Connecting People with Purpose: Meet Rena Olson of Uncommon Philanthropist

What if philanthropy wasn’t about wealth at all, but about love made practical? I sit down with my friend Rena Olsen—storyteller, nonprofit pro, and founder of Uncommon Philanthropist—to explore how ordinary people can spark extraordinary impact through simple, repeatable acts of service and smarter giving. Rena shares her winding path from broadcast journalism to agency work to faith-led nonprofit roles, and how a season serving in a village at the base of Mount Kilimanjaro shifted her vision. The result is a movement built on everyday generosity, where small gifts and shared stories can change a neighborhood.

We dig into the power of giving circles and why pooling modest annual contributions can become a meaningful grant and a tight-knit community. Rena explains how to build a practical generosity plan—deciding what you will give, where you will serve, and who nearby needs steady support.

Rena shares the story behind her book, Maxine’s Joy, a children’s book honoring her mother’s life and raising funds for Alzheimer’s causes. It’s a tender guide for families navigating dementia and a living example of turning grief into service. 

Pick up your copy of Maxine's Joy here.

Listen to my conversation with Dr. Sal Alaimo about philanthropy here.

For a limited time only, Powerful Evidence, our course on evaluation for non-evaluators is on sale for $99 through the end of the year! Get it here.

Guest Bio

Rena Olsen is the founder and creator of Uncommon Philanthropist.  The UP platform is a culmination of her calling to generate significant funding and awareness for important causes while utilizing her skills as a storyteller, connector, creative, inspirer and nonprofit consultant to get it done.

Rena believes in the transformative power of serving others, which benefits both the giver and receiver of the gift.  She also believes that philanthropy, defined as “love of humanity,” is something we are all called to do…to love and serve one another.  

Rena challenges us to be informed, encouraged and to engage in charitable works and giving.  More nonprofits needed new ways to share their stories and engage with donors and volunteers. 

Before UP, Rena spent her professional years working in marketing communications, crafting campaigns, messaging and events for both for-profit and nonprofit organizations. 

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Music by Zach Price: Zachpricet@gmail.com

Transcript

Ann Price 0:44

Hi, everybody, welcome back to Community Possibilities. You know, it's been a while since I've been able to get an episode out. The last couple of months have been super busy here at Community Evaluation Solutions. We've been wrapping up projects for new clients. There's just been a lot going on. And, you know, truth be told, I'm pretty picky about who I bring on the show. We are starting to make waves, and so we get contacted a lot with um, you know, people trying to place uh their clients on our show. But I only want to put people out there who, you know, genuinely have our community at heart. So today I am talking to my good friend Rena Olsen. Rena and I have known each other for a long time. We have a couple of kids about the same age. She has grandchildren now, so do I. So we have a lot in common. We both love talking to community members who are doing the hard work. So today, Rena is gonna be talking to us about her new venture called Uncommon Philanthropists. And really, that is all about helping everyone see that they have a place in making their community better. So she has a new podcast uh that she is gonna tell us about related to UP, where and her goal really is to create a movement of generosity through service and increasing giving to provide a platform for nonprofits to connect and tell their stories. She also talks about her new book, Maxine's Joy, which is the story of her mom, her life, and her journey through Alzheimer's. It's Rina's way of honoring her mother. It's such a beautiful book. I look forward to picking one up and having her sign a copy. I hope you will check that out too. Rina is a faith-filled person. You're gonna hear that in the podcast. It drives everything she does. And I know you're gonna love this conversation with my friend Rena. So let's get to it. Hi, everybody. Welcome back to Community Possibilities. I am just tickled pink to welcome my friend Rena to the show.

Rena Olson 3:15

Hey, Rena Olsen, how are you? Oh my gosh, what a I'm just so happy to see you on the screen and have my coffee and to be able to have this conversation. We just um we share a similar heart with uh wanting to help people and and um in so many ways. So thank you so much. It's been much too long since I've seen you.

