for us for over 25 years. She passed away on April 20, 2023 after a devastatingly fast battle with lung cancer.  A celebration of her life was held at Vista’s Civic Center on July 15th.  Janine was honored to be part of the team of people to offer a eulogy as part of the service.  Her tribute is below.  The family invites anyone wanting to honor Barbara by supporting one of her passions to consider a gift to the San Diego Humane  Society www.sdhumane.org 

Remembering Barbara

Good afternoon. My name is Janine Mason and I am the founder of the Fieldstone Leadership Network.  An organization with a mission to support nonprofit professionals in developing their personal leadership capacity and to building trusted relationships throughout the sector. Barbara and I met in the late 80s, early in her tenure at VCC and early in my career at Fieldstone. We quickly became friends and met together regularly. We shared family photos and I watched her daughter, and then grandchildren, grow up and she watched my son too. Our special place was Pacifica Del Mar and I can’t go there without thinking back to those seemingly ordinary lunches that have now become treasured memories. Barbara was there when I became the Executive Director of Fieldstone Foundation and was always at the ready to be a sounding board and give me sage advice – advice that I still think back on decades later.

Barbara was a member of Fieldstone’s first Executive Learning Group. Shortly after that program ended, I asked her if she would serve as a Fieldstone Coach and to mentor other nonprofit leaders by sharing her knowledge and experience.  Now you have to remember, in the early 90s, coaching was mainly a sports term.  But, she graciously agreed, trained to become a Fieldstone Coach and had served continuously in this role with us since those very early days of the program. She blessed her coachees, she had over 25 of them, with her time and wisdom and they were better leaders because of her investment in them. And our Network was better.  But most importantly, so was, is, our community.  To give you a sampling of her reach, in her time with us, Barbara worked with leaders of

• Regional Taskforce on the Homeless
• San Diego Public Library Foundation
• Seuss Foundation
• New Village Arts
• BIPOC Support Foundation and
• Habitat for Humanity.

Her reach was deep and touches almost every part of our community infrastructure.  Every day, as these organizations, and other, carry out their missions, Barbara is there.

John Buchan said, “the task of leadership is not to put greatness into people, but to illicit it because it is already there”. This quote has a hallowed place on each leadership certificate we give out because we believe it to be true.  Barbara did too, that is why she committed so diligently to supporting others.  She had the title and the skills of a leader  but most importantly, she had the heart of a leader which called her to serve people and help them to learn to become the best version of themselves- To illicit the greatness that she knew they processed and that she recognized in them.  And she was generous, as she did this in her organization, in her community and in our sector.  She cheered us on, believed in us until we believed in ourselves, helped us succeed and realize our visions.   And in between, she sometimes got us to adopt a new furry family member.

It can be hard to remember the early days of creating the Network, mainly because we didn’t know at the time that it would grow into a Network at all.  It was simply a series of individual programs and an additional activity to accompany our grantmaking.  It grew into a Network and to date, we have served thousands of nonprofit professionals across our region with critical and affordable leadership support.  I have always believed our success was due to the early adopters who trusted us and said “yes” to our invitation to join us and then helped us create what we now understand the Network to be. Barbara was one of these early adopters and she was foundational in this work and her participation helped to give us credibility at an important time. This natural act for her to join and contribute, led to a huge ripple effect throughout San Diego County that continues to this day. Every time Fieldstone helps a nonprofit leader and their organization, Barbara’s fingerprints are there.  I will always be grateful to her for her investment in and commitment to us.

Even after she retired from VCC. She continued to coach through December of last year. She had every intention to coach this year, but life had other plans for us. Thank goodness we had the chance to celebrate together at our gathering last December. I trust Barbara felt appreciated by me and her fellow Fieldstone coaches.  I trust she knew she was a critical part of our family and that we loved her. Because we did.

