The 3W Podcast
From the people that bring you 3W Magazine, welcome to the 3W Podcast! We aim to serve our community by promoting awareness of Northwest Arkansas’ thriving philanthropic movement; To provide a guide of dates to help coordinate events so every nonprofit gets the coverage they need and deserve; To give financially to local charities each year.
The 3W Podcast
The 3W Podcast: Women with a Mission
Discover how a group of dedicated women is reshaping health care through collective philanthropy. Joined by Mary Heman, Alison Levin, and Brie Madden, we explore the remarkable work of Mercy's Women with a Mission group. Mary offers insights from her marketing career at Ocean Spray and her long-standing involvement with the organization. Brie shares her journey from real estate law to business development and her newfound passion for the group's mission. Alison, as a Senior Development Director at Mercy Health Foundation, underscores the vital contributions of the steering committee and the transformative power of pooled resources.
Experience the thrilling and educational side of Women with a Mission. From mastering CPR techniques to understanding the life-saving potential of Narcan, we recount the valuable skills learned during our community gatherings. We also share our excitement for upcoming self-defense training, reinforcing our commitment to personal safety and empowerment. These events not only equip us with essential knowledge but also strengthen our bond as a community dedicated to making a difference.
Prepare for an elegant and inspiring evening with guest speakers Savvy Shields Wolfe, Miss America 2017, and her mother, Karen Shields. Enjoy a fall-themed menu crafted by Catering Unlimited, featuring a special cranberry mocktail courtesy of Ocean Spray. As we celebrate the impact of Mercy's services and the importance of local health initiatives, you'll hear personal stories of change and inspiration. Join us for an episode filled with passion, camaraderie, and the joy of giving back.
Hey everyone, casey Yokely, here at the 3W Podcast home of the who, what, where, thanks for joining us today. This is a super special one to me. So today we're going to talk about Mercy's Women with a Mission group. So I've got three girlfriends here with me. I'm going to start to my left Mary Heeman, allison Levin and Bree Madden. So thank you, ladies, for joining. We're going to jump right in. So, mary, tell us who you are, please. Oh, loaded question. I know, go big, okay, okay.
Speaker 4:Well.
Speaker 2:I currently work for Ocean Spray. Forgot for a minute, let's go back. Edit that out for me. Let's go back. Okay, mary, tell us about you a little bit. Yes, so I currently work at Ocean Spray. I'm an omni-channel in marketing Currently just been there for not that long, but a really hot second. I'm really enjoying my time. I love being in the supplier community and I've actually lived in Bentonville for almost 20 years now. It's kind of like a local. At this point I know I've got to just own it right.
Speaker 1:I know right, I still feel like I just moved here, but I didn't. 06 was not yesterday, exactly, exactly, okay. So are you a woman with a?
Speaker 2:mission member I am. I've been a member for 10 years now. Okay, awesome, congratulations. That's exciting.
Speaker 1:Thank you.
Speaker 4:Bree tell us a little bit about you. Well, historically I am a real estate attorney. I've kind of recently moved into the world of business development over the last three years, and actually this is my first week. I just started a new role at Buff Studio. I know I love this. So, for all of you that don't know, ryan Faust is on our Mercy Board, so shout out to Ryan and Buff, and he's who got me involved with the corporate council and led me to get involved with women with the mission.
Speaker 1:That's fantastic, I love that he's a great ambassador. He is so great. How many, how long?
Speaker 4:Very new With women with the mission just over a year. I love this.
Speaker 1:So we have like seasoned people and then new, and I love that because we'll circle back to that later on.
Speaker 4:But I'm like I love the new vision.
Speaker 1:I'm like. I love the new vision. I think you just called me old. I'm older than you.
Speaker 4:Thank you. Seasoned was the word I had, that's true, I did not say spicy Seasoned is spicy.
Speaker 2:I like it I like it, we'll roll with that Okay.
Speaker 1:Spring chickens Okay. Allison welcome, Thank you, you and I have done this before. We have done this before. We have done this before A couple years ago, I think so tell everyone what your official role is.
Speaker 3:So I work for Mercy Health Foundation and I'm Senior Development Director. Been with Mercy for 12 years oh my gosh. Been a member of Women with a Mission for 11 years.
Speaker 1:And I get to meet with the incredible people, like everybody in this room.
Speaker 3:You're the glue that holds women with a mission together. Absolutely, I try. You do. I try. Sometimes the steering committee meetings are. They're a little crazy but, that's okay.
Speaker 1:That's okay, we love them, yeah, and you know what? I think I have that way down in my notes. But let's just touch on the steering committee. Um, it's pretty original, it is. It's pretty original. It is Like with the founding members, the year one members and then we haven't had much rotation off, and I think that's a true testament to mercy, to women with a mission, but to also your leadership.
Speaker 3:Oh well, thank you. It is really a lot of fun because we, as Casey said, we have members that have been there for 15 years and then we have brand new members, so it's really. There's a lot of creativity.
Speaker 1:There's a lot of herding cats. There's a lot of stories Nothing gets really. I don't think a whole lot gets accomplished in those meetings, but I love them because I love to see the original members, I love to hear their stories.
Speaker 3:Well, it fills your heart, it does.
Speaker 1:It tells us why we're there. Essentially, I think Okay, so let's just dive right in to Women With a Mission, because you're my go-to for helping me with words. Do you have an elevator speech as to what we do?
Speaker 3:Oh my goodness gracious, I should have read that script.
Speaker 1:I fumble it every time and add words and take away words and make words up, but that's what's good about it, because you can create it any way you want it.
Speaker 3:So my elevator speech is really it's a wonderful group of women that gather together. We have 125 members, we pool our funds and we vote on where we want that money to go to. So it is an organization that you get what you give, and I really feel again I'll say it again it fills my heart when I see what we're able to do for our hospitals and our clinic.
Speaker 1:It does so. I just recorded a spot for 4029 this morning for Women With a Mission and my line was hello who I am. And then Women With A Mission is a philanthropic group, philanthropic organization comprised or made up I knew it earlier, I knew it an hour ago made up from all walks of life to make a positive difference in the community.
Speaker 3:So I was like, oh, that's good, but we should mention every person.
Speaker 1:All 125 members have donated $1,000 annually, so we are a giving circle. You have to pay to play, yes, and then every year you touched on, which I totally forgot in the notes. That's awesome that we come together and we have a voting meeting. The hospital supplies us with projects that they want and we vote on those to see what we're going to actually fund so that we can purchase a NICU room, for example.
Speaker 3:Well, and I think it's really interesting because you know, I look back 11 years we really were just doing women and children's and now the other leadership within the hospital know, and they know the existence of Women With a Mission and what we have funded. We're getting requests from all different departments.
Speaker 1:We bought something from cardiology a few years ago. Only during COVID Do I remember it? Because of the significance of the Zoom. Yes, right and so that's, and the cardiologist was Zooming and his wife was like I didn't know about women with a mission. If you fund that, I will join. And she joined, yeah, and she joined.
Speaker 3:You know also we did microscopes for the lab. Now, who would have ever thought you know somebody would? Yes, a couple years ago, or we bought those a year ago or something right ago um, they were using antiquated microscopes and we just got a great thank you note from them saying um, I can see clearly now I mean, it was really.
