Rachel Cheetham-Richard, Vice President

Rachel’s Volunteer Gig:  Generation Appreciation Philadelphia, a.k.a GenPhilly
Rachel spent a tremendous amount of time during her childhood with her paternal grandmother.  “Manou”, as she used to call her. They would go on vacation together, spend weekends together during the school year, go shopping, watch cheesy films, and when Rachel moved to the U.S. they would call each other every other week. When Manou passed away last year, she left a big hole in Rachel’s life. Soon afterward, Rachel met two terrific women, Kate Clark and Lauren Ring, both working at the Philadelphia Corporation for Aging, who are also leading the development and activities of GenPhilly. GenPhilly’s mission is to inspire emerging professionals to make a connection with older adults in their personal and professional lives.  It is an alliance of individuals and organizations dedicated to promoting an age-friendly Philadelphia. Rachel decided to volunteer because she saw this as an opportunity to remain connected to her grandmother, better understand and connect to elderly’s issues, and participate in the promotion of Philadelphia as a place where growing older doesn’t have to be alienating. Rachel is currently volunteering on a GenPhilly event in conjunction with the Corzo Center/University of the Arts and the College of Art & Design. The event (Sept. 16 at UArts), entitled Women & Aging: Image (R)evolution, will feature Sarah Kagan, Professor of Gerontological Nursing at Penn and Valerie Temple Lange, Programming and Community Outreach Coordinator at the Bryn Mawr Film Institute.

Rachel is not the only member of the Azavea team actively volunteering in the Philadelphia region. We’ve polled everyone in the office about their volunteer involvements.