Be you, do you, for you ❤
With February being the month of love, our team wanted to dedicate this month to loving your most authentic self. While we tend to focus on romantic love, love comes in so many different forms, whether that be self-love, platonic love, or love for life. So, as we approach the end of February, our team took the time to reflect on our monthly theme be you, do you, for you and wanted to show some love to some of our amazing team members and loving them for being unapologetically themselves.
Our Community Coordinator, Lori, planned a lovely team bonding activity for Galentine’s Day, where we were randomly paired with another team member to anonymously send messages to show love and gratitude throughout the week.
Rachel, our Co-VP of WeBuild, reflects on the highlight of her month:
The WISE secret Galentine activity was easily the highlight of my month. It’s these little team activities that keep the team so close during a virtual year. It was so nice to have an intentional activity designated solely to sharing love and appreciation of each other. I was lucky enough to get the incredible Richa, who has been a light in my life since I met her. She is selfless, hardworking, and kind — it was so fun to send her little messages all week. — Rachel
Beyond the Galentine’s Day team bonding activity, we asked our team:
Who is your WISE Valentine? Why do you admire them & how have they grown since meeting them?
From Emily, our VP of Engagement:
My WISE valentine is Fernanda López. Fernanda is everything I want to be: strong, determined, empathetic, BRILLIANT, humble. Fernanda puts impact over everything. Meeting her was a reminder of how much someone can offer and how selfless you can be, but still be so respected and loved. Fernanda goes for it. I think she said up one day and said “Yeah, I’m just going to keep being amazing.” And that is how she has grown! She has an amazing ability to say no, which I want to learn better. — Emily
From Fernanda, our Co-VP of WeBuild:
My WISE valentine is the amazing and beautiful Rachel Domb! Rachel has been one of my personal sources of happiness and joy for the last few months. It’s a privilege to be able to work with her and learn from her in this process. She teaches me how to be a better and more compassionate leader, and how to truly believe in myself and not be scared to show it off! She isn’t scared to chase her dreams, prove herself wrong, and indulge in self-reflection since those are the things that make her grow the most. She is an amazing human and everybody feels grateful to interact with her beautiful presence. — Fernanda
From Anna, our Co-Director:
My WISE valentine is my other half and brilliant co-director, Hannah Chaouli. Anyone who knows Hannah understands what a ray of sunshine they are, and getting to work with them over this past year has been so incredibly amazing. Hannah is the embodiment of resilience, strength, empathy, and drive. They have taught me so much about leadership and about myself, and I’m not sure what I would do without our constant Facetimes and voice messages. As my time as co-director is coming to an end, it’s hard to imagine not getting to work with Hannah on a daily basis, but I’m lucky to call them a friend for life ❤ — Anna
As we close out February, it is so important to slow down and show gratitude for yourself and the people you love. Who has inspired you and encouraged you to grow? How can you take their impact and inspire the people around you as well? Take this time to reflect on how you’ve grown and positively impacted the people around you by showing up as your most authentic self. Because when we give to ourselves, we also create space to give to others. So as we head into March, remember to continue to prioritize yourself, and unapologetically be you, do you, for you.