Speaker 1:I thought you're gonna bust out into song. You should know. I can see clearly now you bought me microscopes. I think those are my favorite meetings actually those are pretty good ones because they all do like a little presentation.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, so you learn so much about the different aspects.
Speaker 4:I had no idea what I was walking into. I guess it was at the end of last year, yes, and I just got the invite and I was like I don't know what this is, I'm going to go. I didn't really know what I was walking into and I was blown away. It's neat, my office. After that I was like that was the best way to spend work time ever.
Speaker 1:I think that one was at Sterling bank. Right, they're top floor.
Speaker 4:Yep, I was really. I had a blast, it was really cool and I you actually feel the impact right there. You do.
Speaker 1:So as a steering committee member, so Allison gets these list of projects and then they filter them down and then we see them right at that meeting And'm like okay, whatever, I don't know what any? Of this means, and I usually go in very close-minded. But as soon as I hear all their little zooms with or not zooms, but their little presentations with their boards, I'm on the hook for all of them I know it's really hard to make decisions, extremely hard to choose, and then math, then we have to do math, forget the math, just pick, pick your top five.
Speaker 1:But to get to, spend $100,000 plus dollars every year on whatever the hospital needs is very impactful. Yeah, it is very impactful.
Speaker 2:I'll never be able to spend $100,000 in any other way.
Speaker 1:No, ever Right, true Right. So why not? On high quality health care for our?
Speaker 4:community and also even the groups that don't get chosen that round the platform they get to have with all those women, because I've connected with a couple outside and connected them with other groups and it was really cool.
Speaker 3:It's crazy and that's why you're such a good Women in Mission member. And that's what it is. It's all this networking that we're able to do and connecting those dots.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:That's what makes a difference.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's a solid 100-plus women on a mission. A full mission. A full mission. We're with a mission, yes, all the things. So we have a big anniversary coming up 15 years, which means we have pumped more than 1 million plus into northwest Arkansas, that's correct, which is amazing. Which is incredible. Do you know any well? I know you know what we have purchased. I can only name, like well, we just said, some microscopes and some cardiology equipment um breast cancer, navigator bags, which which I only know recently, and then maybe some panda warmers.
Speaker 4:Yes, A C-section table.
Speaker 1:That was our very first purchase 15 years ago and I'll never forget it. And then, ironically, when I was up at the hospital this morning, we were right next to our NICU room that we funded, which I feel like was over $90,000.
Speaker 3:So we had money left over that year.
Speaker 1:So there's a placard and everything like our name is on room 546.
Speaker 3:Oh, there you are, 546. Yeah, 546. We have funded hearing equipment for babies. We have done fetal monitors like wireless fetal monitors for moms, so that they're able to get up and walk. We have done reach out and read programs.
Speaker 1:Oh, I forgot about the book program.
Speaker 3:We funded money for the Ronald McDonald Family Room when they were first starting in our hospital. So we've really touched a lot of different departments.
Speaker 1:We have Do you have a favorite? Do you think over the last 10 years? It's hard to remember. It's hard, we're not medically minded people Absolutely Right.
Speaker 2:I think I lean towards the NICU and the baby focused ones, and that was one of the main reasons I joined Women With a Mission is because my firstborn was in the NICU for a little while Right, and so that one was just a full circle moment for me.
Speaker 1:It is.
Speaker 2:And really felt like I was making a difference in the community.
Speaker 1:And the NICU is huge, so I hadn't been up to the hospital or to the well. I've been at the hospital, not the NICU, since the tower opened. You haven't Five, I'm sure I have but, not, I really hadn't, since the tower opened and we did the tours five years ago right the tower opened five years ago right on our 10 it opened just before, covid, okay, so I just hadn't taken the tour since it was like open, open to the public and I forgot how giant the nicu is in the best way possible, like it used to be.
Speaker 1:Like. I felt like you walked in a hallway and it was like the size of this piece of paper um, actually, it was probably the size of this room. It was and all the like. Little incubators were like in a u-shape, yeah, and now that there's so many rooms, it's so spaced out and as a parent as well that had a NICU baby, it just felt peaceful, yeah it's very quiet it is so. You know we weren't quiet, but it was you're outside 546 she's, there's a baby in there.
Speaker 3:I was like, okay, I just wanted to go in, and I also think you know what it gives parents the opportunity to bond with their child. Oh, totally, they can stay there. They can sleep in that room with that child. We are actually outgrowing that space right now, wow, so it's time to add on a little bit.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:It's amazing. What did they say?
Speaker 1:We have over 200 births. I love a pop quiz.
Speaker 3:Yeah, Okay here it is Love a pop quiz on camera. I think we have over 200 births.
Speaker 1:Skip that.
Speaker 3:Okay, cut that, cut that, because I think it's like 2,000 a year, okay, and I think about 10% of those babies end up in our NICU, okay, and now that we're having multiples, many times multiples are ending up in our NICU as well. Just, they need to grow a little bit, absolutely.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I had a huge baby, so they referred to him as the wimpy white boy.
Speaker 2:oh, thank you, they're like we don't ever have nine pounders up here and I'm like I don't know what to do.
Speaker 1:They're like we're used to four pounds. I'm like well, just add it together.
Speaker 3:It's just like twins right there one baby one child and see we didn't have a NICU. So when our son was born he was premature and literally it's like here you go, yeah.
Speaker 1:No, no, you fix it. Fatten it up. So I know what to do.
Speaker 3:It's just dumb. I didn't think anything was going to go wrong.
Speaker 1:They really should come with manuals. They should, that would be really helpful actually.
Speaker 1:It would be so nice, okay. So let's circle back to women with a mission, because we will get off topic all day, because that's just who I am, and I'm know all three of you are as well. Okay, so our women with a mission was founded, I believe, in fort smith. They had the first one, they had the right. Okay, that correct. Are we number two? Yeah, we are number two. Okay, but ours is unique because ours was supported with a generous gift from Linda Scott to honor Susan Barrett, yes, who was the CEO of St Mary's slash Mercy, right, correct. So ours I think ours is very special.
Speaker 3:So ours, I think ours is very special. You know, I think that was a really nice gift and a really, really special way to honor Susan Barrett Right.
Speaker 4:So now ours is called the Susan.
Speaker 1:Barrett, women with a Mission Giving Society right, that is correct. Okay, I love that. Yeah, I just think that's like a warm hug on her name and then, okay, so now let's stay on trackish, um, so just focusing. So you give your money, right, and then we have four learning gatherings a year right, and you and I have done a couple together. Yes, we more than that. But the ones that stick out in my head are cpr yes, yeah, my, did yours.
Speaker 2:Mannequins live my mannequin did not live. I'd rather not talk about it um I learned a lot, I learned a lot and I was told that I did everything I wasn't supposed to do totally so I feel really good we took it before covid, actually in like february of 20, and then the world shut down and I feel like we've had one since.
Speaker 1:Yeah, my mannequins got a bit better and maybe we need a refresher.
Speaker 2:We might need a refresher just for us. It's 100% mine.
