Meet Alison Haraburda

We recently connected with Alison Haraburda and have shared our conversation below.

Alison, so great to have you sharing your thoughts and wisdom with our readers and so let’s jump right into one of our favorite topics – empathy. We think a lack of empathy is at the heart of so many issues the world is struggling with and so our hope is to contribute to an environment that fosters the development of empathy. Along those lines, we’d love to hear your thoughts around where your empathy comes from?

Growing up, my parents did foster care for those with high needs physically. They ended up adopting 3 of the individuals. Most of the individuals who came into the home had to be cared for 24 hours a day because of their needs. We took turns caring for the individuals. Several of the individuals ended up passing away because of their physical needs.

Being in a house like this helps you not only develop empathy but also a willingness to help those who might need a little more help.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I have been married for 25 years to my amazing husband, Brian. We have 2 grown children who are spreading their wings. I grew up in a large family. My parents did foster care and adopted 3 children. The idea for the non-profit I started came from 1 of my adopted brothers needing care past the “normal” age.

One Day Niche is an activity-based day program for adults with disabilities who have aged out of the traditional school system but still need care and activity. What started as a dream 5 years ago is a fully thriving program in West Michigan.

One Day Niche is experiencing rapid growth in its 3rd year since officially launching. We have 2 properties where residents live and a thriving day program where we see an average of 13 individuals a day. The next year, we are looking at a second day program location, which will include animals and some farming.

Over the next few months, the focus is on sustainability and leadership. With all the changes in such a short time, the focus is moving to how this could be repeated in other areas of the world and how the leadership structure needs to be set. Going from 6 employees and no properties at the start of 2025 to 26 employees and 2 properties at the end of the year, these items are the focus as we continue to grow and expand.

The other focus is on financial resources (funders, grants, private donors) to keep the growth happening. We are looking for monthly donors as well as some grant funds to help with the expansion.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

I have come to realize that I do not have the knowledge or strength to do what I am doing. I tell people often that I have no idea what I am doing. Maybe one day I might figure things out, BUT I do know Someone who does.

When you have an anointing from God to do something, don’t ignore it. I use Jonah from the Bible as an example often. He was told to go preach in Nineveh, and he went the opposite direction, until he got redirected by a whale. He finally went and then complained to God about why he ran in the first place. God always knows what is best if you just listen.

I pushed back for many years, trying to do things that fit, but didn’t really fit. I feel peace and joy doing what I do now. It is easy? No way. Is it rewarding? ABSOLUTELY.

But also, it is amazing to see how God has provided each step of the way.

My advice is to keep learning as you can, lean into what God is saying to you, and follow Him.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

A saying I heard once, and I like is…We are not competitors, we are collaborators.

Each business was developed for a certain purpose and reason. I might not know what you know, but I could also know something you don’t know.

One Day Niche is filling a niche, but there are several areas where we could use assistance and someone with knowledge in.

Some areas we would love to collaborate with people on are land development, fundraising, micro businesses, farm to table, and franchising (training and development).

Contact Info:

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