American writer Brian Andreas once said, “It is still so new and all we see is the empty space, but that is not how it is in the landscape of the heart. There, there is no empty space and she still laughs and grapples with ideas and plans and nods wisely with each of us in turn. We are proud to have known her. We are proud to have called her friend.” I know Barbara will remain with me, with the Network, and with those she coached on Fieldstone’s behalf. I believe she will be with us as we grapple and make plans for what comes next. And I know she will be nodding and cheering us on as we continue to support each other in answering the call to lead and to help each other to do it well.

Thank you, Barbara.  May the blessing that you were to so many be returned to you as eternal peace.

 

 

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Contributed To My Ability To Be Successful

 

I have been a non-profit leader for almost 25 years. Professional development has been a cornerstone of my career. I have learned so many important lessons. Lessons that were useful at one point and time, and lessons that have served me for many years and continue to serve me and those I interact with daily. My Fieldstone experience is one that I have leaned on since the day I joined the Network.

In 2011, I had the opportunity to provide leadership to a new team in Arizona. I knew my role was expanding and I needed clarity on how to lead this new team in a long-distance relationship where I had to lead through influence and service rather than a direct reporting relationship. Although I had the privilege of having many mentors, coaches, friends, and colleagues invest in me over the years, at this important career juncture I found myself overwhelmed and unsure how to best lead. I was introduced to the opportunity to join the Fieldstone Emerging Leaders Program. I began the program in January of 2012, and this program significantly influenced my career journey since.

First, I had the opportunity interact with two fantastic, seasoned professional facilitators, who gave their heads and hearts to this work. Second, I had the opportunity to have an all-female cohort of other strong non-profit leaders in our community. Servant leaders who cared deeply about being of service. We grew a close relationship and leaned on each other.  I am still in touch with several of these women today over ten years later.

I grew as a leader in profound ways during my participation in the Fieldstone program. I have many important learnings from that first 6-month program.

• I learned that you do not always have to be the first person to speak to be heard.
• I learned that sometimes sitting back and observing can be the most powerful way to participate.
• I learned that we often see a problem we think is the problem, but through a thoughtful series of inquiries, reflection, and processing, we can clearly see the problem we are trying to solve.
• I learned that solutions could come in all forms and through a lot of challenging work, but solutions are possible.
• I learned that we need to know our worth and show it to others.
• I learned to put my mask on first.
• I learned that sometimes leaders do not know how to lead and that being surrounded by smart, resolute people helps us all grow.
• I learned that it’s ok to be vulnerable and ask for help
• I learned that nobody should tolerate being treated badly and that there are many bad apples out there, but we do not have to be one or be led by one.
• I learned that a group of smart women can solve any problem.

In 2012, I was promoted to an executive role reporting to a CEO of a local chapter of a national health non-profit. What I learned in Fieldstone contributed to my ability to be successful in that role and go onto 3 significant leadership roles from then, including my current role as Chief Strategy and Implementation Officer at Curebound where I have the total privilege to put those lessons learned over a decade ago to work daily with the most impressive team and the most critical mission.

During Covid I reconnected with Janine Mason and shared with her what Fieldstone had meant to me. She has continually supported me and my leadership growth. This year I was invited to join the Fieldstone Coaching Program. It is now my turn to give back to leaders in our community who are facing tough challenges as they work to solve significant community needs. I feel grateful to have been invested in and to now be able to learn and grow again from the coaching network and to pay it forward.

 

Fieldstone has meant so much to me and I am honored to have the ability to share what I have learned with hundreds of colleagues, friends, and leaders along the way.

Thank You Janine Mason and Fieldstone! Congratulations on 40 years of impact and cheers to 40 more!

Karen Hooper, Curebound, Chief Strategy & Implementation Officer

Karen Hooper brings 25 years of non-profit leadership experience to Curebound as Chief Strategy and Implementation Officer.  She has served in various non-profit leadership roles at the local, regional and national levels. In her current role, she shares her expertise in building lifetime relationships, developing high performing teams and creating and achieving strategic priorities through operational excellence. As the CSIO, Karen is responsible for organizational infrastructure, staff and community engagement and strategic planning. She is passionate about serving the community and is thrilled to be part of the Curebound family.