Speaker 1:Never have a green light, I have a red light and I'm like it's hard, it's so hard, but I've learned that in order for someone to essentially survive, right, you need to break their sternum, their ribs. I it's alarming and the gentleman's like either you want broken ribs and live or you die so pick your battle and you gotta sing to them.
Speaker 3:You gotta sing stay alive.
Speaker 1:And I think there's another song that they've just introduced. At that, yeah our last one?
Speaker 4:I can't remember. We need to do another one of those I want to do it it's good it's good, it's a fun one was very helpful I haven't done hard, hard, anything like that in like 20 years, yeah, and there's like an app that you can sign up and be like I'm certified and I didn't do that.
Speaker 1:Because I'm not certified, don Don't call me. I did not do that either.
Speaker 2:I did learn there's things on the walls in most locations.
Speaker 1:Oh, the defibrillators. Yes, yes, and it talks to you.
Speaker 2:And that was brand new information. Yes, so that is something I do keep an eye out for yes.
Speaker 1:And they shouldn't be scary because it walks you through it, even though you're electrocuting somebody sort of. Back into rhythm. Oh and then a fun note, because a girlfriend stopped by the office, jennifer Allison. She's at Walmart right now. She was on a single-handed mission. She has fought for defibrillators in all Walmart and Sam's Clubs across the country.
Speaker 3:So isn't that great, that is great.
Speaker 1:So I was like, oh, that's nice to know, I know how to use that.
Speaker 3:And you'll find if there is one in that building. They have a sign on their door.
Speaker 1:There's a special sticker.
Speaker 3:There's a special sticker, Okay.
Speaker 1:I didn't know that.
Speaker 3:There you go. I love that.
Speaker 4:Now I'm going to look every time I walk in anywhere.
Speaker 2:You will. You will now see it.
Speaker 4:It's like one of those glass shattering moments?
Speaker 2:No, you will. You just turn it on and it tells you, it walks you through it.
Speaker 4:It talks the whole time yeah.
Speaker 3:It's amazing, it tells you.
Speaker 1:It's very cool. And then another favorite learning Go ahead, keep going. Learning pop-up of mine was the Narcan. I was just going to say the same thing. I know, I know not that I really know what an opioid is, but I'm like I can solve the problem for you.
Speaker 2:I learned so much information.
Speaker 3:So, much.
Speaker 2:I walked up to like the pharmacy and like hello. I would like some of the Narcan that you're supposed to give me for others, not for me, and went through this whole thing and they're like here, you go To have it with you.
Speaker 1:You literally went and got some on your own, without the like, free takeaways. You literally went and got some on your own, without the like, free takeaways Not free, but they were free, but the takeaways we got that night.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, I have multiple locations, now I'm on alert everywhere.
Speaker 1:I go, I love this, but you can't. You know it's a temperature sensitive thing which is annoying.
Speaker 3:It's probably not going to work if it's been over 100 in the car, well, keep it in your purse. Yes, we don't have.
Speaker 4:Oh yeah, you do have a bag big enough, so you can go to a pharmacy and ask for that. Yes, yes.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:Because it, but also it only works on opioids.
Speaker 4:Wow.
Speaker 1:Like it doesn't work on anything else and I was about to say other things, but those things could have been opioids.
Speaker 4:I don't even really know I need to take this class.
Speaker 1:But it was amazing, it was the Rogers Fire.
Speaker 3:Department did it for us. Captain Mason was incredible, am I?
Speaker 4:insane. Am I making up that there was a self-defense?
Speaker 3:We had to cancel that because of the tornadoes. That's right. Yes, we're bringing it back. We're bringing it back, we're bringing it back.
Speaker 4:Yeah, okay, yeah, that'll be a good one.
Speaker 3:I gave up the gun tactics part of that training, which is really unfortunate.
Speaker 1:Really, I've never done that.
Speaker 2:I'm like I think I don't own a gun. Would it be like taser?
Speaker 1:guns. I'm kind of intrigued by what we're talking about.
Speaker 4:I would kind of love to just I don't know if we I got a guy. Okay, I really do well, because I was always like talking about common sense, gun legislation and I'm like I don't know anything about guns.
Speaker 1:I don't either.
Speaker 4:So I learned and I paid a guy to teach me all the things and a safety course and then also a tactical course and what to do in case there's a active shooter course and all kinds of things. And then I started going to the range just to learn like so have you fired it?
Speaker 1:that's amazing. I never have I.
Speaker 4:Well then I started shooting sporting play because it was so much fun.
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh, really taking a turn.
Speaker 4:So it actually like put me in a different mindset, but then just having a whole lot more information and what is responsible ownership education and I can talk about it like in a way where I make some sense.
Speaker 3:Yes, I love that yeah okay so I got a guy I agree, he has a guy she's got a guy he's my neighbor, he's awesome I think we should do this.
Speaker 1:Okay, I need you to come to the next.
Speaker 4:He loves to teach women like he did a whole thing in our neighborhood where, like any woman in our neighborhood could just pay $20 to join the class. This is awesome when it costs a lot more. And we all went. That was the first gun safety. It was all women in our neighborhood. This is so great. He's a really cool guy.
Speaker 1:He trains police forces Okay. We're going to roll past. Our next one is actually next week, which is Alzheimer's, and next week which is Alzheimer's, and then we have our celebration, but then we're totally doing this in the new year.
Speaker 4:So the gastric, oh yeah, that was a good one, that was an awesome one.
Speaker 1:Oh, that was a good one. I learned a lot.
Speaker 4:Yes, I kind of changed my lifestyle after that. Oh, look at you. Yeah, I mean.
Speaker 1:That was awesome, that was back in the mercy.
Speaker 4:She's in the mercy clinic, for is it all same?
Speaker 3:no, not all time diabetes, diabetes. She was awesome. And then the gastro surgeon something. It was a long complicated. Dr Miller, dr Christopher Miller, he was incredible, he was good.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's lovely to hear from the doctor it is yeah he was. So that was. I'm sure we're not his normal crowd.
Speaker 3:No, well, he had to dumb it down a little bit.
Speaker 2:I appreciate that, not for me, yeah.
Speaker 4:Yes.
Speaker 1:I'm like bring it down to non-medical terms please.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it was a lot of medical terms, yeah, but he was funny Like I enjoy that.
Speaker 1:So a lot of information, but that's good, because we've had so many great ones over the years and one of my most favorite ones, and I wrote it. I have two favorite ones, but the one I can only really remember. One takeaway was you should always eat mustard over ketchup, and I can't remember the reason, so it obviously wasn't that, it was something to do with sugar, and I don't know where my notes are. But oh, the mental health. We've had one on mental health and there used to be this charismatic doctor at Mercy. He's moved away, but he did this like brain scan test with a neurologist and had two scans, one of a female and one of a male.
Speaker 1:Do you remember this? Okay, and he held them up on this fancy board thing and he was like which one's the male and which one's the female? And the neurologist was like oh, that's easy, this is the male. And he goes. Oh, my like, literally, it's the inside of a brain, right, and he goes. How do you know that? And he goes it's not as active as the female brain. Oh yeah, he was like so when people, when men, tell you you're crazy Crazy is not the right word but you all females are just on another level than men.
Speaker 1:Their brains are just a million times busier than men's brains.
