Dear friends,

Happy Pride! I joined the Annapolis Pride Festival this past weekend and am always heartened by Pride festivities and the progress they represent. Thank you to SVP Margot O’Leary for sharing this excellent round-up of meaningful actions you can take to celebrate. It does a good job honoring both historical progress and the work ahead. First on the action list? Learn more about Pride history.

Speaking of which, today’s LGBTQ+ elders are true pioneers. So, I am especially proud that Avalon added SAGE to our client roster last year. SAGE works to make aging better for LGBTQ+ people nationwide, including advocacy, education, direct services, and more. If you’re in the DC area, SAGE is hosting a kickoff for Capital Pride weekend this Friday at Hotel Zena.

In other news, I am thrilled to report that Avalon has been awarded five MAXIs in this year’s contest. Congratulations to Brennan Center for Justice (DM appeal), SAGE (DM appeal), St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center (e-appeal), and The Trustees (e-acquisition and DM acquisition), and your Avalon teams! I can’t wait to celebrate your wins.

On a somber note, we continue to face tremendous challenges as a sector and a nation. One antidote to helplessness is to get up and do some good. However, it can be hard to summon the energy when overwhelmed by difficult news. If you feel this way, COO Kerri Kerr recommended Anti-Racism Daily’s reflections on hope and Nonprofit AF’s post on coping with pain and despair. I love this inspiring quote, which Vu Le shared from Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés:

Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world all at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach…What is needed for dramatic change is an accumulation of acts, adding, adding to, adding more, continuing. We know that it does not take everyone on Earth to bring justice and peace, but only a small, determined group who will not give up during the first, second, or hundredth gale.

For your next presentation, here are two public speaking resources: 6 Ways to Engage Your Audience While Speaking Virtually and 3 Ways to Grab Listener Attention in a Presentation. It’s worth the effort! Fast Company reports that a shocking 39% of attendees report falling asleep during meetings. I am grateful that our Avalon team and clients are significantly more engaged!

Finally, I hope you have some downtime scheduled for the summer with the people and in the places you love. I have a June tradition of visiting Nantucket with my college friends and our families. I’ll be lugging a stack of books, continuing a tradition of powering through beach novels and other hot topics. If you need recommendations, I just started Marrying the Ketchups and am loving this story about a family restaurant in Oak Park so far. For more, The Atlantic’s summer reading guide is fantastic.

My 2022 Nantucket book stack.

Allison Porter, President (she/her/hers) Avalon Consulting Group 202-429-6080 ext. 102 allisonp@avalonconsulting.net