Prior to Curebound, Karen served as the Executive Director with a Diabetes Research organization where she led significant community engagement efforts resulting in a 90% increase in research applications, exceeding revenue goals and mission delivery investment. Previously, she had a twenty-four year career with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, serving as the Vice President of Program Development and Engagement for four years and creating a nationwide programmatic approach for mission delivery.

Originally from Los Angeles, California, Karen now lives in Rancho Bernardo with her husband Ron, their daughter Karli and niece Bella. She holds a marketing degree from San Diego State University. Go Aztecs!

Each week during our 40th anniversary year, a member of our Network will share what Fieldstone means to them and how being a part of this learning and leadership community has impacted them and the work they do to serve the community.

If you have a story you would like to contribute to our collection, please contact Janine Mason.

 

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Coming Home To The Place I Was Meant To Be

On January 13, 1997, I walked into the Superior Court offices of Voices for Children as the new CEO—full of hope, scared to death, and overwhelmed with the challenges confronting this organization which recruits, trains, and supervises Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs) for foster children. I was the fourth CEO in four years, and faced a disgruntled Juvenile Court Presiding Judge, a looming budget deficit, an exhausted, overworked staff, and a Board of Directors who wanted us to serve more children with CASA volunteers but had no idea how to make that happen.  And it was only my first day!  The brightest spot:  on my desk sat a note from Janine Mason, welcoming me to my new job.  I can’t begin to express how much that meant to me, especially since we did not know each other and I had never heard of Fieldstone.

A few months later, Janine and I finally met in person at the Fieldstone CEO Learning Group.  I quickly learned that my compatriots in the group were brilliant leaders in their own fields, and I had a lot to learn from them.  They were so open about sharing their problems and offering to help me adjust from life as an attorney to life as a nonprofit CEO. There, I met Sue Schaffner, now a dear friend for 26 years.  Sue’s superior leadership skills, great mind, and huge heart are a big reason I’m still in this field.  She helped me work through many crises and problems over the years, and to face them with courage.

At the first Fieldstone out-of-town leadership retreat I attended, in Borrego Springs, this wisdom from Janet Hagberg resonated with me: “Leading from your soul involves things like meaning, passion, calling, courage, wholeness, vulnerability, spirituality, community. When we begin to lead from our souls, we feel as if we are coming home, coming to the place in which we were meant to be.”  Without question, Fieldstone helped me to come to a place I was meant to be, and I will be forever grateful.

The Fieldstone coaching program has had big impact, first as a coachee and since 2004 as a coach myself.  Tom Hall and Shirley Cole pushed me to consider new, bold ideas for Voices for Children – ideas that ultimately transformed the agency.  I now coach others, in part to give back but mostly because I learn so much from my coachees as they share their challenges and, together, we brainstorm solutions. I have loved attending quarterly meetings with my fellow coaches and seeing friends at Fieldstone@4.  Seven years ago, I joined the first Fieldstone Book Club, still going strong today. I adore my Book Club friends, and so enjoy the discussions and debates we have about a variety of books as well as professional and personal issues.

What have I learned from Fieldstone? I’ve learned that sometimes we don’t know all of the answers; that a CEO job can be overwhelming, frustrating, and difficult; that we need to seek out trusted opinions from respected colleagues; that vulnerability is OK and that courage is often required; that service to others is a privilege and an honor and that being a nonprofit leader is one of the most important things we will ever do.  I’m deeply grateful to the Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego for teaching me more than I ever knew I needed to learn.  Each colleague has become an important, cherished person in my life, and I so appreciate Fieldstone for bringing us together. To the Network: congratulations on your 40^th Anniversary – here’s to the next 40!

