T-Minus 24 Hours

waking up the day before memory walk is like waking up on moving day. there's a sense of excitement and dread all going on at the same time because you know the next 48 hours are going to be some of the longest you've had all year. i don't think anyone really knows what goes into a charity walk or race until they plan one - i know i didn't until last year. it's six months of work, hours upon hours of manual labor in 90 degree weather and about 1,000 moving pieces.

with only a half a dozen staff to create an event to raise a half million dollars, we are incredibly reliant on volunteers. in fact, since i started working in non-profit, all of my assistants have come in the form of volunteers or interns. as you can imagine, you never know what you're gonna get and by the end of your time together, you've become quite close.

today, i was assigned a volunteer who brought her mom along for the day. her mom was diagnosed with alzheimer's two years ago and since then, her daughter has been her primary caregiver. she was recently laid off from her job at wamu and has started selling avon to supplement her unemployment income. her mom requires constant entertainment (very typical of ad) but with her recent change of employment, her daughter has been forced to cut back on the time they spend dining out. unfortunately, her mom has picked up on the fact and recently asked her if "she's running out of money."

the daughter is a young, beautiful woman who is so committed to caring for her mom, she's put her needs completely on the backburner. you can tell because throughout every conversation, she's constantly looking over her shoulder to make sure her mom is in the same place she left her five minutes before. they stayed with me all day and i joked that for a volunteer, she did my job better than i do. as 6p rolled around, we said our goodbyes and i thanked her profusely for all of her hard work. a few minutes later, i noticed her mom was standing by herself near the parking lot. i ran over and she explained to me in spanish that her daughter went to get the car but she wasn't back yet. she was visibly worried so i put my arm around her and we stood together. minutes later a minivan came veering around the corner. her daughter jumped out, brows furried, out of breath. she helped her mom in the car and simply turned around and with a smile said, "thank you, nicole."

i so desperately wanted to yell to her, "why are you thanking me? i haven't done anything. thank YOU for being such a wonderful daughter. thank YOU for finding the time to volunteer despite your very full and exhausting life. thank YOU for reminding me why i do what i do and thank YOU for being such an inspiration."

instead, i just nodded and smiled back. i watched them pull away and turned around to get back to work. it was a long and exhausting day but one of the best i've had in a long time.