We recently connected with Lorinda Gonzalez-Santana and have shared our conversation below.
Lorinda , so good to have you with us today. We’ve got so much planned, so let’s jump right into it. We live in such a diverse world, and in many ways the world is getting better and more understanding but it’s far from perfect. There are so many times where folks find themselves in rooms or situations where they are the only ones that look like them – that might mean being the only woman of color in the room or the only person who grew up in a certain environment etc. Can you talk to us about how you’ve managed to thrive even in situations where you were the only one in the room?
Being comfortable in your own skin is essential in my opinion. A a woman, Latina, who uses a motorized wheelchair to get around, I’ve rarely been in a space where there are others that look just like me. Yet, my parents raised me to know that regardless of others opinions or perspectives, I am equal and worthy just like everyone else. That helped to shape my comfortability in public spaces and led to a positive and open personality. I realize that I may not look like anyone else, but differences are – in my opinion – a beautiful part of society, not anything to be ashamed of. Often when teaching grant writing classes, I’ll refer to personal experiences as a person in a wheelchair, which helps to “break the ice” and also remind us all that we’re humans sharing a living experience. Being so called “different” works in my favor because people generally don’t have many pre-concieved expectations, giving me the chance to shape their experience with me, which I always hope leads to a positive perspective of people with disabilities. Embracing diversity as one of the most beautiful parts of society and enjoying the opportunity to share what a person in my shoes (or wheels) is like is a joy for me. This attitude resonated with people and has become both effective and led to success in my experience.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I’m a Grant Writer & Funding Consultant living in beautiful Miami for the past ten years. I have a Masters Degree in Communication and Marketing, a double Bachelors Degree in English and Business Management, and I’m also an AGWA Certified (C) Grant Writer. I was the director of Grants Ink for over ten years and have helped clients gain access to $25MM to date. Now, I recently launched my own firm, Remy’s Consulting, which is focused on supporting nonprofits and social entrepreneurs in their goals of acquiring sustainable funding for their projects. I do this by working collaboratively with nonprofits and social entrepreneurs who are ready to receive grant funding. The main services provided are as follows:
– Grant Strategy Integration & Execution: This service gives us a mix of one-on-one time to work together along with time I’ll work on your behalf offline. It’s like having a grant writer/business strategist/project manager all at once. Together we’ll work on grant research, proposal development, grant calendar management, and everything needed for you to get…keep…& maintain funding for your organization.
– Cleanup & Reset: This service is perfect for organizations who have had grant funds in the past, but due to several factors (change in management, growth or just overwhelm) are behind on grant activities. I’ll review what funding you’ve had in the past, currently have, and would like to acquire moving forward. Together we will work on catching up on reporting, reestablishing connections with previous funders, and integrating a more structured and organized cloud-based grant funding framework to get you and keep you on track.
– Research & Grant Readiness: This service will help us determine your level of grant readiness and find you grant opportunities to apply to. This is a great way to test the waters of the grant acquisition world for us to make sure that you’re ready to make the jump into the vast ocean of funding available.
– Find a Grant Writer: Interesting concept, right? So hear me out on this one. Here are the facts: Grant writing is a team effort. It involves not only you and I working together, but also engaging your team, volunteers, and board members. One of the most cost-effective ways to get everything together that we need to get grant funding awarded is to leverage your current team members or hire a contractor that I can train, to work with us. This way, you only pay me to train and oversee this person while maximizing a current employee or new more cost-effective contractor to complete developmental work. Genius!
– Ink Sessions: This service is a great go-to for newer organizations who need support but don’t yet have the budget in place for more comprehensive services (don’t worry, we’ll get there). We’ll meet one-on-one to put “pen to paper” (digitally) and work alongside your organization on actionable next steps to get you grant ready.
With an understanding of how the funding landscape works (mixed in with an insatiable appetite for learning as much as possible about grant funds and social entrepreneurship), I help nonprofits and social entrepreneurs reach their funding goals by being a guiding light full of information, resources, and a solution-oriented mindset. Let’s get that money together!
Aside from being a nerd in the funding field, I’m a painter. My medium of choice are acrylic paints and charcoal. When we get to meet online one day, you’ll probably notice my latest piece in the background. Art has become a passion of mine that allows me a space to create and express my perspective of the world around me. I look forward to combining my professional experience in funding acquisition with the arts, to combine both worlds and expand access to funding for art projects. Aside from painting, I enjoy meditating, yoga, and travel. An interesting fact – I’m bilingual and prefer to read fiction in Spanish, and non-fiction in English. I recently married a wonderful man who like me is an entrepreneur. We live together in our apartment in Brickell and enjoy growing our businesses together while at the same time maintaining a work-life balance.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Three key qualities/skills/areas of knowledge that have been most impactful in my journey are: effective communication, being solution-driven, and being open to learning everything I can in my field to adapt to the changing needs of clients. Effective communication is not only understanding how to share one’s message, but most importantly how to listen to the needs of others. As the old saying goes, learn to listen twice and respond once. It’s so easy to talk and share your perspective, but the real gold is in listening and understanding the concerns and ideas of others. Combining effective communication skills with a solution-driven mindset has allowed me to understand client’s problems and provide actual solutions. Since I was very little, I learned the importance of resolving issues rather than focusing on the problem all the time. It’s super easy to stay in an on-going loop of negative thoughts, and takes practice to analyze situations and move forward with solutions. But honestly, the ability to do so is one of the most impactful skills I’ve acquired to date.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I’m looking to collaborate with artists and nonprofits/social entrepreneurs who need support acquiring grant funds for their projects. As an artist myself, I’m passionate about using my experience as a funding expert to expand funding in the arts and make it more accessible to all. My ideal collaboration would be an opportunity to offer workshops in art spaces or online, tailored towards artists from all walks of life who need guidance and support in funding their projects. Workshops can be on topics such as grant writing for artistic projects, engaging donors, researching funding opportunities, how to fill out an application, and more. If you are an artist, museum, or gallery and are interested in supporting funding of projects, feel free to email me at: [email protected] to connect.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.remysconsulting.com
- Instagram: IG: RemysConsulting
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorinda-gonzalez-49a02149/
Image Credits
