Catherine Douglas

Informational Interview #1
November 6, 2014

I spoke with Barrett Ranson for my first informational interview. I met Mrs. Ranson over
parents weekend and she asked what my plans were for after graduation. When I told
her that I was not sure but I was very interested in Nonprofit management (I had no idea
that she even worked), she insisted that I call her the following week to discuss her job
and her experience in the nonprofit sector. She gave me her phone number and email
and I reached out to her first through emailI expressed how great it was to meet her
and then asked if we could set up a time to talk on the phone, as she lives in Charlotte
and I knew it would be hard to conduct the interview in person. I also attached my
resume for her review.
I am very passionate about nonprofit work and would love to one day be in
charge of marketing and/or fundraising for a large nonprofit. My target cities are
Washington D.C., Charlotte, and Atlanta, so speaking with Mrs. Ranson was really
beneficial for many reasons. She is the Executive Director of Winghaven Gardens in
Charlotte and also is a member of many philanthropic groups in Charlotte. The Wing
Haven Foundation owns and operates Wing Haven Gardens & Bird Sanctuary and the
Elizabeth Lawrence House & Garden. Their mission is Cultivating sanctuary in nature,
environmental stewardship and the legacy of southern horticulture, and it serves as a
museum and a venue for meetings and events. It reminds me of Reynolda Gardens in
Winston-Salem.

Catherine Douglas
Informational Interview #1
November 6, 2014
Mrs. Ranson attended UNC at Chapel Hill and graduated with a degree in
Communication. She has held various jobs in event planning and sales and eventually
was led to Winghaven gardens where she is able to do a little bit of both. We discussed
first her career path and what she currently does, but most of our conversation actually
centered on my resume, my goals, and how she could help. This was not what I
intended, but because I have had many previous Informational Interviews with Nonprofit
people, as well as internships, this was okay and I really appreciated her desire to help
me. She helped me define my skills and she suggested how these are fitting for certain
positions in the nonprofit sector. She emphasized the cultural double standard of forprofits and nonprofits, and we actually discussed a Ted Talk we had both seen by Dan
Pallota that discussed this double standard and how many causes could be helped
substantially more if nonprofit business was tweaked to mirror more of the corporate,
for-profit processes. This was a really interesting conversation because it led us to
discussing the positive and negative aspects of nonprofit work. She explained that she
thinks the direction of nonprofits is looking hopeful, especially in the fundraising
department, which is exciting for me as I am thinking of approaching this career. Mrs.
Ranson also reminded me that a nonprofit job is never confined to the specific title or
description. Because of limited resources, most staff members all end up doing a little of
everything to fill in the gaps and keeping things moving. She said that this keeps things
exciting but also can be hectic and so one needs to be able to move quickly and multi
task. At Winghaven, her Communications and marketing director helps with events as
well as does the website, social media, brochures, mailings, and organizing community
relations initiatives. These tasks are similar to the tasks I worked on this past summer in

Catherine Douglas
Informational Interview #1
November 6, 2014
my internship, and I really enjoyed it, so it was encouraging to hear Mrs. Ranson say
that I am qualified for a similar position.
Mrs. Ranson suggested websites for me to perform job searches for these types
of positions, and she also told me that she plans to share my resume with various
nonprofits and connections. She would like me to come meet with her and other
nonprofit leaders one day to network as well as conduct more informational interviews. I
really enjoyed this conversation with Mrs. Ranson and because I already had
knowledge of nonprofit work, it was really beneficial to have a more animated and
thoughtful conversation including the Ted Talk discussion.