Fourteen years ago, a photography client told me I should come to a Makefield Women’s Association meeting.

So I did.

I went with her one night, joined the group and, apparently, REALLY committed to the assignment because here we are 14 years later. Hahaha.

If you aren’t familiar with MWA, we’re a group of women based in Lower Makefield Township who spend a whole lot of time trying to do good things right here in our community. Every year, we nominate and vote on a group of local nonprofits to become our Annual Beneficiaries, and then we spend the year raising money, collecting donations, volunteering and finding ways to support the work they’re already doing.

And I think that’s probably why I’ve stayed involved for so long.

MWA CARES.

I know that sounds ridiculously simple, but it’s true. We see something that needs to be done, someone says, “Okay, how are we going to do this?” and then this group of women somehow figures it out.

And you guys know me. That’s pretty much my love language. Hahaha.

Of course, somewhere along the way I managed to turn my volunteer position into another marketing job.

Shocking, I know.

I’ve managed the MWA website, social media, and marketing since 2013, and I genuinely love taking the skills I use every day at Appletini and putting them to work for something completely different.

And, because apparently I don’t know how to go anywhere without a camera, I photograph a lot of it too.

Over the years, I’ve donated photography for our fundraisers, check presentations, and all kinds of important moments in between. I get to photograph the big checks being handed over, the people behind the organizations we’re supporting, the events we’ve worked so hard to put together, and all of those little moments that help us show our community what we’re actually doing.

Which brings me to my other MWA job.

Bingo.

Ohhhhh, Bingo.

If you’ve been around me anytime between approximately July and October for the past several years, there is a very good chance you’ve heard me talk about Designer Bag Bingo.

I help with all of the marketing and ticket sale management for Bingo, which means by the time October rolls around I have looked at A LOT of spreadsheets, written A LOT of posts and probably know exactly how many empty seats are left in the room at any given moment.

And then, after spending months helping sell all those tickets, I get my big moment.

I get the microphone.

For the past seven years, I have been MWA’s Bingo caller, and I LOVE this job way more than any normal human probably should.

There is just something so much fun about standing up there in front of a room full of people who are eating, drinking, laughing with their friends and staring me down because they are ONE NUMBER AWAY from winning a designer bag.

No pressure, Tiff.

And somewhere in the middle of all that fun, I always have this moment where I look around the room and think, we did it again.

Because every year Bingo feels slightly impossible.

There are bags to buy, sponsors to find, tickets to sell, prizes to organize, tables to set, desserts to arrange, approximately nine million tiny details to remember and, eventually, an entire room to clean up.

And somehow, every year, everybody finds their thing and gets to work.

That’s what I love about this group.

Somebody is amazing at leading the whole thing. Somebody knows how to get sponsors. Somebody is organizing prizes. Somebody is decorating. Somebody is keeping track of money. Somebody is setting up tables. Somebody is cleaning up at the end of the night.

And somebody has to yell B-12 into a microphone.

Listen, we all have our gifts.

But here’s the part that really keeps me coming back year after year.

Eventually, after all the fundraising, meetings, spreadsheets, and Bingo numbers, we get to give the money away.

And THAT is the good stuff.

Each spring, our beneficiaries come and tell us what they’re doing in our community and how MWA’s support is helping them do more of it.

Suddenly all those little things connect.  The social posts mattered.  The ticket somebody bought mattered.  The business that sponsored something mattered.  The woman who stayed late to clean up mattered.  The ridiculous amount of time I spent staring at a Bingo spreadsheet mattered.

It all added up to something.

And I think that’s the thing I love most about volunteering, whether it’s through MWA, Fostering Hope or just something that comes across my path.

I don’t necessarily have the skills to do the work these organizations are doing every day.

But I know how to market something.

I know how to build a website.

I know how to take a photograph.

I know how to rally my people.

And, as it turns out, I can call a pretty mean game of Bingo.

So those are the things I bring to the table.

Fourteen years after walking into that first meeting, I’m still incredibly proud to be part of a group of women who care deeply about this community, work really hard to make things happen and somehow manage to have a whole lot of fun while we’re doing it.

And speaking of fun…

Our 11th Annual Designer Bag Bingo is on October 16, and yes, yours truly will once again be behind the microphone.

Tickets are $35 and include 10 games of Bingo, a chance at a door prize, dessert, and coffee. You can bring your own food and drinks, grab a table with your friends and settle in for one of my favorite nights of the year.

Come hang out with me, help us raise some money for some really incredible organizations, and maybe go home with a fabulous designer bag.

And if you’re waiting on one number…

I’ll get to it eventually.

Probably.