Denise is Meetup's Organizer of the Week for July 2 - 8, 2007

Hello!

Join me this week in sunny Florida as we chat with a woman who epidomizes the word, Organizer. She's firing on all cylinders, taking advantage of all of Meetup's tools as well as creating her own set of standards tailored to her topic.

She keeps the ups and downs of running a large, successful Meetup in perspective. Not surprising, as her level-headed approach has helped her host almost 350 events in only one year!

Pay special attention to her advice to new Organizers. She has offered many helpful tips for all of us to remember, even in our daily lives...away from Meetup!

She's a great lady and I am proud to introduce you to The Meetup Organizer of the Week for July 2 - 8, Denise and Moms on the Go of Land O' Lakes, Lutz and Odessa.

Thanks, Denise!

1. First of all, congratulations on the success of Moms on the Go. The group was founded approximately one year ago and yet you've hosted 339 events and garnered almost 1500 positive comments. Where do you draw the energy and inspiration to keep your members active and interested in coming back week after week?
   
   
   

   Thank you!

   I am really proud of how the group has metamorphosed over the past year. In the beginning, a fellow organizer and I hosted all the events. In a short time, we offered the opportunity for our members to host events and they really stepped up to the challenge. Now, we often have three events in one day, approximately 12 per week.

   In my former life, I was an elementary school teacher. The teacher in me loves being around children and enjoys planning fun learning activities. I also have a strong desire to be surrounded by people. Moms on the Go allows me to do what I love and in turn, my children benefit from my involvement with the group. Fortunately, my members benefit from it, too. I love what I am doing and that passion keeps me motivated. Also, I also have a fantastic team of organizers, coordinators and leaders. We are constantly brainstorming, planning and organizing events. The creative energy we draw from each other keeps each of us motivated. Plus, my members often praise our efforts with the group. Of course, positive praise is highly motivating!

   Once being a teacher and then stepping into the role of SAHM, praise is not something you hear often. I have learned to define my own of meaning of praise. Whether it's a smile on my child's face or a random "This moms' group saved my life!" comment, I know I am doing a great job. I think the attendance of our events and the level of involvement of my members reflects that fact.

   
   

2. I'm very impressed with your Meet and Greet policies for new members. Could you expand a bit on this?
   
   
   

   The Meet and Greet policy was an idea shared in the *Not Just Moms* Organizer Forum (NJM) and I have been really pleased with the results of this policy. Rather than approve every cyber stranger that requests to join Moms on the Go, we designed a policy that encourages members to meet us at a public venue. As moms, we always have the safety of our children at the foremost of our minds. This is just another tool to keep ourselves and our children safe and help filter out the cyber stalkers and lurkers.

   The Meet and Greet events are a small sample of public events from our calendar to demonstrate the variety of events we offer and each month. Each month, I post a new list of event titles and dates. When a mom requests to join, I e-mail these dates to her. If she requests more information about an event, I send her the complete event details. Once a pending member attends a Meet and Greet Event, I approve her request to join. If she fails to reply to my e-mail or fails to attend a Meet and Greet Event with 30 days of her request to join, her request is declined.

   Before we implemented this policy, I would approve all requests, but found myself removing inactive members within 30 days. Since implementing this policy, I have learned that pending members who are serious about building relationships for themselves and their children will attend these events and in turn, will become active members. On the same token, members who choose not to attend these events would have likely been inactive members and therefore, would have been removed for inactivity in the end.

   
   

3. Many Moms groups limit the ages of kids that can participate. Why did you decide to open your membership to all ages and how does that work event-wise with such a wide range of ages involved?
   
   
   

   Companionship is not limited to age. Regardless of our children ages, all SAHMs have a strong desire for adult interaction. We are looking to escape our mundane routine for an opportunity to connect with others and ultimately build relationships for ourselves and our children.

   As well as developing relationships, our group is about support. Mothers of older children have a world of knowledge to share with mothers of infants and in turn, mothers of infants can gain knowledge from veteran mothers. However, even veteran mothers will become new again mothers and each new child will bring a handful of new experiences.