Speaker 3:And I was like I just read something about that.
Speaker 4:Yeah, we got a lot of stuff here. Apparently, we also see like 2,000 more colors. I just read this last night.
Speaker 1:That sounds a lot better than the meme I have about a bear.
Speaker 4:But it's like we pick up on color nuance because our brains are more active.
Speaker 2:I just read something about that last night.
Speaker 4:I don't remember the terms, but we see 2,000 more nuances in colors.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's amazing. That makes sense. It does when you think about the conversations you've had over your lifetime.
Speaker 4:It's like that makes sense, right, it does. When you think about the conversations you've had over your lifetime, it's like that's green, right, it's lime green Right. It makes sense yeah.
Speaker 1:That's a little bit more scientific than the lady, the mom. She's like doing dishes and all these thought bubbles are popping up of all these things she has to do. And then the man's over here and he's like I could totally take a bear.
Speaker 2:Take a bear. Take a bear 100 that feels right, well, how?
Speaker 4:many times really comfortable at my house, spouse or, uh, all fiance, fiance and they're like wait a minute, wait a minute.
Speaker 3:I'm focused on this and it's kind of like seriously, oh, I've got like all these different conversations going on. This just happened last night when I got home.
Speaker 1:I was like do you even know that we went to the dentist yesterday? And he's like I saw a text that's so funny.
Speaker 4:Over this last weekend. We just had the multitasking conversation and he was like there's no such thing as multitasking. People can't do it. I don't believe in it. I said you can't do it and he's like but you can't do it and do any of the things well.
Speaker 2:And I said but yet I do them. Well enough that it keeps the whole world turning, Well enough that you don't notice.
Speaker 4:Your life is just fine Multitasking extraordinaire.
Speaker 2:This is a constant in my life, right now you All the lists, all the lists, all the things.
Speaker 1:So many different directions and it feels man bashing, but I don't mean it to be. Oh, it's not.
Speaker 4:He can focus on one task way better than. I can Does it super well, he can do it from like A to Z in a straight line and complete it, and do it to perfection. And well, is it complicated.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, Does. Is it complicated? Oh yeah, Does he overcomplicate it? My husband overcomplicates everything and I'm like that's good enough, Totally, I'm like can we hang this real quick and he's like, oh, go get this, go get that.
Speaker 2:And I'm like no, we're eyeballing it, Don't nail it to the wall we're eyeballing it yes.
Speaker 1:That's exactly it.
Speaker 4:So there's strengths in both, because I certainly cannot sit and focus on one task for more than a certain amount of time.
Speaker 3:Oh my gosh, that would drive me crazy If my life depended on it.
Speaker 2:we would be, in trouble I need to move to the next one. There's things to do.
Speaker 1:I'll circle back to that Right and I have a happy hour to get to later.
Speaker 2:Where's the tequila?
Speaker 4:That one works. True crime podcast yes.
Speaker 1:But this is the true testament. I love all this natural, authentic conversation, because this is women with a mission. Yeah, this is our steering committee meetings. This is our learning pop-ups. This is our social gatherings. They all turn into this, right here. This is us leaning into what we're good at. Yes, I love that. Well, let's talk about 15 because we're turning 15. Yay, good, yes, I love that. Well, let's talk about 15 because we're turning 15. And years, well, five years ago, we had a huge blowout in the new tower at 10, and then before that I don't know if it was a significant number the big event at Crystal Bridges was beautiful, it was gorgeous, so we've done several giant events and we're doing another one and it is on october 17th.
Speaker 1:I was going to say the day, but I don't really know the day.
Speaker 1:I think it's thursday, I think it's a thursday it's a thursday, you wouldn't know yeah, yes oh yeah, you would know yeah, she'll be hiking a beautiful over bluff that day. Okay, so we're going to celebrate dumping donating dumping's not a good word donating over 1 million dollars back into our local hospital. We've already talked about all the amazing things we have purchased. It is on thursday, october 17th, from 4 30 to 7 30 pm at osage house. It's going to be beautiful. Our theme is pink and black, but not really. It's more like a, a black with some subtle. Uh, what's the blush and bashful movie? Blush and bash what's the? Uh?
Speaker 4:still magnolia yes, yes, her colors are blush and bashful.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, exactly that's exactly what our colors are, allison's like. I'm thinking of black and pink, and I'm like barbie was last summer we've reinvented it. My colors Well, if it's working out well, we're going to make it happen. So we have a beautiful speaker coming in.
Speaker 3:We do. We have Savvy Shields Wolfe, miss America 2017, graduate of Arkansas University of Arkansas. She is going to join us and share her generational growth, you know, from going to, from being Miss America and serving on that platform, to just having a baby and changing into being a mom and being married and living in New York, and her mom, karen Shields, is also going to join us.
Speaker 3:Karen also is an influencer and has a podcast, and so they're going to kind of share the platform of going from just here, going from Miss America, to growing to the motherhood and being a grandmother. So I think it'll be a lot of fun. She is super excited to come back. And she's bringing the crown oh my, that was. She had to bring the crown Because I want to know if. And she's bringing the crown oh my, that was. She had to bring the crown Because I want to know if she vacuums in the crown. I'm going to have to put it on just temporarily.
Speaker 1:I know I want to try the crown on. Don't you want to put the crown on Can?
Speaker 2:we get a few pictures I know yes. Yes, we can, just for a moment, she probably has a copy she travels with.
Speaker 4:That's what I would do, because I would lose it. She probably has like a whole case of like. I know it's probably like some preserved thing, but I wouldn't want a fake one to just wear around.
Speaker 3:Well, I also want the sash. Open the door. I want the Miss America sash, welcome to my shop.
Speaker 1:Hello Amazon drivers, Hello Walmart, speak before and.
Speaker 4:I cannot remember where, but it was years ago and I really enjoyed it. She's great. She was on the circuit locally, uh, between Miss America and COVID, and then, right then, she moved to New York. And she moved, yeah, got married.
Speaker 3:This was like 2018-19, so she was uh, she emceed our charity ball in 20 must be, 2018. I yeah, I think it was 2018. She's just beautiful inside. She is.
Speaker 1:I think it'll be good because, like to your point and to your point, like we've seen her, but this is a different stage in her life.
Speaker 4:Yeah, a stage you, all of us are in. I remember moving here in 2016. Yeah, 2016. And right after that is when she won right, yeah, she was like everywhere. And I remember seeing her at a grocery store once and everybody's like that's her, that's her, and just just, anytime I've been around her, just the little light that comes off of her.
Speaker 1:So I mean I don't know, you're totally right, I don't know, she just has like a draw. Yes, she does have a light.
Speaker 4:Yeah, everybody was so excited. But and I remember her getting married at Record.
Speaker 2:I think she was like the first thing at Record.
Speaker 4:Yes, and her wedding was in every magazine and all over the internet.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was quite the thing.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it was.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you're totally right. Yeah, because you have experience with the Record. So, yeah, you know all the things. Okay, so Savvy and her mother, so I think that's really fun. And then you all at Ocean Spray are curating a cocktail for us, a little mocktail, a little mocktail, yes, a fun cranberry mocktail.
