It’s been a privilege to sit in on the public information meetings hosted by the directors of Quyon’s Maison de la Famille to update the community on their efforts to keep this critical social service organization alive.
These four women joined the board just under a year ago and have been left with a mess to clean up after the non-profit’s former director general dropped a few important balls. At least $200,000 worth of important balls. These women would be the first to say so, although they are doing what they can to look forward rather than dwelling on past mistakes.
The challenge is, many who attend these public meetings – of which there have been two so far – feel greater transparency is needed when it comes to past mistakes, and the exact nature of the mess that needs cleaning.
Some are former board members, and so have a sense for what may have caused the mess, and what needs to happen to clean it up.
Others have been former employees, who have poured their hearts into building the family centre over the years, making it beautiful and caring for their neighbours who come to collect food from its fridge, or get help filing their taxes, or pick up back-to-school supplies for their kid.
Others yet are simply showing up because they recognize this organization provides critical support to low-income families in the community, and want to stay up to date on what’s being done to keep it alive.
Some doubt the family centre will be able to raise the money it needs to carry it through until it can secure more substantial funding, and doubt that community fundraising is the best strategy. Some think the board directors, who are all relatively new to their positions, should cede control of the organization to outside help. Some are just angry the management of this important organization has slipped to where it is now.
All have questions, frustrations, and grievances they do not hold back from sharing. And these questions are answered right there, on the spot, unscripted, uncoordinated, by the board’s directors, to the best of their abilities.
The conversation is lively, honest, and takes time. These meetings go on until everybody who wants to speak has had a chance to do so.
I recognize this is a luxury – that not every public meeting, be it a council meeting or a board meeting, has the time needed to offer this kind of care and respect to the people who show up with concerns – but the outcome is a reminder of how worthwhile this kind of engagement is when possible. This working through challenges together is the meat and potatoes of community building.
The directors are open about the fact they do not have all the answers people are looking for, and that in an ideal world maybe they would, but they are learning the nitty-gritty of what it takes to run a non-profit as they go. They’re doing the best they can, and what they believe will keep the family centre open.
It’s too soon to say whether their strategy will work, but they are hopeful.
