Monti: Hi, my name is Monty. I’m one of the activity coordinators here at FIL and I’ve been here for about a year and a half now.
Question: You’ve been with FIL for almost 2 years now. What has been the most rewarding part of connecting with our residents and leading activity groups?
Monti: The most rewarding part for me would be so many the growth uh and and the progression being able to engage with the residents on activities and exposing them to new opportunities and experiences.
Q: You’re known for building amazing community connections. What drives you to network and create partnerships for our residents?
Monti: Honestly, I’ve always been into networking and community outreach, so it was just very fulfilling for me to actually be able to have a source to funnel my efforts into. Being able to see how much more I can do and get accomplished at FIL with cultivating these partnerships definitely drives me.
So just being able to have a more expanded vision keeps me going.
Q: You bring a lot of passion and creativity into your activity planning. Where does that passion come from and how do you keep your ideas fresh?
Monti: Thank you very much. Um, yes, passion definitely drives my purpose. I feel that the residents definitely give me what I need to to keep going. Being able to connect with them and seeing the the fruits of my efforts being appreciated, you know, the thank you’s and the, “Hey, I missed that. Are we going to do that again?” or the, “hey, uh, I did that and I want to do that again”. So, all of those different responses, just the feedback that I get from them definitely, I would say is it.
Q: Can you share a memorable moment from an activity or an event that reminded you why you love what you do?
Monti: If I had to pick one, because there’s definitely a lot, it would be one of my most recent projects. I know that Bonnie has so much on her schedule. She volunteers and fitness is a really really big journey for her and it’s actually one for me as well. So I lately I’ve been doing morning walks and when we have our walking group that we started, Bonnie is actually out volunteering. So now every Saturday morning I make it my business to get up extra early on my day off and we get together and it was aimed to be just me and Bonnie and whoever else we can get to join in. We get them to join in. But we go for a walk and we try and walk at least a mile and for at least 30 minutes every Saturday morning. So that would definitely be the one that that I would say if I had to pick one that would be it.
Q: Outside of scheduling and hosting activities, you also support our marketing efforts. How do you approach representing FIL to the community?
Monti: Oh, that’s a great one. Honestly, it depends on my audience and my crowd. I have a repertoire of different angles that I love to talk about FIL from. I can talk about FIL overall as a program, what we offer not only to our residents, but what it means for FIL to be a part of our local community uh from a resident standpoint, from a staff standpoint. So, really just depends on who I’m talking to, and I love being able to talk about FIL and all the greatness that it does from, like I said, the support that we give our residents to being able to assist them in growth and giving them the tools that they need to be able to better themselves and move forward in life.
From a community aspect of, we support our community. We get out, we’re actually boots on the ground. Whether it’s volunteering, we are out handing out food during food drives, we’re assisting children at community events. So, uh, like I said, depending on who’s listening, I got many different ways to talk about the greatness of FIL.
Q: In your role, you wear many hats, from planning events to making community introductions. How do you balance everything while keeping your energy high?
Monti: I couldn’t do it without the support of my staff and everyone here at FIL. Some days I do struggle When it comes to my energy. You know, life happens. We can’t get away from that. But with the team that I have, I’m always getting a pat on the back. I’m always getting extra suggestions. Everybody’s always trying to figure out how they can put a hand in to make the day go by a lot smoother. Uh so that would definitely be it. The support that I get here at FIL definitely keeps me on point.
If I’m running a little bit behind, I’ve always got somebody who’s willing to step in and fill a gap that’s there. And I believe it’s because I lead the same way. So I’m always trying to find where I can be of help and service. So I believe the universe just gives me that back in return, and I’m forever grateful.
Q: How do you hope your work continues to impact our residents and the broader FIL community moving forward?
Monti: I hope that it continues in a sense of just reflection and for everybody to kind of embody really what it means to be community. Watching from where I started, and I’ve worked with some residents a lot closer than I have with some others to help them overcome some journey, struggles that they have. And it’s just very rewarding being able to see where they started versus where they are and then to have the vision of where we want them to be. So being able to see them being kinder to each other, being able to see where at one point they weren’t considering how each other were feeling. Everybody was always just worried about, you know, how I feel and know where I am in the moment. To be able to watch them hold the doors for each other. To be able to watch them assist each other with cleaning up after meal times and encouraging each other to come out and be active and engage in activities and programming. So just seeing that fulfillment of what community is, I think as long as they continue that, I know that uh my heart’s warm.
Q: What do you enjoy most about working with the FIL team and being part of this community?
Monti: Like I said my job is is very, very, very rewarding and fulfilling. Me as an entrepreneur I get to check so many boxes when I come to work. You know a lot of people go to work and they feel it. That’s one thing I can definitely say. I could double my 40 hours in a week and not feel it because there’s a phrase that people say when you love what you do, you never work a day in your life, and I didn’t really understand that, but I can definitely say I resonate with that statement now. I definitely do. There’s some days where I come to work early and I leave late. And again, like I said, I don’t really feel it because I’m productive, and I’m able to move forward in purpose and the passion is there and it’s just overall rewarding. So, just being able to make a difference, to see that the ideas that I have are being utilized, that the efforts that I put in are being noticed. You know, I’ve worked for some really large companies in the past where, you put your all into it and you’re just a number and here at FIL, I feel seen. And I think for me, that’s probably what I love the most.
Q: What are you most grateful for this year?
Monti: Opportunity. I’m very, very grateful for opportunity. From day one, how I found FIL, the journey that I was on when I found FIL, just the place that I was in my life, the place that I am now. Opportunity has definitely presented itself. And you know, sometimes opportunity presents itself and we miss it and and I’m grateful that I was able to slow down at that point in my life and be able to see that. So, here and moving forward, I would definitely say I’m most grateful for the opportunity that’s been given to me. The opportunity to be able to impact others, to take what it is that I learned here at FIL and apply it not only to my life, but to be able to share that. So, definitely the opportunity of just being present, being a part of something so wonderful.
Q: If you could leave one last message for your residents, what would that be?
Monti: If I was going to leave one last message to my residents, it would be for them to keep going. Things are going to always be rough. There’s going to always be something in the way. There’s going to always be a reason to turn back. Just keep going. You know, when you’re in the middle of something and you’re going through something, that’s literally what it is. You go through it. You don’t want to stop there, you know. So, just keep pushing forward. Always strive for more. Just seek better. So, definitely keep going.
Q: The floor is yours ….
Monti: Oh, man. I’m a people person. So, I love to be able to help. I love to be able to make a difference, and I want me to rub off on anybody that I I come in contact with. The one thing I love about our group that is so diverse. We come from many ethnic backgrounds, different religious backgrounds, beliefs, and we all have a common ground here at FIL and that’s to grow in our independence. And independence looks so different for so many of our residents. And you have to really get to know everyone on an individual level to be able to uh put together a plan that is not going to be specific to just one person.
You got to really be able to have a vision that’s all-encompassing. So, I just want everybody to take a moment and take the time out and put effort and intention into everything that we do. Sometimes we go about our days, and we just let the day go by, but actually be intentional about the things that we do. You know, the people that we come in contact with.
Just always put your best foot forward, and don’t be afraid to shine. You know, sometimes we dim our light to not outshine others or to kind of maybe fit in, but if you were meant to stand out, do that.