Ann Price 3:37

I know, I know. So um, for those of you uh who are listening, so I have known Rena and her handsome hubby for I don't know what feels like it's probably been it's gotta be 30-something years, right? Probably, probably, yes, we have kids that are about the same age, went to the same high school, we went to the same church for a long time, we lived in the same town for a long time. So, yeah, and when I was really making a conscious shift in my business, you were just so helpful in really helping me lean into my identity as a community psychologist and really owning that, helping with the website redesign and the rebranding. And oh yeah, helping me name this podcast, right? You were a big you were a big part of the podcast even happening. So thank you, friend.

Rena Olson 4:34

Wow, that um I'm I'm blushing and humbled um by your compliments. And uh, you know, we're all in this together, and that's part of the fun is in doing live together, is sharing what we know and and helping each other along the way. And um, yeah, just seeing your brand up there on the wall. It's so it's so beautiful. But I mean, you just had such a strong, clear vision on what you wanted. I I just kind of guided it along the way.

Rena’s Winding Path To Service

Ann Price 5:02

So yes, she did. And and I I am I am grateful. And even the sign, like Rena, I want to sign like you've got a sign. Of course, you changed your sign, and we're gonna talk about that. Yeah. But um, you know, I always start the podcast out off by asking people just to kind of explain how they came to be who they are. And I'm always so much more interested in the road uh that you have been on versus where I went to school and what my degrees are in, right? Because I really feel like we are all called to this work for a reason, for a purpose. Uh, and sometimes it takes us some, you know, some windy paths to get us to where we're supposed to be. So tell us about your windy path.

Rena Olson 5:44

Oh, it is it is it's a long and windy path.

Ann Price 5:47

And so I start singing that song, long and windy and growth.

Rena Olson 5:54

I do not sing, so you can uh just come along quietly in the background. Uh, so I have roots in Texas and Wyoming. I spent 11 years in Texas, that's where I was born. My my parents uh lived in Oklahoma. My mom was a survivor of the Dust Bowl in Oklahoma. And um, so I have, you know, my dad went into business with his brother when I was 11. So the family packed up and moved to Wyoming, Casper, Wyoming. And I think I was just at the perfect age where I was able to embrace it. You know, I didn't, I didn't have, you know, it wasn't like I was heartbroken because I was losing my friend base because I think that that's really a good age. But I embraced being in the West and I learned to ski. And um, my girlfriends that I made, I'm still friends with them to this day. But I I kind of found my way. I loved drama. I did musical theater and um knew that it would probably be near impossible to have a career being an actress. So I switched gears and thought, well, I could do broadcasting journalism. So I shift gears and so my degrees in broadcasting journalism. And I really enjoyed the storytelling aspect. And I was like, I think that was kind of my natural um, you know, how God had kind of made me to be a storyteller. And um, but kind of the goal was to to get a television news reporter job somewhere, not in the West. I was done being cold. So I packed up my Camaro, my yellow Camaro. Oh, that's so fun.

Ann Price 7:45

My BFF in college had a yellow Camaro.

