One of the reasons Powerhouse came into being is because founder Jessica Bertsch, a proud Coast Guard spouse herself, wanted to provide portable careers for military spouses. In 2023, Powerhouse is doubling down on our commitment to military spouses with a brand-new Share the Goodness initiative: a military spouse career kickstart program! Be sure to follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn throughout the year for more information and exciting opportunities.
All Learning Begins with ConnectionBy: Julie Kirchner
Talking about building connections is a love of Jonnah Buchanan’s. “Truly, all learning begins with connection,” she enlightens. Jonnah is the executive director of Launch Learning Preschool, an innovative new nonprofit in Merritt Island, Florida, offering a unique whole-family education framework designed to strengthen families in raising happy, healthy humans.
“We know from brain research that connections on the outside—like when we physically connect with someone face-to-face—literally build the connections in the wiring of our brains,” explains Jonnah.
Brain-based research is at the heart of Launch Learning’s program design, including their monthly Parent Connect education classes for parents. “That’s why, from the beginning of the day, we get down eye-to-eye with our kids, and we are intentionally doing fun hand games and greetings with them . . . it’s because that first immediate connection with them actually helps strengthen the neural connections within their brains,” Jonnah says. These kinds of connections form a strong foundation for early childhood brain development and help build cooperation, impulse control, and other social-emotional skills like empathy.
For Florida’s Space Coast (home to the Kennedy Space Center), it’s probably totally appropriate for a preschool to sound like rocket science. This preschool has some serious local roots, too. Launch Learning is a legacy program modeled after the Eastern Florida State College (EFSC) Lab School founded in 1967, a program that served more than 7,500 children and 14,000 parents over 55 years. During the pandemic, the EFSC Lab School program closed, and a new opportunity came to light.
Spotlight on Powerhouse’s Amanda ThurnTime flies when you are having fun. And from celebrating Powerhouse’s 10th anniversary, to sharing the goodness, to getting prepped for the holidays, we have been having a blast! The celebration continues as this month we shine a spotlight on the amazing Amanda Thurn.
Amanda has the distinction of being one of the first Powerhouse clients to also become a Powerhouse freelancer. Amanda worked for two of our nonprofit clients, The Children’s Hunger Project and the Space Coast Basket Brigade, and it was, as they say, meant to be when six months ago Amanda brought her talents to Powerhouse itself. (more…)
PILLAR: Supporting Military Families, One Deployment at a TimeBy: Julie Clark
We’re excited to feature the founders of PILLAR in this month’s newsletter. As an organization dedicated to supporting military families, PILLAR is near and dear to many at Powerhouse Planning because we are comprised of veterans, military spouses, retired military spouses, and super fans of military families. PILLAR’s next digital retreat is coming up soon, and our very own Jessica Bertsch will be speaking once again this year. Needless to say, it’s the perfect time to talk with PILLAR founders Joanna Guldin-Noll and Becky Hoy.
PH: As far as leadership, do you feel you both were natural-born leaders, or did you fall into this role and find it suited you to lead, inspire, and support others?
PILLAR: We stepped into our roles to support military families (Joanna with Jo, My Gosh! and Becky with Brave Crate) to fill specific needs we saw in the community. We came together to work on PILLAR for the same reasons.
POWERHOUSE: OUT & ABOUTIf you read our CEO Spotlight, then you know that Powerhouse President and Founder Jessica Bertsch will be speaking again at PILLAR’s 2022 Digital Retreat for Deployment, November 4-6. Following up her presentation last year, “Finding Joy Even When You Count Down,” she’ll be sharing even more tips, tricks, and lessons learned from her experience as a Coast Guard spouse, mom, and entrepreneur.
PILLAR’s absolutely free digital retreat is a great way to find inspiration, resources, and real-life tips from seasoned military spouses. If you or anyone you know would like to participate in three days of fun, great advice, and tons of giveaways, sign up here. Want to listen to Jessica’s presentation from last year? Access the recording here.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic became our new “normal,” more than $119.2 billion has been donated on a global scale. In fact, according to Zelle’s Consumer Payment Behaviors reports, just about 3 out of 4 Millennials have donated money since 2020. With Millennials making up half of the work population these days, it’s important for employers to understand how passionate the generation is about making philanthropy an everyday part of their lives. Gen Z isn’t far behind Millennials with a 66% give rate. Clearly, if companies want to be relevant and relatable to their employees, they need to implement robust philanthropic enterprises.
Philanthropy in the workplace makes sense. Not only do businesses have an opportunity to support their local communities, but they can also build a work culture that fosters employee engagement and make work a place people want to be. Moreover, charitable giving generates great business value and enhances consumer relationships. When people see businesses actively engaged within their communities, public image soars.
Curious about how to up your philanthropy game? Continue reading for more tips and suggestions. Or contact us today to see how Powerhouse can help you hit your giving game out of the park.
By: Meredith Flory
For many companies, philanthropy and marketing are tied together. Employees wear company branding at volunteer events, and monetary contributions are posted on brochures and websites. There’s nothing, at first glance, ethically wrong with these practices. It makes sense that companies would want their customers to know about their efforts to help the community, and many consumers want to support companies whose work aligns with their values.
By: Julia Maier
“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give” – Winston Churchill
Fact: Almost everyone needs to work or will work in their lifetime. If you’re lucky, that work is born out of a passion. A desire to help people, to make lives easier, or to share a gift or skill with the world. Take Powerhouse Founder and CEO Jessica Bertsch, for example. She has a passion for helping clients grow their businesses, but she also has a desire to make a difference outside of the office. So, she set a goal from the beginning to “Share the Goodness” and dedicate no less than 10% of annual revenue to making a difference in our communities and around the world. In time, as her company grows, so too will the impact they can have on the world. Being a fully remote company, Powerhouse has used service to bond as a team. What started as a holiday gift to staff in the form of a gift card to buy their holiday turkey transitioned into asking employees which organizations mattered to them and then donating to those charities. While this level of involvement may not be feasible for larger companies, it does provide proof that no matter where you are you can give back to the world if you find creative ways to get your team involved. Here are a few ways to foster a culture of giving in your company.
With Powerhouse celebrating its 10th anniversary this fall, we thought it only fitting to highlight the client who has been with us the longest. Powerhouse has been providing our successful remote team solution for Cape Henry Associates (CHA), headquartered in Virginia Beach, VA, for eight years now.
CHA is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business that specializes in Manpower, Training, and Analysis. As a small business operating in both the military contracting and civilian enterprise sectors, CHA is paving the way with their innovative, at-the-point-of-need curriculum and training products powered by their Lighthouse technology stack, capable of endless configurations to process and analyze data at the fastest speeds.
The CEO of Bright Funds, an organization that helps companies give back, has written an article for Forbes.com on how to build a workplace philanthropy program. From reasons why it’s crucial to give back to tips on how to build and develop your own program, this article is a great place to start. (more…)
