Manjuka
Previous to doing my first Karuna Appeal in 1998 (through a snow covered early March in Edinburgh!) I worked in an evolution gift shop for a couple of years. Working in the shop got me interested in translating Dharma practice into everyday life and work situations. In retrospect my naïve idealism at that time needed grounding in the world, and so it’s not surprising I was drawn to Karuna. Doing that first Appeal opened me up to the possibilities and challenges of this approach to practice. Since 1998 I have knocked on thousands of doors as a fundraiser – sometimes I’d forget what city I was in as all the similar streets would blur into one big Karuna Appeal!
I was ordained in 1999 and led my first Appeal in 2000. Training on the Appeals has shown me that most fundraisers naturally know how to communicate; it’s an ordinary yet mysterious thing that they have a sense of. My approach to training holds this faith in innate ability while also helping the teams make sense of and respond to the various fears and habitual patterns that get in the way of making connection. My training as a psychosynthesis counsellor, my interest in group work and my fondness for dreams, rituals and the imaginal life all influence my approach to fundraising training.