From Storytelling To Nonprofits

Rena Olson 7:49

Had a Camaro and um moved to Atlanta because my brother was moving here. He had he had connections through his wife. And um I just fell in love with Metro Atlanta. I'd never been here. It wasn't on my radar. People in you know, Wyoming, we we all went west, or we went to Denver, or we went to Phoenix or or California, but I was just charmed by Atlanta. And even being 22 years old, I was like, okay, there's job opportunities, it's beautiful. Someday I can hopefully own a house, you know, kind of those things went through my head. And I just planted in Atlanta and it's still my home and I love it so much. And um very grateful to be here, but I couldn't crack that nut into television news. I visited a number of smaller markets and um kind of struck out, but then I was like, okay, what's plan B? So I went to work for an ad agency in downtown Atlanta and learned how to write copy and project manage and really all the things that I kind of still do today. I really learned firsthand in that small agency. It was called Crumblian Associates. And um, so I was in that lane, you know, doing marketing promotion PR for a long, long time. I did get to tell a little bit of stories through the work that we would do. Um, but you know, I kind of the corporate slug was um, you know, I just uh sometimes I was just very miserable. You know, I felt like, you know, just not working for altruistic purposes really weighed heavy on me at times. And um about 10 years ago, I was able to shift into nonprofit work and took, you know, my marketing knowledge as a marketing director and event planner and went to work for a nonprofit called No Longer Bound, which I know you're aware of, um, a faith-based men's addiction recovery center in Metro Atlanta. They do just amazing work. So really kind of again cut my teeth there on um, you know, how to raise money and you know, engage with donors. And um, from there I went to work for as a consultant for a nonprofit that serves a ministry in Tanzania. So I got the chance to go to Africa, uh, Tanzania four times just um I didn't know that would just light me up in a way that would be transformative, but I did. I love Africa. I just um hope, hopeful for the chance to go back soon. Um, but all that said, I was still kind of doing the basic work of marketing stuff. And um, you know, that call on my heart was like, you know, just back to my storytelling roots. And um you mentioned my first podcast, Relevate. So I launched that in, oh my gosh, I guess it was 2019. And um that was my my first purely philanthropic, sorry, not philanthropic, but storyteller. You know, I I love audio as theater, and I believe in the power of story to really transform lives. And um the word relevant means to restore to good spirit. So the whole spirit of that podcast was to interview people who've who've gone through really hard, difficult uh times, but uh, you know, through the struggle, they've been transformed and have a story to tell that would hopefully inspire other people, you know, to reach for uh healing or to reach for sobriety in the midst of addiction. And um, so that was that was really fun. But kind of my last chapter that has led us to today is I have launched a new platform called Uncommon Philanthropist. And the heartbeat of that is that we are really all capable of being philanthropists. It is not um something reserved for the ultra-wealthy, which most people can't even say the word philanthropist. They're like, I have a problem with it sometimes. It's a hard word.

unknown 12:11

Yeah.

Rena Olson 12:12

I mean, it just sounds like you're, you know, like you're ultra wealthy or you're rich and you, you know, you have your name on a building. And um, when I kind of kept thinking, how do I inspire people to engage in serving charitable works? Philanthropy just kind of kept coming up. And I was like, well, let me look, let me look it up. And one of the definitions said love of humanity. And I was like, that's it. So my definition of being an uncommon philanthropist, you know, it is about about giving and serving, but it's that broader definition of loving, you know, loving our neighbor that I think um we can all reach for that. We can all agree on that. If we were all doing that more, um, our world, our country, our our neighborhoods would be so much better. So that is my platform.

Ann Price 13:08

I love that so much. And um, as you were talking, I was reminded of my um my friend and my colleague Sal Elimo, who came on the podcast, gosh, probably about two years ago. And he has a very similar philosophy. He wants everybody to think of themselves as being able to do philanthropic work, yes, just like um you and uh we talked about uh the sewing ladies, these ladies in the community, a lot of them are um widow uh widows and that kind of thing, but they get together and they sew clothes for you know kids in foster care. So anyway, and he's done a couple of documentaries, so that that is so awesome. So I was yeah, I was really curious like why uncommon. Um, so I think you started to kind of explain that it's uncommon because we don't think of it that way. People people just assume philanthropy is the big, you know, it's the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation or the Chan Zuckerberg Foundation or McKenzie Scott, they don't think about um helping in their communities with the with nonprofits who are doing good work. Yeah, right. So is that what you mean by uncommon? Yeah.

Rena Olson 14:21

Yeah, it's like the the traditional philanthropists that are doing amazing work in the world. We, you know, we please continue to do that. It's not a knock on them at all, but it's it's an invitation as uncommon philanthropists are ups to get to get involved in something greater than yourself. And I think people that have never been exposed to philanthropy or charitable giving or volunteering or serving, they just don't know about the, you know, that reciprocal effect that happens, how it's how it trans, you know, you're trans, you go into to help and transform other lives, but you know, it boomerangs back and just enriches your life in such an incredible way. And that's really I want people to be experiencing that part of philanthropy.

Ann Price 15:11

Gotcha. So is it your trips to um Tanzania that really was the bridge between the storytelling you were doing on Relevate and the shifts that you were doing to nonprofit work? Like there's there's another step. Was that the bridge? I have heard that you're so wise. You're so wise, Ann. Well, I have heard um people say that like Africa and India are the kind of the play I you know I love to travel, right? But those are the places that really seem to change people's lives. And I'm curious about that that connection.