Sharon M. Lawrence, Esq., CEO, California CASA Association

Since 2017, Sharon M. Lawrence, Esq., has been CEO of the California Court Appointed Special Advocate Association, and in that time, has seen the organization grow significantly. She was able to secure more than $5,700,000 annually for distribution to the local CASA network through federal VOCA funds, and in 2022, secured a 3-year State appropriation of $60,000,000 to spur expansion of CASA services statewide.  Sharon has assembled a team of experienced professionals to help CA CASA achieve an aspirational goal to provide every California foster child with a CASA if they need one.  For 20 years (1997-2017), Sharon was President/CEO of Voices for Children, the CASA program for San Diego and Riverside counties.  During her time at VFC, the organization grew exponentially, from $400,000 in 1997 to $6.3 million when she left to join CA CASA.  Prior to VFC, she was an attorney and litigator in San Diego, and has been a member of the California State Bar and the San Diego County Bar Association from 1988 to the present.  Recognized statewide and nationally for her expertise in child welfare, she has served on many committees dealing with foster care, dependency, the courts, and juvenile law. For the past 19 years, she has served as a Coach for CEOs and Emerging Leaders for the Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego.  Sharon received her B.A. (Psychology, Speech Communications, and Political Science) from the University of Denver and her J.D. from the University of Texas. She is an alumna of the Harvard Business School executive program in Strategic Perspectives in Non-Profit Management (2006).

Each week during our 40th anniversary year, a member of our Network will share what Fieldstone means to them and how being a part of this learning and leadership community has impacted them and the work they do to serve the community.

If you have a story you would like to contribute to our collection, please contact Janine Mason.

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Transforming the San Diego Community Networked As One  

This past weekend while listening to an On Being podcast, host Krista Tippet referenced a quote from evolutionary biologist Lynn Margulis: “Life did not take over the world by combat, but by networking.”  While this quote’s direct context reflects on the natural world, we all know it is not uncommon that truth in one area often mirrors a universal truth that pervades all things.  I find this visual of interconnectedness warming, affirming and inspirational.  I immediately thought of the Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego.

While I could list numerous management tips, tricks, and tools I have learned since joining Fieldstone in 2011, my favorite part and the most meaningful aspect of the Network for me has been that all these skills were nurtured and grounded in the soil of authentic relationships.

Not long after joining SAY San Diego, then Executive Director and longtime Fieldstone member, Michael Carr, recommended I check out the Fieldstone Leadership Network.  My initial participation included becoming part of the Emerging Leaders Learning Group class of 2011.  Over a decade later many of us have remained in touch.  On the regular you can find Justin Apger and I in the corner of a San Diego bar somewhere keeping the Fieldstone energy alive scheming about the future of the sector, pursuit of personal milestones, and achieving professional goals big and small.

As part of the Fieldstone Coaching Class of 2012, I have a vivid memory of coffee at Twiggs on Adams with my coach, Matt D’Arrigo. In the middle of our session, I got the call that a major grant came through for a new SAY initiative I had been shepherding. Behind the scenes Matt’s wisdom was instrumental to fine tune the effort’s vision, its direct connection to my personal passion, professional growth and cultivating the alignment with the funder. I will forever remember that feeling of excitement and celebrating with Matt across the table.

I have the fondest memories from the 2018 Fieldstone Courage to Lead Retreat, standing cliffside in Malibu overlooking the ocean reflecting on gratitude with longtime SAY colleague Kevin O’Neill. Not to mention, how still to this day Katie Sawyer and I will laugh about the 2018 Fieldstone strategic planning session in Anza Borrego, where at one point a bunch of us were wandering around the desert at midnight just trying to cool down as the 110+ degree heat had shut down the entire AC electrical grid for the area making the Resort rooms uninhabitable.

I’ve loved each moment since 2017 helping Learning Group facilitator Tom Hall kick off the first day of Learning Group cohorts as a Fieldstone Creative Encounters Facilitator.  Including how every year, whether alongside Renato Paiva, Sue Schaffner, Matt D’Arrigo or Janine Mason, at the last minute we freak out as to whether we tied those darn “Dreams of Change” straps correctly to give participants at least a chance of solving the activity.  🙂

Further, longtime Fieldstone Alum and Coach, Valin Brown and I serendipitously became neighbors a few years back.  Some of the best growth-oriented conversations I’ve ever had, have happened over a casual last minute happy hour on the patio in the Brown backyard (or more specifically, I should say vineyard!).

