ARTICLE 2: Do You Remember When Rock Was Young?

The Story

There were sunshades, crackerjack popcorn, the Beach Boys, the Drifters, saddle shoes, letter jackets, poodles skirts, and Secretary of State Nominee Colin Powell doing the moonwalk dance. There were women wearing ponytails and pearl earrings and men in leather jackets and penny loafers. Cheese Whiz and Ritz Crackers, not to mention the pigs in a wool blanket, eased the appetites until dinner.

"Do You Remember When Rock Was Young?" This was the theme for the Best Friends Foundations' yearly blowout. Where else could I take radio advice queen Dr. Laura Schlessinger for a spin on the dance floor? I dressed in black jeans, buckle shoes, white tube socks, white T-shirt, and a genuine red and white letterman jacket. It looked as if I had stepped back in time to experience the early sixties in the Broadway musical "Grease." This is a wildly successful event that you don't just go alone to, but always go to with a goal.

Never in my adult life have I supported an organization so fervently. It brings me joy to witness my donation dollars being actively put to good work while watching an organization grow tremendously over the past ten years. For this reason, I wait with anticipation every year for my invitation to the Best Friends donor dinner. I enjoy attending this function over many others because of the seriousness and like-minded donors who enjoy improving the lives of America's children.

Because our goals are one in the same I enjoy building partnerships with people who usually attend this event. Case in point-each year I see Tim Russert, Moderator of NBC's Meet the Press; usually I say hello and leave it at that. But this year I talked with Tim about how building alliances and partnerships helped him in his career. He responded by saying, "It's the one thing that has been very important to my career." By this time his wife, Maureen, interjected a priceless reference to how important building partnerships and choosing the right alliances can be. She amusingly said, "The best partnership that helped his success was when he married me!" The three of us chuckled and went on to watch the start of a live rock trivia contest with lifelines derived from the talk show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire with Regis Philbin.

Shortly after the contest, the Beach Boys made their way to the stage. Everyone began dancing to their greatest hits including "California Girls, I Get Around," and "Barbara Ann" to name a few. It was around this time when I grabbed Dr. Laura Schlessinger's hand and began dancing. By the way, she can dance, too! At the end of our dance song I thanked Laura and turned and grabbed Washington, DC WUSA Anchorwoman Andrea Roane's hand for a spin on the dance floor. As we began dancing she bashfully said, "I don't know how to hand dance!" I replied, "Don't worry follow my lead." Andrea is a quick study and next year we will burn up the dance floor.

Then it was time for me to take a rest from the dance floor. So I took a seat at the table with Chris Wallace from ABC news. This gave me a wonderful opportunity to talk with him about his views on the importance of establishing successful alliances and partnerships. Chris stated, "Building good alliances and partnerships is of great significance if one plans to have career success." Before Chris and I could finish our conversation the Drifters took the stage and began playing several of their greatest hits like, "Under the Boardwalk," "There Goes My Baby," "On Broadway," and "This Magic Moment."

Earlier I stated that this is an event that you don't go alone too. One must always go with a goal, because the attendees at this event are highly placed celebrities, executives, and successful entrepreneurs, and it's a great place to build solid business relationships. As I watched many of these high level guests I realized that they attended this particular event to build alliances the same as the next person. The next person I spoke to was the 1999 Miss Wisconsin, Mary-Louise Kurey, who said she believes, "In order to join forces with anyone to accomplish the same goals, it is important to show that you are ready to give not just take. But, if you are ready to give, people will give of themselves and pull you along the way." She went on to say that, in order to build a partnership, "One must do the research, make the phone calls, and be persistent in the pursuit. Winning the title of Miss Wisconsin has made it easier for me to continue the efforts that I started before I won the title."

The "Do You Remember When Rock Was Young" event is an excellent example of how important it is to be associated with good people and good organizations, simply because influential people would not attend an event that doesn't have merit. In addition, they can see where their philanthropic dollars are being spent.

The Lesson

The lesson to take away from this story is that when you attend an event it is a good idea to have a goal—a purpose aside from just being a financial donor. At an event such as this, I personally make a goal to meet at least ten people I would otherwise not meet. I often start this process during the reception hour and continue throughout the night. If you continue this method with each and every event you attend, before you know it you will have a solid contact database. Remember, don't go alone, and always go with a goal.