Tech for Good: Sheila Sullivan’s Journey as St. James NEST’s IT Committee Chair

Join Nolan Formalarie and special guest Sheila Sullivan from the NEST organization as they dive into the heart of community service and aging in place. NEST, a nonprofit founded in Saint James, aims to provide essential services to its members, allowing them to safely age in their homes. Sheila shares her journey from a neighbor interested in helping to becoming the Vice President and Head of IT, overseeing crucial decisions like selecting the software that powers NEST’s operations. Discover the difference between a NEST member and volunteer, and learn about the leadership opportunities available, especially in IT. If you’re inspired to contribute to a cause that makes a tangible difference in people’s lives, NEST is looking for you. For more information on how to join or support their mission, stay tuned for contact details in the video.

Nolan
Hello and welcome. This is Nolan Formalarie and I have a special guest here with me: Sheila Sullivan. We’re both from the NEST organization and Sheila, thank you so much for coming on.

Sheila
Thank you for having me.

Nolan
Sheila, please tell us just briefly what is NEST.

Sheila
Nest is a nonprofit organization that was established by a number of people in Saint James to provide services to members so that they can age in their home safely.

Nolan
OK. Thank you. And tell us how you got involved with NEST

Sheila
Well, I have a neighbor, Corey, who is one of the founders of NEST and she sent out an e-mail looking for interest in the organization and once it was established that there was interest then sent out an e-mail looking for help, and that’s what we do is we help our neighbors.
So I offered to help. I came in as at that time we thought we would need money to start up. I had experience in grant administration, so I was going to do some grant writing that quickly changed. The IT person left and I said I would be willing to temporarily take it over.

Nolan
That’s right. You are a chairperson, right?

Sheila
Head of IT. I’m the chair of the IT Committee and I’m also the Vice President. So this temporary position has now gone on about five years. I was involved in the development of the organization.

Nolan
That’s so nice of you. Wonderful. OK, so. And as an IT chairperson, what do you what do you do?

Sheila
Well, I have six people on my team and they all specialize in their particular area. One of the first things we had to do in Nest was decide what software we were going to power the organization with and we went with the software called Helpful Village – is the organization that built the software, that you interact with on the website actually.
So I have no IT experience, I just like software. I like learning how software works, so that was right up my alley. But we also do other things. We use Google Suites as our administrative software, so I have to have a knowledge of how that that works. I do have someone who helps me with that. We also look at the data in the organization and do reports based on the data and I have someone on my team who does that. Then there’s the stuff that is just way over my head and I have really smart people who help me with that.

Nolan
Wonderful. Now I know that a lot of the leadership has been with NEST like you since the inception and, just like you,  you’ve all put a lot of time in. I know Nest is currently looking for more leadership type roles, correct?

Sheila
Yes, we are. We’re looking for the IT Chair, so I can stop being temporary.

Nolan
Right. That’s a wonderful thing. I’m sure the whole organization appreciates your, your service to everything! If you can, because I know I get confused and a lot of people get confused: what is the difference between a member and a volunteer?

Sheila
The NEST member is the dues paying person who needs the services, and there are two types of NEST volunteers. There are volunteers that provide those services to the members, like drive them someplace, pick up their food, and then there is the leadership team volunteer who works behind the scenes to keep the operation going. And you can be both, like I am both. I also provide services to some members. So yeah, it doesn’t mean if you work for the organization that you can’t help the members because people get a lot of personal satisfaction from helping the members.

Nolan
Oh, I’m sure. I mean it’s amazing!  Well, so I know NEST is looking for more leadership people to fulfill roles, one of which is IT. So if you are interested in joining either or leadership role or as a volunteer, please let us know. There’s going to be an e-mail as well as a phone number on this next screen, so please reach out. Sheila, thank you so much for coming on and explaining what you do and your service to the NEST organization.

Sheila
Thank you.

Website: sjnest.org

Phone: (910) 250-8388

Email: info@sjnest.org