The Fieldstone ethos is truly rooted in relationships. The On Being episode ended with reference to the Pando Aspen Grove in Utah.  Scientists discovered this grove of over 100 acres of trees is, in fact, connected by a single root system.  What on the surface appears to be thousands of individual trees, is one organism sharing the same DNA.

Where and how will San Diego evolve and grow?  What challenges and social problems will the leaders of the Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego membership face over the next 40 years?  One thing I do know, we will face them together. As members past, present and future, The Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego DNA is in all of us. We will continue as a life force transforming the San Diego community networked as one.

Joe Buehrle, MSW, Vice President, SAY San Diego

Joe Buehrle serves as Vice President of Strategy & Development for Social Advocates for Youth (SAY), San Diego.  He started as the Coordinator of SAY’s military family programs in 2009. Joe received his Master of Social Work from the University of Michigan with an emphasis in community organizing, social systems and management.  He strives to contribute in the movement for justice by championing community building that activates healing, belonging, resilience and transformative communities. 

Joe is the founding Board President of San Diego’s Zero8hundred Military Transition Support Project, a Partners In Prevention Advisory Board Member, Steering Committee Member of the California Family Support Network, a Fieldstone Leadership Network Creative Encounters Facilitator and certified Lean Six Sigma Green Belt.  Joe is a graduate of Fieldstone’s Emerging Leaders Learning Group and its Executive Coaching Program.

Each week during our 40th anniversary year, a member of our Network will share what Fieldstone means to them and how being a part of this learning and leadership community has impacted them and the work they do to serve the community.

If you have a story you would like to contribute to our collection, please contact Janine Mason.

 

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Has Made A Difference

As I reach the retirement milestone in my 43-year career advancing arts and culture, I reflect on what has made a difference to my achieving success as a leader in my organization, the arts sector, and in the community.

The list is lengthy, filled with Mentors, Colleagues, Nonprofits with impactful missions, and Volunteer Experiences.

Also, on my list of ‘what has made a difference’ has been my multi-decade experiences with Fieldstone and its executive leadership programs.

My slightly altered definition of “Fieldstone” – as in “actual in the field stone” – sums up what a difference Fieldstone programs have made for me:

Fieldstone… is a great way to add some structure to your career and create different ways of leading success within your organization. It is also desirable to be used to create pathways… to leadership.

As far back as 25+ years ago, I had the good fortune to participate in the Executive (CEO) Learning Group, and in the Coaching Program, first as a mentee, and then as a mentor.   Both programs were great opportunities for peer-to-peer learning and sharing, and to run up the flagpole new ideas, and discuss strategies to overcome organizational challenges.

The Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego programs offered me new leadership tools as a nonprofit executive director and provided a network of mentors and peers that has proved to be both an invaluable professional resource and a personal gift of professional friendships that have lasted decades.

Congratulations to the Fieldstone on 40 years of making us better nonprofit leaders.

Alan Ziter, Retired Executive Director, NTC Foundation

Since arriving in San Diego from Chicago in 1986, Alan Ziter has advanced San Diego’s arts and culture in impactful ways.   Throughout his career in nonprofit arts, he has had the opportunity to work with leading San Diego artists, arts administrators, patrons, civic leaders, board members and audiences to whom he is most appreciative of their collaborative efforts to shine the spotlight on San Diego’s remarkable arts and culture community.  He retired as Executive Director from the NTC Foundation, which oversees the development of ARTS DISTRICT Liberty Station, in June 2023.

 

 

 

 

Each week during our 40th anniversary year, a member of our Network will share what Fieldstone means to them and how being a part of this learning and leadership community has impacted them and the work they do to serve the community.

If you have a story you would like to contribute to our collection, please contact Janine Mason.