Rena Olson 15:45

Uh truly. So so being on the ground in Tanzania, in just so the the village where the nonprofit is called Ubora, U-B-O-R-A-T-Z, which means excellence and um Swahili, the this rural village is at the base of Mount Kilimanjaro. And it's just, I mean, it the it's just so beautiful. Sunflowers everywhere, the people are um so incredible. Church in Tanzania is perhaps my favorite thing ever. But you know, looking around, so Ubora is highly focused in a village. They're really focused on education and job initiatives, doing great work, been there for 25 years, really have transformed a village. But looking around, I'm like, oh my gosh, there's just so much need. And that was really what kind of got me to, you know, that restlessness where, you know, I love what this ministry is doing, but I want to be able to help more people. So that was really, that was kind of the that's where the rub began. I was like, wow, we're doing great work, but wow, look at the look at the need. I visited a Catholic school orphanage run by this unbelievable Catholic nun, but um, she takes in disabled children, um, blind children. Um, there's an abundance of albinos or something in the genetic pool there where there's these albinos and they're at risk of losing their very lives. So the parents turn over these kids, and sister um Maria is really the only place they can go to. But just being there, I mean, I was like, oh my, the need of that one community. Um, and you know, they see Americans and they think we're all rich. And I was like, you know, I will continue to share your story. So, you know, there were little things like that that would happen that I was like, you know, I just I need to be able to be broader with with my message of of inviting people to to get involved. Gotcha. You know, so many people are just um, and I think if you don't have a a church connection or synagogue connection or you're not serving in rotary, um, it's just kind of hard to find your way to engage, to find your your cause. So I like to have discussions about that and um you know, just giving in in general because it's also so incredibly interesting to me.

Defining Uncommon Philanthropy

Ann Price 18:28

So that's kind of what like I want other people to know that they can get involved too and they can make a difference. Yes. Yes. Yeah, yeah. So what do you what's your like your vision for uncommon philanthropy? I mean, I know you have the podcast and I want you to talk about that, but I think it's bigger than that.

Rena Olson 18:51

Yeah, well, I um I I'm a big fan of baby steps. Actually, there's a Bible verse. I'm not gonna be able to pull off the the top of my head about how the Lord delights in small steps and kind of new beginnings. And um, the podcast is a year a year old now and um still kind of figuring out. So I have a a website and a a podcast, and um yeah, we'll see, you know, we'll see where it goes. I've added a video, a video element to it. Um so so that's been fun and um requires me to be camera ready alone from my basement. Requires a whole lot more personal work um on the front end, but um, but that's but that's okay. So yeah.

Ann Price 19:40

Is it oh my oh my gosh. So isn't this just so funny that you started out wanting to be um on camera and be an actress and all the things? And guess what? I'm not that you're acting acting, I'm not saying that, but you kind of are using all of those gifts that that have been given to you.

Rena Olson 19:57

No, it's it's all been kind of Laying dormant. And I had a friend of mine who really helped me figure out. Um, she is Elizabeth Burdett. I don't know if you know her. She's a philanthropic advisor with um a company called Signature FD. And she helps people figure out, you know, wealthy donors where to, you know, where to give their money to. And I've I'm like, God, what a great job would that be. So she helped me figure out, and she's the one that said, I think it's it's a philanthropic, it's a publishing initiative that you're you're pursuing. So I've established um my own publishing company. I mean, I'm just really want to publish my own things so so that you know that can be a revenue generator so that I can, you know, be giving away money as well.

Ann Price 20:48

So gotcha, gotcha. You know, um Dan and I are finally husband, for those of you who don't know, um, are finally to that point where we have, you know, a little something, something that we can give back. And to your point, it brings you so much joy when you can pick out the things as um as your pastor Andy Stanley says, find the things that breaks your heart and get involved, right? And not just money, money's important, but the that volunteer time too. Let's go back to the podcast because you and I are have such similar interests and we always want to talk to the same kind of people. So tell us um maybe a couple of um, you know, interviews that just like stay with you, that you keep coming back to to their story. I would love to hear about that.

