Suzanne Mayernick of Love + One International: 5 Things You Need To Know To Successfully Lead A Nonprofit Organization
Understand the culture you are serving — For international nonprofits, in particular, it’s important to know that the solutions we use in America may not always be the best option to fulfill your mission in other countries. Helping can hurt, and we can do more harm than good if we do not ask for advice about what is culturally acceptable from people in the community that you are serving. Take the time and do your due diligence to really get to know the people you are serving.
As part of my series about “individuals and organizations making an important social impact”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Suzanne Mayernick.
Suzanne Mayernick is a wife, mother of eight, and founder of Love + One International, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in Nashville, TN that provides life-saving medical care and rehabilitative services to critically ill children in Uganda.
Thank you so much for doing this with us. Before we begin our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”?
Love One International was founded with a mission to provide life-saving medical care and rehabilitative services to critically-ill children in Uganda. Love One’s mission is personal to me. I spent years traveling to Uganda to serve and developed life-long relationships with the people there. Then, in 2009, my husband Mike and I adopted a child, our daughter JosieLove, and our life was forever changed. Through the adoption process, I experienced first-hand the struggles that many Ugandan mothers face daily. At the time, JosieLove was just three years old and she had malaria, tuberculosis, and was HIV positive — but after just a few months of receiving the love, attention, and medical care she needed, she blossomed into a healthy child. Watching JosieLove’s transformation sparked a fire inside of my family to commit to nurturing other sick children through love and proper medical care in order to help them thrive.
Can you tell us the story behind why you decided to start or join your nonprofit?
Love One International was born out of a desire to provide the quality of medical care and rehabilitative services that helped my daughter regain her health to other children in Uganda. Many children in Uganda lack basic needs, which in turn damages their immunity and exacerbates minor illnesses. After watching my daughter, who was a shell of a child when we first met, blossom into a vibrant beam of sunshine after proper care, love and attention, I wanted that for all children in Uganda. While we had a noble mission in our early days, we also had a lot of questions about the practicality of executing it. To help get our non-profit off the ground, I tapped into the connections I had fostered both internationally and in our own community over decades and asked for their partnership. Thanks to the support of our network of partners, we were able to establish Love One International and begin providing children, specifically malnourished children, in Uganda with access to life-saving medical care and rehabilitative services.
Can you describe how you or your organization aims to make a significant social impact?
In remote Uganda, 911 doesn’t exist. When someone needs emergency medical attention in the U.S., help is just a phone call away. Love One International exists to provide life-saving medical care and rehabilitative services to restore critically ill children to a happy, healthy life. Through large-scale fundraising initiatives state-side, Love One can fund an on-site staff who work with community liaisons to identify and provide critically ill children access to easy, loving medical care. After making contact with a child, our Love One staff conducts a needs-based assessment and transports them to a local hospital for expert medical care and review. They are then transferred to our Love One Center, where they are granted time to fully recuperate while their parents learn about basic healthcare, nutrition, and hygiene. At Love One International, our ultimate goal is to resettle children with their families in their own communities. Without ongoing care, children who are returned to their communities often become sick again. We support children beyond their stay at the Love One Center through ongoing nutritional education, family strengthening, and spiritual programs.
Without saying any names, can you share a story about an individual who was helped by your idea so far?
I once met an eight-year-old orphan at a government-run hospital in Uganda who was being sent home to die. At the time, he had tuberculosis, was HIV positive, and was severely malnourished. I saw a spark in his eye and knew that God had bigger plans for him. The next day, I brought him a pair of soccer cleats, tied them around his bed, and promised him that one day, he would be healthy enough to play football in them. We provided him with the care and love he needed to regain his strength and stand up in his new cleats. His story is just one of many to prove how far tender love and care can go for vulnerable children in Uganda.
Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?
- Pray — Pray for our team in Uganda, our community liaisons, the children we serve and their parents, and the medical professionals who treat them.
- Donate — Your generous gift will save lives. All donations are tax-deductible and go directly to the children we serve. You can donate directly at www.LoveOneInternational.org, shop merchandise on our website, or make Love One International your charity of choice on Amazon Smile.
- Awareness — Share the mission of Love One International with others to help us in a pursuit to make sure that no child dies from treatable conditions in Uganda.
How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?
I believe the best way to lead is by example. If you serve others and you show them how to serve, then they are going to be a lot more willing to serve you and in my case, to serve Love One International. I am happiest when I am serving others, and I’ve found that when I am helping, affirming, and encouraging others, they are motivated to follow my example.
Based on your experience, what are the “5 things a person should know before they decide to start a non profit”. Please share a story or example for each.
- Understand the culture you are serving — For international nonprofits, in particular, it’s important to know that the solutions we use in America may not always be the best option to fulfill your mission in other countries. Helping can hurt, and we can do more harm than good if we do not ask for advice about what is culturally acceptable from people in the community that we are serving. Take the time and do your due diligence to really get to know the people you are serving.
- Put the right people in place — The Lord placed the mission of Love One International on my heart, but I knew that I didn’t have all the skill sets necessary to execute it. In order to maintain a structurally sound non-profit organization, you have to be open to putting the right people in the right place to help you do what you feel like you are called to do. Empower your people to function in their unique skill sets, and your non-profit will reap the benefits.
- Seek Partners — Much of Love One’s success is a direct result of the devotion of our partners. Two examples that come to mind are our community liaisons in Uganda and Lauren Akins. In Uganda, our community liaisons help us identify children in need of life-saving medical care, and oftentimes those liaisons are government officials. They provide a pulse on the state of child welfare in Uganda that would otherwise be unknown. Lauren Akin is another devoted partner of Love One International. Lauren is a dear family friend who is married to country music artist Thomas Rhett. Lauren unexpectedly gained a fandom alongside her husband and has leveraged her platform over the years to advocate and shine a light on the mission of Love One International. Partners like these continue to aid in the success of our organization.
- Stay true to your values — At Love One International, at the end of the day, we want everybody we serve to know Jesus. We can provide medical care and resettle children, but if they don’t know Jesus, then we see that as a loss. To help us uphold our commitment to sharing the love of Jesus with those we serve, we hired a spiritual director on the ground in Uganda to council and guide our staff as well as meet with the families of the children we are serving to help them hear the gospel. Faith is one of our core values, and we’ve invested in the resources we need to stay true to that.
- Diversify your donation methods — Love One International operates solely off of donated funds. We acquire funds through a variety of initiatives which include direct donations on our website, via mail or through text, our merchandise, an ambassador program, an annual fundraising benefit, and through Amazon Smile. Every dollar adds up and helps us supply our team with medical, nutrition, and hygiene resources in Uganda.
Can you share your favorite “Life Lesson” Quote? How is that relevant to you in your life?
Two things I tell myself regularly are to choose joy and laugh rather than cry. As a mother of eight and a strong involvement with Love One International, my day-to-day life does not always lend joy and laughter, so I have to remind myself to choose to live out both of those feelings consciously.
How can our readers follow you online?
Instagram @LoveOneInt
Facebook @LoveOneInt
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success in your mission.
Suzanne Mayernick of Love + One International: 5 Things You Need To Know To Successfully Lead A… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.