 

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A Quiet but Long-Lasting Impact

Coming to San Diego to take a position as a first time Executive Director of a start-up non-profit was a big leap of faith for me. I soon realized that the ED position is challenging in so many ways! At that point, I found out about Fieldstone Leadership Network, which has been crucial in so many ways in my 17-year career.  It is clear that Janine Mason has created the perfect environment for non-profit leaders to be safe and to share experiences while learning.

I am a huge Fieldstone fan! I think I have been part of most of the programs offered, starting with the Executive Learning Group, taking part of the incredible retreat, enjoying many Fieldstone@4, sharing ideas at our Leadership Reading Group, and being a coach for the Executive Coaching Program and a facilitator of Creative Encounter by Fieldstone, an experiential learning program.

One of the best experiences of my entire career was being part of a life-changing sabbatical offered by Fieldstone and the Clare Rose Foundation. All these programs have transformed me in different ways, all to the benefit of the students and family we serve at Access Youth Academy.

I am deeply thankful and grateful for Fieldstone! This is the type of organization that has a quiet but long-lasting impact on all the leaders and the organizations they work with. The work that they do should be replicated and modeled all over the world!

Congratulations on 40 years of impactful history!

And, thank you for being a beacon of light in my life!

Renato Paiva, Executive Director, Assess Youth Academy

Renato Paiva has served as the Executive Director of Access Youth Academy since it began. During the past 17 years, he has ably led Access to produce outstanding results and has helped Access to be regarded as one of the leading urban squash and youth development programs in the nation. During that time, Access students have achieved 100% college graduation rates, secured$9.7 million dollars in scholarships, and 13 national squash titles. Working closely with the Access Board, he led the design and construction of state-of-the-art education and squash facility located in a federally designated Promise zone in Southeastern San Diego that opened in June 2021.

A native of Brazil, Renato became an internationally ranked squash player and competed in several countries. Prior to Access, Renato coached in several colleges, including serving as Assistant Squash Coach at Harvard University and a Head Coach at USC. In 2010, Paiva was named Development Coach of the Year by U.S. Squash and was honored as 2011 Coach of the Year by the U.S. Congressional Caucus on Youth Sports in Washington, DC. Renato and his staff are supported by a dedicated board of directors, mentors, and volunteers.

 

Each week during our 40th anniversary year, a member of our Network will share what Fieldstone means to them and how being a part of this learning and leadership community has impacted them and the work they do to serve the community.

If you have a story you would like to contribute to our collection, please contact Janine Mason.

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A Cutting-Edge Leadership Community

In building terms, a fieldstone is important because each one is unique and when put together, they make structures sound and beautiful. What many do not realize, it is the cornerstone that is the most important. A cornerstone is the most important because it is the first stone in which the entire structure rests and it lays the direction for the entire structure.

Janine Mason is the cornerstone of the San Diego nonprofit community. Years ago, Janine had the vision to create a program that would invest in the leadership development and capacity building of local nonprofit agencies. What began under her leadership, as an outreach program of the Fieldstone Company and its foundation, has evolved into to a cutting-edge leadership community and network that connects agencies and leadership in a unique and holistic manner.

Twelve years ago, I was encouraged to enroll in Fieldstone’s Emerging Leaders Learning Group Program. Little did I know, this recommendation would change the trajectory of hundreds of lives in coastal North County San Diego (through my leadership and my organization’s work). I will be forever grateful to Janine and the entire FLNSD community.

My staff and I have taken full advantage of the programming at FLNSD. We have participated in the Emerging Leaders Program, Executive Coaching, Equity Journey, and various book clubs. The program that has had the greatest impact on me, my staff, and Casa de Amistad is the Clare Rose Sabbatical.

In 2019, I began the application process for the Clare Rose Sabbatical. After twelve years, leading Casa de Amistad, I needed to step away and refresh. Little did I know, our entire world was about to change. In April 2020, I was honored to receive the Clare Rose Sabbatical. Unfortunately, the world came to a halt because of COVID-19.

Luckily, I was able to postpone the sabbatical for one year. This past summer, I was able to take full advantage of the sabbatical. The sabbatical not only gave me the opportunity to reflect, but it was also an investment in the leadership development of my staff. The capacity building aspect was equal in importance to the time I had to step away.