   Since we have a broad spectrum of ages in our group, we allow the greatest opportunity for moms to participate in a number of activities that appropriate for a variety of ages. However, recently, there was an interest among my members for age-specific playdates. As a result, we started offering infant playdates, toddler playdates, preschool playdates, and school-age kid playdates. By doing this, we help moms who are specifically looking to meet other moms with children the same age as their children. It also reduces the attendance of the playdates to make the playdates more intimate.

   When we plan events for the entire group, the park seems to be the most ideal location for children of all ages.

   
   

4. Who designed your About Page? It's beautiful!
   
   
   

   Thank you! I designed our About Page and I am really proud of all the hard work that went into creating it. I also received some really great feedback and help from with my colleagues in the NJM forum. My AO, Erika and I designed our logo. I have been meaning to add a "Meet the Organizers" page. I would also love to add a video to highlight some of our events.

   
   

5. Are you a native Floridian or transplant?
   
   
   

   Native Floridians are an endangered breed. I am practically a Floridian since I have lived in Florida for most of my life, but a Native would call me a Northerner. I moved to Florida with my family from Queens, NY in 1976.

   
   

6. I noticed your group was involved with Alex's Lemonade Stand. Tell us about your involvement, how did you find out about it and would you recommend this type of activity for other Moms groups?
   
   
   

   For 2007, we set a goal to plan at least one outreach activity each month. I enlisted two Outreach Coordinators to help attain that goal and they have done at outstanding job! We have far achieved that goal with at least a dozen charitable activities in the first half of the year. For example, we donated over 40 pounds of prom gowns for needy high school girls involved with the Cinderella Project. We also collected gently used shoes for Soles 4 Souls. We participated in WalkAmerica 2007 and raised $2,280 for the March of Dimes. We sold lemonade for Alex's Lemonade Stand and raised $630 for cancer research, just to name a few of our charity events.

   I learned about Alex's Lemonade Stand in NJM. Alexandra "Alex" Scott, four year old cancer patient, constructed a lemonade stand to help alleviate the burden of her hospital bills and to help her doctors find a cure for cancer. In 2008, she passed away, but her family carries on this fabulous charity in her name. Alex's Lemonade Stand has raised over $12 million dollars for childhood cancer research.

   I would highly recommend this charity to other moms groups who are looking to incorporate charitable activities into their event calendar. All children dream of building a lemonade stand on their front lawn. This is a perfect charity to teach your children about the importance of helping others while having fun. There were so many other life lessons involved with this activity, such as counting money and community awareness. This charity as well as our Walk America event allowed the whole family to be involved. When the whole family becomes involved with a charitable event, the lessons learned become even greater.

   
   

7. Do you have a most memorable Meetup moment to share with us?
   
   
   

   I really love my Meetup group! I have so many memorable moments! The women in my group are my extended family. I love spending time with them and I treasure each of them! You will not find a more fun group of ladies!

   Everyone in the group puts a tremendous amount of effort into our events to make each of them memorable for our children as well as the moms. This past winter, we held a field trip at the Manatee Viewing Center. Watching the manatees breach the surface was an amazing sight!

   This past weekend, we celebrated Moms on the Go's one year anniversary. To commemorate this event, we planned a beach weekend getaway. Spending time at the beach with great friends made for a pretty memorable weekend. That will have to take the title.

   
   

8. Finally, any words of wisdom for new or struggling Organizers out there?
   
   
   

   Ignore the numbers, because it is not a popularity contest. Don't worry about the ratings or how many members you have. It's about building a community by connecting with people who have the same interests or needs as you. Establish a small town feeling by planning activities for team-building, relationship building and bonding. By planning these activities, you will create a community where people want to belong.

   Surround yourself with positive and reliable people. You need to relinquish control and solicit assistance to help manage your group. Enlist members to fulfill a specific job, such as managing the message board or planning events. Allow your members to host events.

   Nip drama in the bud. Do not allow any abusive behavior. If you allow members to verbally attack one another on the message board, you will destroy all your efforts to build a loving community. Just like your children, your group will reflect your personality. Therefore, you must lead by example. If you make your group warm, welcoming environment, your members and your group will reflect that.

   Remain professional and objective. If something in your group isn't working, approach it in a new way. Get feedback from your members in on-line polls or surveys, but remember to not take things personally.

   In the end, it's just a playgroup! It's all about having fun. If you are no longer having fun, then it's time for change.

Be sure to share your congrats with Denise in the Organizer's Forum.