Speaker 2:Well, you know, mocktails are so much fun and they're just a little differentiating and I feel like, at events, um, it's a little exciting to change it up right, yes, so we're gonna, we're gonna do a little mocktail with cranberry juice just to provide some options. I like it and we're full and fall right Full and fall.
Speaker 1:Yes, full and fall, so we're doing a fall curated menu. Three of us. I don't think you were out of town, but we did a tasting at Catering Unlimited. Thank you Appreciate that and it was an amazing buffet of food for us that day.
Speaker 2:You gave us 24 plates.
Speaker 1:Yeah, easily. Oh, I miss that Easily.
Speaker 3:Yes, Too bad you weren't there. We're not serving the chicken pot pie that we all wanted.
Speaker 2:Which is so weird.
Speaker 1:Chicken pot pie. I think it's weird.
Speaker 4:That was my pregnancy craving.
Speaker 1:Chicken pot pie and I think it's weird, that was my pregnancy craving.
Speaker 4:Oh, chicken pot pie. Chicken pot pie and fruity pebbles?
Speaker 2:Oh, hopefully not together, no, but but even if yeah, it's okay because you're pregnant, is that?
Speaker 4:not weird. I love that my doctor said it's comfort food. It's things that comforted you in childhood.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's lovely.
Speaker 4:I serve chicken pot pie and my kids are like mine won't eat it either, but it's too homey and weird looking everything.
Speaker 1:We are gonna bring back the pop. We're gonna bring it back. Yes, it was amazing, but we're not having about it because mary looked up what the weather would probably be like.
Speaker 2:It would probably be 190 that day, yeah, well, yeah, it'd be warm inside right, so we're going to have these beautiful chicken kata kebabs and a fall vegetable medley salad and a fall fingerling potatoes.
Speaker 1:Yes, which were amazing.
Speaker 3:They were delicious. I love potatoes. Those were delicious.
Speaker 2:Those were amazing.
Speaker 1:A positionado of potatoes and they nailed it. Oh my God, these are really good. I like those, and some I don't know harvest salad thing. Yes, it's going to be great, it'll be wonderful, It'll be delicious. It's going to be delicious with your mocktail.
Speaker 2:But we also have the Blake.
Speaker 1:Oh, I'm sorry, Keep going. No, go ahead. Okay, but you are greeted at the event with the Blakeman's wall with their Prosecco in it.
Speaker 3:So that's exciting. That is exciting and delicious. We've got a lot going on there.
Speaker 1:We do, but that's just a few things. We also have 15 door prizes, 15?.
Speaker 2:One for every year. I'm currently wearing a door prize from the previous year. Those are pretty, so I'm hoping I have good juju for the next one as well.
Speaker 3:I love that those were from Kendra Scott. Those are beautiful.
Speaker 1:I love that Yay.
Speaker 2:But I'm looking forward to 15. I'm kind of jealous about that. There's going to be so many different options. There's some great things.
Speaker 1:I can't remember anything we're giving away except a membership or a package to Sawn, which is the like downtown Bentonville, bougie, yes.
Speaker 3:A lot of these. That place is beautiful. It is beautiful.
Speaker 1:Yes, they kick my butt weekly.
Speaker 3:So they kick my butt weekly. So, yeah, it's gorgeous. I don't know what else we have, so we have gift baskets from dillard's.
Speaker 1:We have kendra scott we have fresh harvest. Um olive oil. Yes, we've done several pop-ups there.
Speaker 3:Membership pop-ups there uh, dotted pig and also the mercy gift shop at the hospital.
Speaker 1:They're gonna put something together that's a great gift shop, I know, right, I can't remember either. But I'm like that's a good gift shop, it is a good spread.
Speaker 2:So do we just get it for attending, or is your name in the mix?
Speaker 1:Yes, how do I?
Speaker 2:put my name in multiple times.
Speaker 1:So we have a new system. Maybe, I'm not sure.
Speaker 3:I think Three or five.
Speaker 1:That's up to y'all. Okay, that's mercy internal.
Speaker 3:So you will get little tickets and then you can decide out of all the prizes. What do you want to put your name in for?
Speaker 1:Oh and then we'll draw. I know something a little different.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I love it, that's a good idea, isn't that fun. Then you can play the odds too.
Speaker 1:I know, right, I saw that at another event I was like, oh, that's a fun takeaway, instead of just rifling through all the names again. Yeah, yeah, I like that. I thought that was cool, okay, and then, oh, this is another why we're here today, because I have, like, I wrote this and I've already forgotten it does. It just keeps coming. So new for us this year. Normally we have emcees from the news, emcee our event, but we're not this year.
Speaker 1:We're keeping it more local, and I like that. So all three of us are emcees of the event, and then we have another two that aren't. We only have room for four chairs, so then we have a couple more joining us as well. So we're using members as our emcees this year.
Speaker 3:That's awesome.
Speaker 4:I like that.
Speaker 2:It'll be fun, it'll be good. Surprise I don't know if you want to give me a microphone, but I'm really excited.
Speaker 1:I've got to assume you and me on a mic are pretty similar and I think you probably keep it together a lot better than the two of us would. Depends on the crowd. Well, I don't have any of that, it's just insert foot constantly with me and Clark loves that about me. It's his favorite.
Speaker 4:I saw UMC, but I guess this is long before I knew about any of this. Behind the scenes it was an event at. I think it was a Mercy event, I'm sure it was Years ago at Aaron Rowe is the Chef.
Speaker 1:Oh, at Brightwater. Was this at Brightwater?
Speaker 4:No it was the one at.
Speaker 1:Gina.
Speaker 4:Davis one. It had to have been On High Street. The ballroom on High Street, oh, ballroom on High Street, and we had Aaron and Allison speak. Yes, right, yes, the art, the art.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 4:Allison Hopp-Wibbo. Yeah, that's right, that was where I met her. That was Brunch, bubbles and BFF, that's right. You or Leslie or somebody invited me and I came, or maybe Aaron, maybe the chef did, I can't remember. And that was my first intro and I've now realized that, looking back, that's what that was.
Speaker 1:But you were awesome. Oh yeah, I know you were really good. No, it's dangerous, it's taking the microphone away.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't like to give up a microphone.
Speaker 1:Love to hold it. I love you hand the microphone all day.
Speaker 4:If I could just pick it up and hold it 100%. We are so lucky I can't sing, because I would just take.
Speaker 1:Does it take you back to pretending you could sing?
Speaker 2:as a kid. That's what it takes me back to.
Speaker 1:And I'm like, oh, please, please, yeah, just give me the mic.
Speaker 4:It's lucky I don't have any talent or I would be on a microphone all the time.
Speaker 2:Yes, what about you, mary? I'd love a good microphone.
Speaker 3:I'm not going to lie.
Speaker 2:But I might not be at their level.
Speaker 3:So I'm going to have to step up my game.
Speaker 2:I'm going to start practicing now.
Speaker 1:Now you know in a month, well, no, you're not going to be there. So now we're pivoting, but Allison didn't know. So okay, just kidding, you're not going to be in a meeting I didn't At first.
Speaker 4:I'm hearing this Was I supposed to emcee it?
Speaker 3:I was like yes, it's a surprise.