During my time off, I realized the importance of the triple bottom line in the nonprofit sector- People, Planet, Profit and how FLNSD honors this in their work.

People– The most important thing we can do as nonprofit leaders is to center all decisions on the people we serve and the staff we manage. When we invest in the wellness and personal and professional development of our staff, we all benefit and excel. Collective leadership happens when we are all moving together in the same direction. This only happens when we respect and honor the whole-person who comes to work each day.

Planet– Before my sabbatical, I would wake up, get my kids to school, go to work, and come home. I had lost all connection with nature and being outside. During my time away, I made an effort to be outside every day. This was AMAZING. I forgot how important it is to take a walk, sit in the sun, and just be still and watch birds. I also realized how disconnected I had become from the natural environment.

Upon my return, I had the great fortune of joining Fieldstone’s All We Can Save: Learning Circle. I highly encourage all organizations to participate and read the book. Even though, Casa de Amistad is an academic mentoring program- there are opportunities we can create to heal our planet and address issues related to climate change.

Profit- People outside the nonprofit sector do not realize how difficult it is to run and sustain a nonprofit organization. While corporations and businesses sell a product, nonprofit organizations must sell a theory of change that people will find compelling and worth investing in.

While there are over 15,000 nonprofit organizations in San Diego, there is a perceived need for competition for funding. FLNSD emphasizes the importance of collaboration over competition. Some of Casa de Amistad’s most innovative programs have been a result of working together with other nonprofit agencies. If we are committed to being thoughtful stewards of people’s investments and we all work together- we will all benefit and succeed.

While being in a position of leadership is hard and often lonely, the Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego is a community that ensures that we are never truly alone.

Nicole Mione-Green, Executive Director, Casa de Amistad

 

Nicole has been involved in the nonprofit sector for over 30 years. As a teen and young adult she volunteered as a counselor for the Easter Seals Society and the YMCA. She has spent her career working in education in both Mexico and the United States. Nicole has been in her current role as Executive Director of Casa de Amistad for over sixteen years. She has been an active member of the FLNSD community for twelve years.

 

 

 

 

 

Each week during our 40th anniversary year, a member of our Network will share what Fieldstone means to them and how being a part of this learning and leadership community has impacted them and the work they do to serve the community.

If you have a story you would like to contribute to our collection, please contact Janine Mason.

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Remembering Judy McDonald

She was my colleague. She was my mentor. She was my friend.

I had a special relationship with Judy McDonald. That’s why, of all the pictures we have taken together over the past 35 years, this is one of my favorites. It was a tender moment of celebration and a moment that held all we had been to each other and would continue to be to each other. And when I look at Judy’s face, I just know that face and I can hear her words. Maybe you do too?

I am guessing, you had a special relationship with Judy McDonald as well. Or at least a special moment; a time she inspired you, believed in you, your idea or your project. She was philanthropy’s First Lady in San Diego and you better believe she would hate me saying that. But that doesn’t make it not true.

People flocked to Judy McDonald. She was the first person or one of the first, community leaders went to to vet their idea and to get her input. If she believed in what you were doing, you were more than half-way to success. If she didn’t, she would advise you and help you get where you needed to be. In rare instances, she would kindly and honestly re-direct your efforts.

People trusted Judy. She was honest. She would tell tales of grantmaking mistakes, like the time a grant she supported was used to purchase a van that was then used to traffic unlawful goods across the border! It takes guts to tell that story, but she did. And often too! And she did so to advocate for transparency and to help people understand that grantmaking, even with the best of intentions, didn’t always accomplish hoped-for outcomes. She did it to be part of the effort to solve problems, not to be thought of as the sole solution or the smart one with all of the answers. Judy was a learner and she was always asking questions. She was always asking “why?”