Rena Olson 21:36

Well, um, so Elizabeth Burdett was one of my first guests on Uncommon Philanthropist. And she, you know, we get into a little bit of the personal story on the front end, like you do as well. And um, she is an attorney. I mean, she's just so dynamic. She started a women's giving circle called uh Bloom Atlanta, and she's invited all of these women into community. And do you know about giving circles? I have heard about this, but yeah, tell us more. Yeah, for sure.

Ann Price 22:09

Because I'm I'm already thinking I should do this.

Tanzania’s Influence And Calling

Rena Olson 22:12

Uh well, and there's one that just opened up on our side of town. So yay. Um, so that the idea is that you gather a community of like-minded people around a cause. Um, and then it's um, you know, like a membership organization. So kind of the the base model is that the members contribute a thousand dollars a year, and then you nominate nonprofits that you would like to receive the grant, and then you, you know, everybody votes and you narrow it down, you invite them in for presentations, and then you vote, and then you grant the money. So 50 people are in your group, you have $50,000 yearly to grant to a nonprofit for a cause that you believe in. And there's social things built into it, you know, you're getting together and having charcuterie and wine or what, whatever, however, you wanna um you ever want to do it. But um, yeah, so so it's really such a a great model. It it combines, you know, a lot of them. I know um men have giving circles, but the ones that I keep hearing about are women. It's just what my algorithm is feeding me. But um yeah, but Elizabeth founded Bloom Atlanta, which is an in town Atlanta giving circle, and then there's one on the north side that launched as well. And she's also a philanthropic advisor. She was an attorney at one point, but um in sh in talking about, you know, interviewing her for one of the first episodes of UP, I asked her for a memorable story of um, you know, connecting a client with a cause that mattered. And I mean, we just both ended up boo-hooing because she said her mom had Alzheimer's. And I was like, I lost my mom to Alzheimer's. And she was working with this family. Again, it's that what breaks your heart. So she was working with this family who was a client who had a love, they're the matriarch of the family, had all you know, late-stage Alzheimer's and was in a home. And they wanted to do something kind of big to honor her life while she was still alive. So they put Elizabeth on the task of finding the organization. And Elizabeth found this organization in North Carolina called Shining Hope Farms, and it's uh equine therapy, hippotherapy. And um the the woman loved horses, so it was just a perfect fit. And so Elizabeth reached out and said, you know, I have I have someone who liked to make a gift. You know, do you have a specific need and this amount? And they were like, you know, we really need a tractor. So they bought, um, so the family bought a tractor and they put the woman's name on the tractor. So it says the L E T. And I mean, that just sparked. I loved that story for for the story, for the family, for LET. Um, but it just sparked possibility in me about what I could do to honor my mom. Um, because I had never done anything, you know. I don't have the financial resources to be buying something like a tractor. I have no idea what a tractor cost, but it got me. Right. You know, so that's the power of the story. And um, and then from that, I I finally got my act together and I've written a children's book about my mom's life called Maxine's Joy, and it's a purely philanthropic project with all money going to Alzheimer's causes. So that's exactly me going.

Ann Price 25:58

So that's that is that is exactly where I wanted to go next. Um, you know, uh, you probably don't know that I lost a good friend of mine in 2020 to early onset Alzheimer's. And then I believe you know our our deacon, Kevin Tracy, who died this past year of early onset Alzheimer's.

Rena Olson 26:19

Oh my gosh. So I knew he passed away, but I didn't know.

Ann Price 26:23

Yes, he did. So this is yeah, and my even and my best friend right now is dealing with her 93-year-old father who has uh dementia. And of course, there's like 200, you know, kinds of those kinds of um disorders. But so yeah, let's talk about the book. I have not seen the story. I've seen you all over the place promoting the book. I have not got my copy. I need to get one and I'll have to have you sign it. The art is beautiful, but tell us the story is is was Maxine your mom's name? Yes. Okay, so tell us the story of Maxine's joy. Okay. Well, as much as you can. Enough to make people want to go out and buy the book.

Rena Olson 27:03

So when I finally um, you know, I call I saw myself on video talking about, you know, I lost my mom to Alzheimer's, tears, tears, tears. I I've never done anything to honor her life or raise money for Alzheimer's, but I'm going to. And the second time I heard myself say that exact same scenario script, I was like, okay, uh, just do something. So I got quiet with it. And I was, my mom's been gone for 28 years.

