Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Dunn.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Jessica. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I moved to Dallas from Oklahoma in 2001 after studying Business Administration at the University of Oklahoma. Upon moving to Dallas, I started working at an office job thinking that is what I studied to do so that is what I need to do. However, I was miserable and in 2005 my mom fell ill and while I was helping her in her recovery she said stop complaining and do something different. That night I applied to join AmeriCorps (the domestic PeaceCorps) and after going through the process I was accepted to the AmeriCorps National Preparedness and Response Corp at the American Red Cross Dallas.
In August 2005, I joined 9 other AmeriCorps members at the Red Cross and the first official day in the office (after our two-week training) Hurricane Katrina hit. The things I learned the week before in training were now a reality as we hosted over 25,000 people affected by the storms for over 45 days in two mega-shelters and numerous small shelters. After our shelters closed I went to Biloxi and Gulfport, Mississippi to assist with the relief efforts there. For the next 10 months, I responded to numerous house and apartment fires along with local and national disasters. Through this work, I fell in love with North Texas and being able to help people as a job.
In July 2006, after graduating from the AmeriCorps program, I joined the United Way of Metropolitan Dallas as a Campaign Associate to help share the story of the Red Cross and all of the agencies that came together to help during the largest disaster the country had ever responded to.
After assisting with the campaign, I joined the American Red Cross as a full-time employee in November 2006. For the next two years, I worked in Community Outreach. In 2008, I was asked to join the Red Cross Financial Development team to build strong relationships with Corporate partners. For the next 6 years, I grew a Corporate team, helping raise millions of dollars for disaster relief, programs and assistance.
At the Red Cross, I also met my husband Josh who also worked for the Red Cross at the time. We got married and welcomed our first son Jackson in 2009 and our son Cooper in 2013.
In July 2013, I left the Red Cross to become the Executive Director of the Dallas Stars Foundation the philanthropic arm of the NHL Hockey team the Dallas Stars. For the next 3 1/2 years I worked to build their board, staff, develop giving pillars, created their volunteer program Foundation Stars, engage the Stars players wives and girlfriends in volunteer opportunities in the community, partner with the Alumni players for community events, grow their special events, bring back the annual player calendar and increase their revenue annually. In 2015, the Dallas Stars Foundation partnered with the 9 other professional sports teams in Texas to pass legislation to allow 50/50 raffles for our team foundations. In February 2016, the Dallas Stars Foundation became the first team to have a raffle in Texas.
In January 2017, I joined the March of Dimes Dallas Market as their Executive Director. The March of Dimes just celebrated their 80th anniversary and I have worked over the last year to rebuild the board, the staff, our special events including our Signature Chefs Auction and our March for Babies. I have the best team and it is absolutely amazing to go to work with them each day. I know people say they have great teams but I truly do. Every day is an adventure and an honor to work for the March of Dimes and with the families we serve.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Nothing is ever a smooth road haha! It was difficult at times to be a full-time employee plus a mother to two young sons. Trying to find a work-life balance especially when working in disasters or sports can be a challenge.
However, I have a great support system with my husband Josh and my mom. I am so blessed that the March of Dimes is so family focused and with my sons being 4 and 8 now I get to spend more time with them, enjoy their sporting events, school programs and be in the moment with them.
March of Dimes Dallas Market – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Prematurity is the number 1 killer of babies in the United States. We are working to change that and help more moms have full-term pregnancies and healthy babies. From polio to prematurity the March of Dimes has focused on researching the problems that threaten our children and finding ways to prevent them.
We are one of the oldest non-profits and set out to cure polio and we did. With that success behind us, we began to focus on fighting birth defects, premature birth and infant death with innovations like newborn screenings and surfactant therapy.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I have been proud of so many things it is hard to choose just one. A big one though was in 2016 I was nominated to join the first United State of Women Summit in Washington DC.
5,000 women from all over the world, who were nominated based on how they are changing lives and their communities, attended a two-day conference that had speakers such as President Barack Obama, Oprah, Amy Poehler, Vice President Joe Biden, Malala Yousafzai and so many more inspirational people. It was a shock that I was nominated and picked but it was absolutely life changing and I am so honored I was able to be a part of it.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.marchofdimes.org
- Phone: 972-669-3463
- Instagram: @marchofdimes
- Facebook: March of Dimes DFW
- Twitter: @mod_dfw
Image Credit:
Liz Jackson Photography, Edward Edwards Photography
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
