DAY 14: Why I’m trading SnapChat accounts with Kristyn Conner || #StrubSnapSwaps
From Feb. 27 to April 16, Chris Strub will trade his Snapchat account with 50 different Snapchatters from around the globe. Add ChrisStrub on SnapChat to meet them all. During the 50 days, a portion of the proceeds from sales of Chris’s book will go to the nonprofits Chris visited during the #TeamStrub 50-state, 100-day journey. See the full list of NPOs that Chris visited here. On March 11, the nonprofit beneficiary will be Youth on Their Own in Tucson, Ariz.
I had one of the worst nights of my life in Las Cruces, N.M.
It was a brutally eye-opening struggle, the night before I was to visit with Big Brothers Big Sisters out there. Great organization, great experience, great weather — all the circumstances were perfect.
But in Las Cruces, N.M., sitting alone in a parking lot at a Ramada, I had hit the low point of the trip and, quite frankly, the low point of my late 20's.
I doubted whether what I was doing was worth it. I doubted whether I had made the right decision, to go on a trip at all. I doubted my self-worth and all the terrible emotions a young man goes through every once in a while.
But when I got to Youth on Their Own in Tucson, Ariz., the next day, I realized again that it was all worth it.
I realized that, for as bad as the issues in my head might’ve been, there are thousands and thousands of youths struggling because of circumstances out of their own control.
Youth homelessness is a huge problem nationwide, and my conversation with David Martin at YOTO genuinely opened my eyes to that. The work that YOTO does is setting a model for other organizations around the country, and by showing up there with a GoPro, a cell phone and a mission, I could do my part in spreading the message of YOTO’s great work with the world.
I have made some terrific friends in Arizona, particularly in the Phoenix area. The Social Media Club out there is one of the best in the country, and one of my best friends in the world, Steve Sasman, is also Phoenix-based.
The point of #StrubSnapSwaps, though, is to tell the stories of the nonprofit organizations I worked with, to encourage them to tell their stories, to get them more involved in the space, to bring their important stories to the world.
So one of the first phone calls I made in planning this trip was Kristyn Conner, an expert grant-writer — in fact, one of the best in the country, that I met — whose role at YOTO has morphed since last June when I visited.
She’s now managing social media for YOTO, in addition to other roles, and I’m thrilled she agreed to bring my friends back to YOTO to meet some of the staff — including David “Bow Tie” Martin, a *very* smart nonprofit executive with some extremely impressive connections — to tell their story firsthand.
What’s even more exciting about having YOTO tell its own story is this: the youths in the program cannot be photographed. So many nonprofits struggle with this particular issue: how do we tell our story on social media without being able to show what it is that we do?
Kristyn Conner, David Martin and the crew at YOTO will have a day to demonstrate exactly how that’s done.
You’ll surely see the mini-mall, the signature element of YOTO, where I volunteered briefly during my stay. I wrote about my time at YOTO — as well as my extraordinarily trying emotional struggle in New Mexico — in my book, and it truly was a turning point.
Perhaps this #StrubSnapSwaps day will be a turning point, if not for YOTO, then for another nonprofit out there. I hope Kristyn and David see the value in spending some time on Snapchat, because I genuinely hope nonprofits like YOTO choose to embrace Snapchat to tell their stories in 2016.
My favorite part of the story? The first Snapchat Kristyn ever sent was on my account, when I handed her my phone in this interview in her office. And now here we are, broadcasting YOTO’s story to the world, 10 seconds at a time.
YOTO has an outstanding reputation of being a leader in the nonprofit space for years; I can absolutely see them being the first to embrace Snapchat to continue to tell their story, attract volunteers, and raise funds.
World, it is my pleasure to introduce you to Youth on Their Own in Tucson, Ariz. Let’s make them feel welcome and hope they choose to stick around!
