Each year Rainbows United has one day dedicated to bringing all the staff together in one room to conduct trainings that help improve aspects of the organization and to celebrate success and recognize achievements.
Leading up to the Inservice Day, I had the opportunity to work with all of the departments to put together a video featuring the people and the various programs and services they perform. I know that many of the staff members were resistant on having to be filmed, but everyone ended up being great sports. Since I have never had experience in putting together videos, this was quite the challenge. However, it was definitely worth it. I had so much fun getting to meet and experience so many wonderful personalities. As a new AmeriCorps VISTA here at Rainbows, I honestly did not know what to expect on the day of All Staff.
I had arrived to a rainy Botanica Gardens to help set up at 6:45am. At that time, I instantly witnessed so many of the guiding principles unfold without anyone actually knowing they were doing so. Staff members were accountable and achieved success through teamwork in getting the room set up and organized before 8am. I saw resourcefulness, responsible stewards, and a huge amount of effective communication. During the presentation, I was so moved when I heard Deb Voth speak about the Rainbows’ vision, and different board members speak about why they loved Rainbows. That day it became clear to me that the Rainbows’ staff is actually a big family with a passion for enhancing the lives of children with special needs and their families.
Recently, I had the opportunity to hear from a few other employees that had experienced an All Staff Inservice Day for the first time as well. Here is what they had to say:
“It was nice to finally put faces with names and have everyone in the same place.”–Lindsay Coffee, Family Support Services Coordinator “I was impacted by the amount of people that have been working at Rainbows for more than 10 years. It made me realize that Rainbows’ is a great place to work at.” –Hortensia Celiz, Program Assistant, CBETS/Case Records
“I thought that it was a great representation of how Rainbows really cares for the well being of their employees, with the way staff was given an opportunity to voice any concerns or question practices, along with the exposure of a great lecture on personal and physical health.” –Jo Truong, VISTA Volunteer Coordinator
“Being my first all staff meeting, I really enjoyed it! I loved the speaker! She was great at holding everyone’s attention and being very informative at the same time. I also enjoyed seeing all the staff that have been her 10+ years. Rainbows truly is a great place to work.” –Jennifer Scott, Receptionist, Kids’ Point
After that day and hearing from others, I am truly excited that I decided to spend a year being an AmeriCorps VISTA, because that means I get to be a part of the Rainbows’ family and something so special. This post was written by Megan Lamb, WSU AmeriCorps VISTA Fellow.