Speaker 1:And I booked my honeymoon instead. Did you tell me this? Probably not, no.
Speaker 4:I had no idea. I was supposed to see this. So what we're doing is we're going to no idea. What's up, Crap.
Speaker 1:I want to do it, I'll take her part. You could call in if you really need to oh my gosh, what a bummer. That's so funny. Shoot, I'm going to double check my calendar. Problem solved. No, we're not skipping the honeymoon, we're just going to pivot and you will host and emcee the gun thing the self defense situation where should we set that we can't have a gun in the hospital?
Speaker 4:so he's got his. He does a classroom at the gun thing in Rogers there's a shooting range.
Speaker 3:I've taken a class from him.
Speaker 4:Lowell Woody yeah, woody, he's awesome, he was great his name is Woody like Toy Story.
Speaker 2:Lowell Woodson like Woody yeah, he's gonna be like so.
Speaker 4:I did my. That's so, I did my. That's what I did. Gun safety- I love it.
Speaker 1:Naked my boot.
Speaker 4:I did some other classes somewhere else but he was my first ever safety and but he does the whole thing. He does like the active shooter stuff. I have some friends that have taken that from him. I did it somewhere else but yeah, he's my neighbor. He's awesome dude.
Speaker 1:He's a cool guy. His wife's really fun too. She might be somebody we need to get involved with. Well good, because at the very end, of our thing is, we'll just go ahead and hit it off right now. Our goal is 24 new members in 2024. Oh cool.
Speaker 4:And we're well on our way. I'm still starting to even have to. I'm sorry she's like no, no, no, You're great, but back to me yeah. Okay, go ahead. It was just playing it apart. We'll talk later. We'll talk, we'll talk off mic.
Speaker 3:Yeah, let's just go. We probably have about 12 new members.
Speaker 1:I know, so we're halfway there, I think we are probably 10 to 12. And I haven't done anything about it. Did Jennifer Brothers join once? I tell them I've been seeing, I feel like that will be the draw. I mean the floodgates will open sign me up, sign me up. Wait, who were you talking about?
Speaker 4:an old co-worker in front of mine who I who'd you say Jennifer Brothers. Oh, I thought you said someone else's name, so.
Speaker 1:I was like oh my god, I know her too. That's what I I think she wants to come?
Speaker 3:I think she wants to come to our celebration, yeah, and then I think she's thinking about joining yeah, awesome, but she's got other people. Yeah, I know I enjoyed meeting her, so I have a list.
Speaker 2:It's huge, isn't that? A pretty large amount for one year. I think 24 was a stretch.
Speaker 3:It was a stretch. Yeah, actually we've got some co-workers that have started you know, I think we're talking more. They're seeing the voting meeting and they're seeing that we're buying equipment for all these other service lines and they're like oh, the voting meeting is cool.
Speaker 4:Yes, Like where else can you that just blew me away. I was already sold, but I was like totally in after that.
Speaker 1:Like you can join it. There's lots of giving circles around here. I will say I think Women with a Mission was one of the very first, If not we were the second. But in other giving circles and I'm a member of quite a few, because it's just, I don't know you ask me. I'm going to say yes, but you get a choice on where your money goes, and that doesn't normally happen in the nonprofit world.
Speaker 4:We both just joined. We did. I forgot about that, yeah. Well, I was going to say, and I missed that meeting last week. Okay, well, they changed the date.
Speaker 1:Yes, I could go to the original. I was on my pre-honeymoon, yeah.
Speaker 4:I was in Washington.
Speaker 1:But they, I mean they weren't secretive about it, kind of being based off of oh, yes, yes, it is how well this does.
Speaker 4:Yes, um, and there's a relationship between mercy and that organization.
Speaker 1:So, yeah, it's very, very, very transparent it's going to be great, but I'm like, yes, if you ask me to donate, I'm going to donate versus volunteer, because I don't have the time for that I'm not a boots on the ground non-profit person.
Speaker 3:I'm a dot connector you're kind of boots on the ground, probably just for Mercy. You're in sync of it.
Speaker 4:So there you go. Mercy calls her like can you do this?
Speaker 1:And I'm like it's fine, I'll be right there. I get to talk on camera. Yes, I'm all in.
Speaker 4:The best thing about the giving circles and the best thing about women with the mission is and I haven't had experience in other giving circles yet but what women with the mission has done for me is like spoon feed me philanthropy like it's such a little like. It's such little for me, like I donate monthly right to hit my mark and then you just tell me where to show up and I do it, and then I just tell other women about this amazing experience I'm having, like how easy is this?
Speaker 1:We want it to be low maintenance. It's so easy, like you, get what you put into it, yeah.
Speaker 4:Y'all send me the invites and I show up. Right, it's so easy and wonderful.
Speaker 1:We have learning sessions, and if you can come, great. If you can't, that's fine too.
Speaker 3:We pop-ups like the olive oil harvest olive oil.
Speaker 4:We did a financial.
Speaker 2:It's a good financial pop-up. That was really good. Women women in finances, right, I mean that's really important and it's really easy to bring friends because I think, once you pay for that event, it covers your first. Yes. Yes, is that right?
Speaker 1:yes, membership, yeah so one thousand dollars annually is 84 a month, which is my always my big go-to. It's cheaper than your cell phone bill.
Speaker 3:I was going to say, or going to Starbucks all the time, the whole month I want to do both Leave me alone oh okay, you can do both too.
Speaker 2:You just want you to be a member.
Speaker 1:Insert heroes or airship into that. I want to do both. Yes, you can do all of them Mercy first and then coffee.
Speaker 3:So one thing I want to point out is this event is for all past members and current members. So if somebody has been a member in the past and maybe their membership has lapsed, we still want you to come. We still want you to come and celebrate this million-dollar mark and maybe you'll join again, maybe you'll see how much fun we are and join again. And then we want people from all outside of the area to say $84. I want to come. I want to hear Savvy Shield speak, I want to see what this is all about. And, mary, as you said, that 84 bucks goes right to you towards your membership. It does.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it doesn't go. It does not go towards the event or anything, it literally goes back into the hospital via equipment or whatever needs the hospital has.
Speaker 1:Yes, I want you to speak and then I'll get to the two of them about the whys. But I like your story because it's unique, because you are a Mercy employee, which makes you a coworker, yes, but you also buy into Women with a Mission, and not every coworker and or foundation member does that, and everyone has their own preferences, right. But I like women with a mission, and not every co-worker and or foundation member does that, and that's. Everyone has their own preferences, right, but I like that. So what's your why?
Speaker 3:you know probably my why is I had a premature baby. Um, and, like mary, I just love going up to our NICU and seeing all the good work that we do up there. Um, I'm just passionate about it. It is the. It's an incredible group of women. It's just fun to sit and laugh and visit and, again, it fills my heart. I feel good. My $1,000 makes an impact. You know I can't do it without my 124 peeps, so it's just fun. It's a lot of fun. I am so grateful I have the opportunity to kind of be the ringleader and I couldn't do it without our incredible steering committee. So, yeah, you guys are a bunch of fun.
Speaker 1:I enjoy it. We are fun, you are fun. Steering committees are fun.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I have to.
Speaker 1:usually I rest up yes, before it's a good way to kick off your friday.
