Headlines Read: Economy Rears Its Ugly Head, Doubts Arise, Again...Time for a Distraction

Received this email from the President of the Adoption Agency yesterday:

Yesterday, we made the difficult decision to lay off ten valued employees in our adoption services division. In the next few days we will be working to clairfy and reassign roles internally to ensure that your needs are seamlessly met. We will contact you by June 30 to share if you are directly affected by these changes. As the new President and CEO, I am committed to providing you with high-quality client service througout your journey. And as a former client, I understand how important it is to feel fully supported and prepared as you build your family.

Three Concerns Spring To Mind:

1. We believe that if you're shifting cases from a laid off social worker to another social worker who is probably already overloaded, everyone is affected.
2. Additionally, anyone who has been in an office with layoffs knows layoffs = decreased morale = less productive employees.
3. Given the serious nature of the email, you'd think spell check is something you'd consider clicking prior to sending...especially as the president of a nonprofit people have trusted their families' future to. Just sayin'.

Since we have not felt very supported in this waiting list phase of the process I'm thinking I'll voice our concerns (except for no. 3, which is more petty)  and look to become registered directly with Hennepin County, or at least learn about it. (Images of more hoop jumping make me shudder...)

I realize now how this process has made me feel very obsessed with myself, so to distract myself from my life I have decided I will organize a 5k in honor of my sister who struggles with bipolar disorder. The goal is to raise awareness for the obstacles people face when mentally ill and draw attention to how many people struggle with mental illness even though it's all but taboo to discuss publicly.

The race will occur on September 24, 2011--mark your calendars--which is the closest weekend day to the first day of fall that year.  My sister's name is Autumn, hence the date. I'm still trying to come up with a witty name for it. I am also compiling a huge list of to-dos, including, in no particular order:

1. Figure out how to register as a nonprofit
2. Figure out what legal forms/waivers runners have to sign to insure me against lawsuit
3. Choose the location and figure out permit requirements (I'm thinking a trail type run that won't require runners to be on the road)
4. Figure out the out of pocket cost and what price would still yield a nice donation
5. Figure out what organization I want to donate the money to--which requires a list of its own
6. Look for volunteer designer to create snazzy tee shirt design (which requires the witty name...)
7. Ask family and friends to help volunteer on race day with pictures, water, snacks
8. Seek donations from local companies for post-race recovery snacks
9. Find out how to get bibs for folks
10. Create a website, promote site and race on every outlet possible including Facebook, ActiveDirectory, etc. (again another list is needed here)
11. Seek support from other nonprofits promoting mental health awareness

If I could get 50 people to attend in year one I'd be thrilled. If it's successful, I hope to solicit corporate sponsorship for 2012. If you have any experience in this arena or have any ideas, pass them on. I'm entering brand new territory.

Sad yet Interesting Fact: "During 2002--2004, the average annual suicide rate (14.2 per 100,000 population) was nearly twice as high as the rate of death by homicide (7.2 per 100,000 population) for adults aged > 18 years." (http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5625a5.htm)

I'm so blessed to be able to organize a race in honor of my sister rather than in memory of her. I want to keep it that way.