Member Spotlight: Saunya Connelly
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Saunya Connelly has been a member of the SSTB since January 2017. Saunya joined after fellow SSTB member, Kathy Jentz, told her about the Timebank, and then Saunya attended the Timebank’s January 2017 Repair Cafe and was hooked!
Many of the Timebank hours Saunya has earned came from doing some of the work of running the Timebank. Up until 2022, she worked on the Timebank's social media and event planning team. Saunya chose these roles because there was a need for a Twitter administrator at SSTB, and her professional background is in marketing and advertising. Saunya really enjoyed the Timebank and wanted to get the word out about it, so managing the Twitter account was a perfect fit for her.
Planning and running events for the SSTB has provided Saunya a tremendous amount of joy. Saunya was the lead for several Timebank events and fundraisers, including leading SSTB members to make baked goods and gather items for a bake sale/yard sale fundraiser and to arrange volunteers for various other fundraisers. Though the currency of timebanking is time, not money, there are some expenses which require money such as the SSTB website. Saunya helped to meet and exceed the Timebank's fundraising targets!
It’s not just a one-way street of service though. Saunya has also taken advantage of some great offerings by SSTB members too. For example, Saunya says she’s not much of a cook so a majority of the exchanges she has enjoyed have been for soups, stews and baked goods. Timebank members have also helped Saunya with sewing and clothing alterations. Also, because diabetes runs on both sides of her family, Saunya has had nutritional counseling from an SSTB member. In fact, Saunya credits the SSTB with helping her to look at the foods she eats and make better choices so her blood sugar remains within acceptable levels. Another recent SSTB offering Saunya is taking advantage of and is finding very useful is the updating of her federal resume.
While all the SSTB offerings Saunya has experienced have been wonderful, among her favorites was the Reiki therapy she received from a timebank member. Self care is very important to Saunya, and it is also important for stress relief so the Reiki was a perfect fit. While Saunya had heard of Reiki before, she had never tried it before the Timebank opened an opportunity for her to try something new!
Keep your eyes on Saunya Connelly’s offers in the future. Saunya is currently in a professional development program that examines her strengths and develops certain skills. Saunya would like to take what she learns in social media and content development and design new offers for her SSTB profile in the future.
Saunya has really enjoyed being a SSTB member, and what she has enjoyed the most is meeting people who see the value of providing and receiving services, using time as opposed to money. Saunya says she always thought she was born in the wrong decade–she should have come of age in the sixties rather than be born in the sixties! We at the SSTB say whatever decade Saunya was born in, we are glad she is part of the Timebank!
Timebank member Madeline Caliendo interviewed Saunya and wrote this lovely feature for the SSTB website and newsletter. In doing this, Madeline earned timebank hours. There are many ways members can do important work for the timebank and earn hours along the way: writing, social media, event planning, member support, website and newsletter help, etc. If you want to help, please write to silverspringtimebank@gmail.com, and we can suggest tasks that fit your skills and schedule.