Speaker 3:It is a good way, yes, it is a good way, and then you can leave a little bit early. Yes, exactly just happened.
Speaker 1:What's your favorite piece of equipment or what's your favorite purchase we've made? Do you?
Speaker 3:think you know what I'm gonna gonna say. The NICU room mm-hmm 246 546.
Speaker 1:I'm pretty sure I took a picture this morning. It's 546.
Speaker 3:That, to me, was so impactful because we filled that room with much-needed equipment, whether it was one of the giraffes or if it was some of the feeding tubes, you know it. Just that's our room. That, to me, is pretty special.
Speaker 1:You know what I enjoyed this morning on my walk. We were filming in 547. But on my walk down is I knew all the names outside of all the rooms and I thought that was so special to Mercy and our community. It's a very philanthropic community.
Speaker 3:You know, it's so interesting when you look at those names. A lot of those names have a story, you know, and that story goes to that particular room and that's the reason that family made a financial contribution to fund that. So, yeah, I like that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I do too. Okay, that's your favorite purchase. What's your favorite bit of information you've learned, like from a gathering, a pop-up, can you pinpoint?
Speaker 3:I'm going to say I think CPR Okay, I think that CPR training I mean I used to be a lifeguard. We always did mouth-to-mouth and CPR. You don't do mouth-to-mouth anymore, you just do hands only, and I think Captain Mason made it so easy. You know, and don't be afraid of it, I think CPR it's something you can. I mean, heck, look at the football player. Oh right, tamar Hamlin yes, If they had known how to do CPR, he wouldn't be playing this year.
Speaker 1:I know that was amazing, that's amazing to me and he's back. I think he's starting this weekend.
Speaker 3:I heard he is. He's starting this weekend, so CPR, everybody needs to learn CPR.
Speaker 1:It's still scary, though, but yes, I totally agree, it is scary. Yes.
Speaker 3:Particularly when they bring out that little baby oh yes, yeah, yeah, we'll do that again.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I want to do it. How about you One? You're in, okay, my why? Yeah, what's your why?
Speaker 4:Lots of. There's lots Right, lots of whys. One I am a boots on the ground. Nonprofit person. You are, I'm on lots of boards, lots of committees. I show up at work events. But you work events. But you know I've kind of. I turned 40 a year and a half ago and moved to into a new place in my career and, um, I'm able to financially help more than I used to just be like I'm the one who's showing up to volunteer at everything, right sweat equity.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I was a single mom with two little girls and, like you know. So I wasn't always able to like financially invest, but I was always sweat equity and being able to work with groups where it's like I don't have to show up necessarily do the work I can financially support and show up and enjoy the fun that surrounds it. So I thought that was a really cool new view for me. And then also I am on a lot of other boards and one benefits children, one benefits other nonprofits, one benefits women in a professional setting and there's a couple others.
Speaker 1:But this was like it sounds like you have your pillars. I do have my pillars. I don't have my pillars, but that's awesome, thanks to my therapist.
Speaker 4:I love this. Yeah, my buckets.
Speaker 1:Okay, yeah, I do have my pillars, I don't have my pillars I do have my pillars.
Speaker 4:That's awesome. Thanks to my therapist.
Speaker 2:I love this. Yeah, my buckets, okay yeah, I call them my buckets, okay yeah.
Speaker 4:I had, like COVID helped me step back and be like which things I rolled off of a lot of stuff during COVID and then kind of focused my been involved in and going to my first ever Mercy Corporate Council. Like this is stupid, that's a good meeting, but like I didn't, and that, sitting there in that room, I realize health care touches everything and everyone's yes, even as. I'm a commercial real estate attorney.
Speaker 1:It touched you know, like it's its own city. It is if you look at it thing. It's its own entity, like it employs everything from the ground to the top yeah, and hearing about mercy's initiative, like I was just like this is cool.
Speaker 4:This is a community I want to learn more about and be involved in, and because it touches all of our lives, and so just the emphasis on women and children's health, and also I had a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy in 2020. And that was kind of my first like big deal other than having children, giving birth.
Speaker 1:Right, but it's like a chore, like health care, yeah, and I did it during COVID Right.
Speaker 2:And, like I, saw another side of things. I don't know.
Speaker 4:It just piqued my interest. And then I was like, and then I love the women I'm surrounded with when I show up at these events.
Speaker 1:So I have a lot of wives Right. I like it, though, but it's well-rounded and, like I said, it's spoon-fed to me. Yes, like y'all make it, I totally agree, I like that. I love that. Thank you.
Speaker 2:How about you? I feel like I spoke about it a little bit, but I think my why really started with when. I had the NICU and I had experience in NICU and I was just floored with all the mercy touch points from the NICU nurses to the doctors.
Speaker 2:everyone in between there felt like there was like a passion behind what they were doing and I wanted to be part of that and similar in your story of like health care touches everything. I wanted to be part of something within the community that I was raising a family in, and this one felt very impactful. Also, I was force-fed by someone to join um and so that that helps when you have friends who tell you that this is different.
Speaker 1:I own that on the microphone. At the closing of everything, I will bully you. Let me know who I need to bully and I will bully you into joining.
Speaker 2:It didn't take much to be honest, it's always helpful to know that you have friends too, so I brought a few people along as well and it's just been really rewarding, and I don't think you'll be able to get rid of me for a while good, we're not.
Speaker 1:You're in, do you and I? I'll come back to you on your one year, because I forgot this question. Do you have a favorite purchase?
Speaker 2:purchase. You know what?
Speaker 1:it's really just all of the purchase feels weird, but I don't know what other word to use the gifts.
Speaker 2:I think um women's health, and baby health is such a hot topic right now in arkansas especially. Yes that, um, I feel like that has really made a difference, just right here down the block.
Speaker 1:So that's yeah, that's my side how about you?
Speaker 4:so this year I've been to one of those right and there were three things weren't there. Or did we voted on three? What was chosen? This year I've been to one of those Right and there were three things weren't there. Or did we vote it on three?
Speaker 3:Yeah, what was chosen this year, so we did, oh Okay.
Speaker 1:I know I can't remember either. Let me tell who's on camera.
Speaker 3:We did. Oh, we did, the Nick you Little Store, that's okay.
Speaker 4:Yes, because that was my number two vote, so I was it's hard.
Speaker 2:It's so hard.
Speaker 4:I was like so pumped about that. So it's for those of you listening, it's like it's almost like a food pantry, but it's for equipment for families with newborns in the NICU, and so it's diapers and bottles and things Specially sized Breast pumps, yes, and all kinds of stuff. And I thought that's genius.
Speaker 2:Why has nobody like? I've never heard of that before, I'm sure it?
Speaker 4:exists somewhere. But I thought that was so cool, I was so blown away by so many things that I think the woman, the nurse that wanted to train nurses and that was for better maternal health care.
Speaker 3:That was awesome.
Speaker 4:And I can't remember all the details she wanted to do a statewide training program. Yeah, for delivery nurses, safe delivery. Yeah, it was really cool.
Speaker 3:To decrease C-sections.
Speaker 4:Yes, but I loved that NICU closet. Yes, it was really cool yeah.
