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Community Corner

Volunteer's "Green Thumb" Helps Nonprofits Remain in the Black

Geri Carlson's volunteerism helps nonprofits with both kinds of green.

I don’t have a green thumb.  I’m not sure what color it is, but it isn’t green.  So, I admire anyone who has a talent for growing things. 

Geri Carlson has that talent, and then some. She is a Master Gardener with an MBA, and has used both skill sets to give back to the community. She was born in Seattle, grew up in Bellevue and began volunteering when she was in high school as a Girl Scout and member of the Junior Orthopedic Guild

While earning her MBA, she worked for Pacific Northwest Bell (now Qwest). When her son was in pre-school, she took a 10-week course to become a Master Gardener and then interned for a year at the Fairwood Library clinic and Bellevue Demonstration Garden. Since then, she has volunteered her green thumb to the Children’s Garden at Orca Elementary School in Seattle, been the Vegetable Co-chair for the Master Gardener Plant Sale and the Fairwood Library/clinic leader for twelve years.

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When she isn’t tending to the garden, Carlson helps local organizations bloom.

“I keep getting asked to be treasurer,” she laughs.

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That’s because she’s good with numbers and has a no-nonsense approach to getting things done. When her son went to elementary school, a friend from the co-op preschool board talked her into becoming the treasurer for the Maplewood Heights PTA, where she started the Read-a-thon that is still going today. When her son moved to , so did she, working on the book fair, sitting on the site council and fundraising for the PTSA and, of course, serving as treasurer. At , she chaired the Teacher Grants and Scholarship Committees, and was a volunteer coordinator for the boys swim team. And, she served as treasurer for the Renton PTSA Council

Today, Carlson has moved from the schools to the , serving as a founding member and (yes) treasurer of the newly formed Friends of Renton Schools Fund within the , helping to bridge the funding gap in our school system.  By anyone’s measure, a big job.

But the school district hasn’t been the only beneficiary of Carlson’s talents. The arts have, too. Though she doesn’t play a musical instrument, or have any desire to act on stage, she served on the Bellevue Philharmonic board for almost 14 years, currently serves as Chair of Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra's board, and is on the  Advisory Council in Renton.

“I like to use the skills I’ve developed,” Carlson says. “Not everyone can balance a check book, and I appreciate being in a position to do that.”

One of the things she’s most proud of is helping to turn the Bellevue Youth Symphony around. When she joined the board, the organization was living on the edge. Carlson got a grant to help with operations and helped the executive director initiate business practices that allowed the organization to grow from having 42 students, to almost 400 students today.

“We’ve been in the black every year since I joined the board,” she says proudly.

One of Carlson’s most memorable volunteer experiences was when her family took in a Russian exchange student for nine months.

“It gave us an opportunity to volunteer with ,” she says. 

The family helped with Rotary’s warm coat drive and volunteered for Renton RotaCare, an experience she shared with her son.

Geri Carlson has spent a lifetime helping things grow. Her garden. Her family. Her community. 

How lucky we are.  

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