SOCIAL JUSTICE BLOG
Read and share extraordinary stories from the frontlines of social change
Nako Takes The Reins
When I started working at the Impact Fund in 2015, I was in transition in my own life. I had a 10-month-old baby and wasn’t sure if the legal profession was still for me. In truth, it wasn’t. As originally conceived, this profession was not intended for a first-generation lawyer, woman of color, new mother, building a family while tamping out a path toward a fulfilling livelihood and a more just future. But again, Jocelyn Larkin and the Impact Fund community were there. With the mentorship of Jocelyn and others, I found a sustainable model of advocacy and training, secure in the knowledge that the hours I worked were helping others while also making me a better lawyer.
Succession - Impact Fund Style: Thoughtful and Joyous!
Under Jocelyn’s leadership, Lindsay has grown into the Executive Director role before our very eyes. Having had the privilege of being a small part of the succession planning arc for the organization, I know that Jocelyn has complete confidence that Lindsay is the right person to step into the Executive Director position. Lindsay’s colleagues and the Board unanimously agree. None of us take for granted the rich resources and infrastructure that Jocelyn, Lindsay, Teddy, Amy, Erin, and the whole organization have so carefully cultivated over the years. They will serve the organization so well in this next chapter.
It’s Not the Numbers, It’s the People
As I prepare to turn over the reins of the Impact Fund to Lindsay, I cannot help but reflect on some of the turning points in the organization’s history and some important people who have made the organization what it is. I write to highlight just a few of those moments and individuals, although I feel that I could fill a book with stories of the many talented people who are or have been part of our Impact Fund family over the past 30 years.
The Impact Fund - From Living Room To Supreme Court
Brad Seligman’s father was a prosecutor at Nuremberg. Selig, as he was known, was a New Deal kid and lawyer-turned-TV/movie-producer who instilled in his son the value of public service and giving back. “Looking back,” says Brad, “it’s pretty obvious that I was destined to be a lawyer and, after a few of the obligatory 60’s detours, I decided to conduct a five-year experiment to see if I might be cut out for the legal profession.” He’s been renewing that experiment ever since.