Up Front
As this edition of The Motivator goes to press, two major natural disasters have just occurred in the Gulf region from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Our hearts go out to everyone affected. In an effort to get information out as quickly as possible, we immediately listed emergency contacts on MSAA's website. This included where to call to have MS medications replaced if they were lost or damaged in the disasters. Our Health & Wellness column also gives some helpful information on how to prepare for an emergency and I encourage everyone to review this timely piece.
During the summer, questionnaires were sent to a small sample of clients as part of our clients' needs assessment project. Completed questionnaires continue to pour into MSAA, and for those who received a survey, your input is instrumental in helping both our Board of Directors and our Healthcare Advisory Council prioritize MSAA programs and services for the future. The consensus will help us determine how MSAA might best meet the most critical needs that individuals with MS face. This information will be of significant importance in ensuring that our new strategic plan in 2006 meets those needs and that every dollar we raise is used in the most effective way. Listening to you and learning your key priorities are the first steps toward these goals.
This summer saw record numbers of equipment issued across the country. While demands for cooling equipment have tapered off with the cooler fall weather, requests for assistive devices, home modification inquiries, and MRI applications have continued to increase. Calls to our Helpline averaged more than 1,300 per month over the last quarter, and our new website has had more than 750,000 hits in just one year. Clearly, MSAA's programs and services are making their mark in the community!
Our Board of Directors met in October to review our progress to date and to discuss "life coaching" as a viable MSAA outreach project. Plans for the next meeting in January will focus on the final evaluation of the clients' needs assessment project, with collaborative input from the Healthcare Advisory Council. Our new strategic direction can then begin to take shape. This plan will be finalized in June when MSAA's Board meets at the CMSC conference.
As the holiday season is fast approaching, I would like to extend our most sincere best wishes for a happy holiday season from everyone associated with MSAA. We all have much to be thankful for, and with your inspiring support, we will continue our efforts to help more people in more places than ever before.
Douglas G. Franklin joined MSAA as President & Chief Executive Officer in 1999 and has strategically guided its national outreach and corporate partnership support to unprecedented levels. Mr. Franklin is a former national trainer for the Drucker Foundation and is an internationally published expert in the field of social marketing who holds degrees from four universities. He currently serves on the national board of the Key Philanthropic Organizations Committee of the American Society of Association Executives and is a member of the Executive Committee of Health First — America's Charities Board in Washington, DC.
Meet MSAA Board Member Ross Maclean
Ross Maclean joined MSAA's Board of Directors in January of 2002. With a friend who has MS and a brother diagnosed with a different autoimmune disease, Ross felt that MSAA was a good fit. "I have always believed in giving back to the community," says Ross, who spent numerous years as a Boy Scout leader. "MSAA's mission to enhance the quality of life for individuals with MS, speaks loudly to me." Currently, Ross serves as secretary of the Board and is the chair of the development committee.
Since 2002, he has observed tremendous growth in MSAA and is excited about the direction that MSAA is going. "Over the past three years, I have seen our programs and services experience great demand and be delivered on a much larger national basis. I have also watched the staff take their commitment to the client to another level."
Ross is proud of all of the programs and services MSAA offers but is most impressed by the Helpline and the Home Modification Program. "The stories I have heard about the Helpline and what they do for our clients is something I find to be truly moving," he states. "These stories give us a reason to be here at MSAA every day."
For the past twenty-plus years, Ross has worked in finance for both public and private institutions, including Merrill Lynch and First Boston. He has been married for 28 years to his wife Mary Lynn and has two sons, Ian and Sandy.
As MSAA embarks on its 36th year of service to the MS community, Ross sees great things ahead. "MSAA is in a great position to grow right now. In addition to our wonderful volunteers and generous donors, thanks also go to the staff," he points out. "The staff is doing great things to make all these events and programs possible. The sky is the limit for MSAA; there is nothing that we cannot accomplish."
