This month’s Guest Blogger is Greg Kamp, Director of Marketing and Communications at Mary Cariola Center.
Just over three years ago I joined the team here at Mary Cariola Center. Hands down it was the best career decision I have ever made. Watching the work that our remarkable staff does every day in our school and in our residences is truly something to behold. I am humbled as I see the work being done, work that remains true to the mission that Mary Cariola herself proclaimed.
As the Director of Marketing & Communications I see my role at least in part--is to tell the Mary Cariola story. I think of our marketing team as the story tellers who will spread the word about the work that is being done here. It is also the job of my team to communicate a variety of topics to both staff and public, and sometimes the topics are difficult. We’ve had to communicate things have occurred, including crimes in our neighborhood, major power outages and even a misguided piece of art that was mistaken as a threat to our school. All things that could be categorized in my profession as a “crisis.”
As a professional who has trained in “crisis communications,” I have always been able plan ahead and respond on a moment’s notice. My mentors always said “think about dark scenarios and be prepared to communicate with all stakeholders.” I’ve certainly done that over the years and have more prepared statements and contingency plans in my files than you can imagine, but no one could have imagined a global pandemic called Coronavirus.
Let’s face it, no matter where you are on this earth, the virus has created a crisis, one that no one could have prepared for on such a large scale. For the first time in my career a crisis situation has worried me. I understand the enormity of this crisis but what frightens me is its potential effect on our students and residents. Their vulnerability has become more evident, more real. My mind has run through multiple scenarios; what if one of them gets sick, how will they learn remotely, what if we must quarantine in a residence, what happens if caregivers get sick and of course what if a staff member is infected? We have and are prepared for these scenarios.
Normally it takes weeks, months and sometimes even years to build a crisis communications plan and that was a concern, but then I remembered where I work and who I work with. I also thought about who I work for—not agency leadership or the Board of Directors, but for our students and residents. Somehow, thoughts of detailed planning didn’t weigh heavy on my mind rather, those thoughts gave me inspiration, motivation and the desire to do what we do best.
Because of the commitment of both our school and residential staff, our administration and supporters, my belief was and is unwavering during this crisis. I am once again humbled by the belief our staff has. As my team works remotely and daily to load information on the school resource page, write social media posts, draft internal and external communication and talk with the media, it is evident that we are only the vessels that communicate the beliefs of our amazing agency staff. The work the school staff is doing to stay in touch with students and their families, preparing educational packets and problem solving from afar is awe inspiring. And just like first responders are heroes, so too are the staff at all six of our homes. They too run towards potential danger in order to keep our residents safe and care for them.
Karen Zandi, our President & CEO asked us to come up with a theme of unity and hope during this uncertain time. A theme that would allow us to reach out to families and more importantly, have them reach out to us. All we had to do was speak the truth—“Cariola Cares.” It sounds nice and it’s a catchy phrase but there is meaning and sincerity behind it. Behind “Cariola Cares” stands over 650 people who work at Cariola, a Board of Directors and countless donors and supporters who are committed and dedicated to those we serve.
As the Mary Cariola staff remain united and resolute in educating and caring for our students, residents and their families, we have gained a greater sense of perspective and appreciation for what are doing. We can say with confidence that in the years to come, we will take pride in knowing how we responded to this challenge.
As an agency and a community we will survive the Coronavirus pandemic, perhaps even stronger than ever, not just because of existing and improved preparedness, but because of the perseverance, dedication and strength of our staff. We will not allow Coronavirus to deprive us of our mission. We can take solace in Mary Cariola’s own words, “there is a task at hand--it will only be accomplished by hard work and a belief in what you are doing.”