Speaker 2:I like that. What about?
Speaker 4:you.
Speaker 2:You haven't answered what's your why?
Speaker 1:Oh, because I was told to 15 years ago.
Speaker 4:Why have you?
Speaker 1:continued. Let's be real clear Clark and a former Mersey employee, Linda Phillips, who's at the children's shelter. Anything Linda says or Clark says, I say yes to oh, wait a minute.
Speaker 3:Or I say yes, you, yes, I'm just going back to 15 years ago.
Speaker 1:I will do anything you ask me always. 15 years ago took us to lunch at Pinnacle I can still. We're in that, like down in the bottom area in the big corner round table. I can picture and, and the big corner round table I can picture. And Martha Burgent was there too and they pitched it and we're like okay. And they're like and the three of you are the tri-chairs and we're like okay.
Speaker 2:Okay, you were volunteer Okay.
Speaker 1:And I will be completely honest. I'm always honest to everyone who asks me, and we just had this conversation last week Healthcare is a hard sell is a hard sell because, um, a child with a band-aid is a much easier sell than like some needles and tables and whatnot. But without quality health care we're all six feet under. And until you physically burn that into your brain, then we need health care. We need mercy go health. We need the mercy hospital that I was at in may with my son who was what's the word? Anaphylactic.
Speaker 4:Is that how you say it? Yep.
Speaker 1:So we need that, we need these resources. I don't want to have to go outside of our community to seek care. If you need care, seek care. I want to seek care at Mercy, first and foremost. And we are a fancy. We have all kinds of fancy ratings at the hospital. And we are a fancy. We have all kinds of fancy ratings at the hospital Things that I can never remember. We have Leapfrog and IBM Watson and Grade A and all the whatevers, and we're one of the fanciest hospitals in the country to have all the things right. Right, isn't?
Speaker 3:it that we are one of five hospitals in the country that have both the Leapfrog.
Speaker 1:A rating.
Speaker 3:Yes, and the IBM Watson, something, something, something.
Speaker 1:Yes, safety rating yes, we like have all these accolades so why wouldn't we want to continue making our hospital bigger and better? And it's going to be bigger and better within a few short years with our half a billion dollar campaign campaign and expansions of all the things, and it's amazing. So, through my work with Women of Mission, I was gifted a seat on the board, which has opened my eyes to all the amazing things that we have coming down the pike constantly. Dr Cooper is the most what's the word?
Speaker 1:He is Charismatic and energetic speaker that we have at the meetings every quarter and he talks about all these doctors, or what do we call them?
Speaker 3:We don't just call them doctors, we call them providers. I'm sorry.
Speaker 1:Starting all the time. And it's not until you realize how short we as a community not we, Mercy, but we as, like the two county area are so short on providers for our population and people are always frustrated that you called to get in and it's a year and a half out. Um and, but we're working on it, we really are working on it. Like that was my first appointment pre COVID I I needed a neurologist for headaches and they're like okay, well, we'll see you in 18 months, and I'm like no, I just want injections, so let's go ahead and handle that now.
Speaker 3:I don't have another year and a half. We're talking quality of life.
Speaker 1:So we're expanding neurology and we're expanding electro, so we just got some fancy cardiologist type electrician.
Speaker 3:He's the electrician doctor. He's the electrician. Yes.
Speaker 1:I'm like we're doing those things at Mercy and we're doing these things with Women With a Mission, and so that's always my why it goes in a million different circles like what you're saying.
Speaker 4:But that's always my why that first corporate council meeting I went to at mercy?
Speaker 1:it's mind-blowing.
Speaker 4:They had everybody go around and just mention a experience they've had at mercy and they wanted to know the good, the bad the ugly absolutely all. Everybody had a really scary but heartwarming story yes, including myself when my kid fell off a trampoline onto a cement sidewalk at a friend's house and she immediately started vomiting and like, didn't stop for hours.
Speaker 4:And that was my first time going to Mercy and they was, it was and they made I was losing it, of course, way more than she was my five-year-old at the time, and they took care of me.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 4:And so I was just like. That really made me think, man, these people's lives have been fully impacted by Mercy.
Speaker 1:It's a full family approach, right?
Speaker 3:My mom was here visiting from Myrtle Beach, and she had a heart issue and she ended up in the ICU. And I wasn't working for Mercy, I was working for another nonprofit at that time. But we were living up here and I was just like, well, you tell me where to take her. You're the ambulance driver, took them to Mercy. She's in the ICU. They're actually delirious. They're cutting her clothes off and I see somebody from the side go. It was just kind of like this eye look. All of a sudden I had a pastor. Somebody from our ministry came in and said, oh my gosh, I'm going to cry and put his arm around me. He goes, you know what, let's just walk over here. And they took me to a private room and it was the scariest moment, but it also to your point, it was nurturing for someone to take care of me. Obviously good story. She survived. She survived, um. But that was my first experience at mercy and I knew you were where you were supposed to be, this was the right place.
Speaker 3:Yeah, everybody was so kind.
Speaker 1:That's another aspect. We didn't even touch on it. But mercy is faith-based and it all stems back to our foundress, Sister Catherine McCauley, from Dublin, Ireland, on Bagot Street. She had a calling and was gifted a lot of money a million years ago, which I don't even know how much it is, but anyway she started helping the poor and healing the poor per se, like nursing type stuff, and that's how we are the sisters we're founded out, of the Sisters of Mercy and that truly leads us back to Women with a Mission, because their mission was to take care of women and their children.
Speaker 3:So full circle.
Speaker 4:That was another thing I learned at that corporate council meeting. And then you approached me about Women With A Mission and I thought man, this is like this massive network system, corporation, community thing, and it was founded by a sacrificial woman like she did.
Speaker 1:So much, you know, and it was just she's incredible. Her story is amazing truly incredible, because they did not want her there. Bagot Street was like the influential street in Dublin it was the financial district and she built this the house of mercy right in the financial district.
Speaker 3:So everybody with money and she built this, the House of Mercy, right in the financial district so everybody with money could see the poor.
Speaker 1:Yes, that's unbelievable. That's my why. That's a good why. That's my why I think that's the best way to close, don't y'all? Yeah, I think so. Thank you.
Speaker 4:Can we do this every week? Yes, we can. Yeah, absolutely, we totally can. Let's bring coffee, though, next time. I don't know, champagne works, I've got some bubbles in here some cranberries.
Speaker 1:We can have a splash of cranberry juice with our champagne yes, I've got the bubbles and I've got the stemless plastic glasses that we can have. So we don't break anything, because I would break the TV, knowing me. But thank you, this was fun.
Speaker 2:Thank you, thank you.
Speaker 1:I appreciate all of you joining us and don't forget to join us on October 17th at Osage House, from 430 to 630. If you need a ticket, you can always reach out to any of us, but also blow Allison up. She will be more than happy to handle it for you. If you have more than $84 a month to spare, I will come bully you and sign your check for you. So to join Women With A Mission, right? I love it. Yes, okay, thanks for joining us. I say this every time on the closing. If you've stuck with us this long, thank you, I'm really appreciative of it. Always tune into the 3W Podcast, home of the who, what, where, and keep inspiring a culture of giving. Thank you, thanks.