Testimonials

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Thoughts from our volunteers:

As our team prepares for our initial meeting with Framingham Court Mediation Services, I want to thank you again for the excellent training and preparation we received from [Cheri and Sharon of SOAR]. In the limited amount of work we've done so far, we have gone back to our training notes as well as commented on some of the bits of wisdom and experience you shared with us that we are already applying.

In addition to the training; the supportive atmosphere, beverages, snacks, and friendly atmosphere all contributed to a great learning experience and our whole team looks forward to putting all of this effort to good use.

Thanks for providing your guidance and sharing your knowledge. Steve Swech

"Thank you so much for all of the support and attention you gave me as I started on the volunteering path." - Karen H. Pugh

"Since the school year is winding down, today was my last day at McCarthy. I read 2 books to Mary Erardi's class. They all told me about what they'll be doing this summer and we shared a box of munchkins. It was a great morning and, for the first time, I had a chance to get to know all the kids. I'm really going to miss them. Just before I left, a few of them came over and gave me a hug. How rewarding is that?!

Last Friday, Mary said she's noticed a big difference in one little girl I've been working with. This child actually offered to help another girl in the group. She's made so much progress in such a short time. They've all come a long way. Mary said she would like to have me back in the fall. She's a wonderful teacher and so nice to work with. Thanks." - Barbara

"As a volunteer for Partakers, I have received the gifts of friendship, enlightenment, and gratitude. My journey has been and will continue to be an incredible, worthwhile experience." - Susan Ruder

"I am happy to report that Jong-Enn Park is now teaching English in South Korea. Her essay work was excellent. She telephones me regularly to keep in touch with me and my English.

My other pupil, Yuki Mori, from Japan, was a beginner. She worked very hard. She has an excellent memory and improved considerably in her speaking skills. She, too, calls me regularly to keep in touch with the spoken English word.

Both of these pupils were a joy and a delight and made me a very happy tutor. Their's is a great success story." - Sophie Danziger, ESL Tutor

Thoughts from our nonprofit partners:

"We had a concept for a new program and we were batting it around, struggling to put parameters around it. With just 2 of us, it was overwhelming! The SOAR Management Consulting Group brought a lot of clarity to the thought process. They helped us with our somewhat tangled ideas and teased out what we wanted to accomplish and what was realistic.

Although we are a fairly large agency we have limited resources, and so appreciated the level of expertise of each team member. They brought different skills to the table.

One team member helped us with the training; the other gave us very creative ideas for marketing; and the third, an attorney, was able to help with liability issues and brought a legal eye to the documentation. This was a very positive experience. It was interesting to have guidance from profit sector professionals.

We’re well on our way to implementing a valuable community program.”

- Kathy Siemineko, Community Relations, Springwell

"From December 2008 to May 2009, Understanding Our Differences (UOD) worked with a four-person SOAR 55 team led by Lee Murphy on a “landscape review” in preparation for a new strategic plan. The purpose of the project was to gather information-- the candid reflections of its many external stakeholders in particular—about what UOD has been doing well, areas for improvement, and how it should evolve in order to further its mission of increasing disabilities awareness in the Newton school community.

The SOAR 55 team was well-balanced in terms of background and expertise, and was expertly directed by Lee. It did a superb job of quickly assimilating large amounts of background information about UOD in order to be able to conduct thoughtful stakeholder interviews and analyze the responses. The information that the team gathered was exactly what we needed to assess and plan for UOD’s future direction. Although much of it confirmed what we already suspected, it is unlikely that we could have collected this valuable feedback on our own. UOD never doubted the professionalism of the SOAR 55 team. Our confidence in the team was particularly important given that the task involved potentially sensitive interactions with some of UOD’s key stakeholders.

UOD feels fortunate to have been able to tap into the valuable resource offered by SOAR 55 and is now implementing next steps based upon what we learned from the process. Beyond the impressive and useful work produced by the team, UOD’s finances simply would not have allowed it to purchase this level of consulting services on the open market. UOD looks forward to future opportunities to work with SOAR 55.

Barbara Fain, Board of Directors, Understanding Our Differences