Before my Dad died, I regularly told people that I had a special relationship with my him and that my younger sister had one with our Mom. One day I over heard my sister tell someone that she had a special relationship with our Dad. I almost cut into the conversation to tell her she really didn’t, that I did! But then I realized, she really did too. That was the gift our father gave us – to not only have us believe, but to actually have a rich and wonderful relationship with both of us- one that made us feel special and unique. And that is the same gift Judy gave each of us. She gave us her attention, her wisdom, her good efforts, and her laugh. And she always gave us her presumptions of good intentions. She made us feel included and necessary to the work of solving the world’s challenges. And that is why we all loved and respected Judy.

It’s impossible to go through San Diego and not see all that Judy has touched in her work as a board member of the Parker Foundation, Catalyst (formerly San Diego Grantmakers), The Nonprofit Institute’s Advisory Board, with the Junior League, LEAD San Diego, RISE or the Arts Commission (to name only a few). San Diego won’t be the same without our First Lady. But we can honor Judy and continue to do the work she loved by participating with the same sense of hospitality and wonder that she did. We can build special relationships that get to the heart of all she cared about – community taking care of each other.

Judy McDonald was my colleague, my mentor and my friend.

We had a special relationship.

And because of that, I know you did too.

Rest in Peace, my dear, dear friend. And thank you for absolutely everything.

Janine

A Celebration of Life will be held on June 19, 2023 at 4 pm,in Building 177 at Liberty Station,

2875 Dewey Road, San Diego, CA 92106.

All are welcome.

Judith E McDonald

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A Ripple Effect of Goodness

 

A wise soul once said “The purpose of life is to find your gift. The work of life is to develop it. The meaning of life is to give it away”.  Fieldstone has helped guide me in all three through their programs, people, and values.

I began my nonprofit career after 20+ years in the for-profit sector, was convinced I found my purpose, and had definite ideas on how I was going to single-handedly change the world!  I had a lot to learn and was ready to get started.  Around the office, I would hear co-workers say things like “I have a meeting with my Fieldstone coach today” or “I’m going to Fieldstone @ 4” and my curiosity was piqued about this “secret club”.  Soon after, my boss recommended me for the Nonprofit Leaders Learning Group and by completing that program, I was in!

It was through the programs at Fieldstone and the people in the network, I learned how truly special the nonprofit sector is.  In addition to the learning group, I have also participated in a Reading Group, the Coaching Program, and have attended countless events. I have walked away from each unique experience as a better leader with more confidence, armed with a network of trusted professionals with integrity.  Leadership is a very personal journey, and each program met me where I was at the time and gave me the safe space and guidance to allow my personal growth to flourish and, by extension, my professional life.

My organization has also seen growth in the capacity of all employees that have participated in Fieldstone programs.  Since joining the organization, Mama’s Kitchen staff has increased 74%, the budget has more than doubled, and we are serving 3x the number of clients. By continuing to stay active in this vibrant network, achieving successes like these are sure to continue for my whole team.

Quantifiable achievements aside, the real magic of Fieldstone is the ripple effect of goodness that is created by each of us doing our individual work and then sharing what we have learned with others.  By continuing to support leaders, Fieldstone helps develop a nonprofit’s ability to have a positive impact in the community and the broader society.  I am grateful to my organization for supporting me and others with development opportunities. I am grateful for my Fieldstone Coach Deb, who I still have coffee with.  And I am grateful to Janine  – Fieldstone truly makes this world a better place!

Kelly Sherlock, CFO, Mama’s Kitchen

 

Ms. Sherlock joined Mama’s Kitchen in 2013 and oversees the financial, human resource, and IT functions and strategy of the organization. She has served as the Board Treasurer of Climate Action Campaign since 2020 and is a proud member of the Fieldstone Leadership Network. Ms. Sherlock holds a master’s degree in Nonprofit Leadership and Management from the University of San Diego and is currently studying for Certified Management Accountant accreditation.

 

 

 

Each week during our 40th anniversary year, a member of our Network will share what Fieldstone means to them and how being a part of this learning and leadership community has impacted them and the work they do to serve the community.

If you have a story you would like to contribute to our collection, please contact Janine Mason.

 

Read More