Ann Price 27:33

Wow.

Rena Olson 27:34

You know, so miss, I've just, you know, and you you never stop missing your mom. So I I got I got my journal out and my pen. I was like, okay, God, what what what are we gonna do here? And I, you know, like a good marketer, I was like, okay, what made her most special? And it was like her joy. I mean, it just it hit me like that. And I was like, okay. And then I was like, I can write a children's. I mean, it it took me like five minutes once I got quiet with it and figured it out. I'll write, you know, my mom had red hair. I was like, oh, she would be a, you know, a precious uh cartoon character, and her name is fun. And so then I was off to the races because you know, I can I can tell story. I've never written a children's book, but I just dug in and I was like, okay, I'm gonna, you know, what what were the points of of my mom's life? And it was fun to engage with my brother and sister about, you know, what do you remember about this? Because you know, we all have kind of those fragments of stories of our parents' life. And, you know, she lived through the Great Depression and um the Dust Bowl and experienced extreme hardship, but somehow she knew to protect her joy. And because she did, and she was not traumatized by having to drop out of school when she was 10 years old and never went back. Oh my goodness, no, she had so she could work in the fields. Oh my god, cotton to provide food for the family. Wow. Yeah. Wow. Um, but she, if you were to meet her, you would have experienced her joy. I mean, she somehow knew to protect that. And her mom, when she was a baby, um, they were like poor tenant farmers. And, you know, she'd take my mom to work over her shoulder and lay her down on a flower sack and give her a toy to play with while she her mom picked the cotton. It's like but, you know, somehow, and my mom was red haired and faired skin. And so, you know, just to be able to tell those stories, and um, you know, then she met my dad, who was a dashing soldier, you know, right before World War II, and he scooped her up when she was probably barely legal.

Ann Price 30:07

So what was were they like 16 or so when she was 16? 16. Your dad was probably what, 18 or 19, something like that. Yeah.

Rena Olson 30:15

Oh my goodness.

Ann Price 30:16

Well, back in the day they got married very young, yeah.

unknown 30:18

Yeah.

Rena Olson 30:19

And he, you know, they got married and then he went off to to war, and she was pregnant and had to take a, you know, had never left Oklahoma and had to hop on a train at 16 with a babe in arms. I'm like, can you imagine? And then she landed there, and um, it was in Rhode Island, and she met a family who took her and my sister in as family. And like, I mean, it's like God provided just all along the way. And um, you know, even during her later years and her Alzheimer's advancement, she, you know, some people she was definitely frustrated and aggravated, but she, you know, she a little spark of that joy always always remained. And and then, you know, the the book, you know, hopefully she's in heaven. I believe she's in heaven, and that's where joy comes from. And she's reunited with her joy at the end. So, you know, it's just important that we keep that that bigger picture when we're going through hard times in in perspective, that it's though all seems hopeless and lost, it it is not, you know, something beautiful and joyful awaits on the other side. So I love that.

Ann Price 31:40

And I know you've been busy around uh at least around this town. I don't know where else you've been, like doing you know, the whole author's thing. And I you uh you know, you have this little side gig of uh promoting a certain author we both know and love. Um, and give her my love, by the way. You know who I'm talking about. Um, but how fun is that to be on the other side?

Giving Circles And Smart Giving

Rena Olson 32:03

Yeah. So proud of you. I had a good playbook to work with and and relationships with bookstores. And um, and I just, you know, I I went out west to Casper, Wyoming to um, you know, to launch it, because that's just you know, that's where where the majority of you know my growing up years were. And it was it was so fun bringing it back. And my sister was there and she recruited her friends to come to the book signings, and it was just really, really fun. And then I heard a story, you know, you just never when you when you have a book, you know, for those of you out there saying, Oh, I want to write a book, just do it, you know, find a way and do it because it gives you something tangible. And people, I don't know, people like really um rally around a book, and you never know how God is gonna use it. I had an email from a woman just out of the blue, and I did a book signing in Thermopolis, Wyoming. Shout out to Thermopolis, which is um a little western town just north of Casper. And some family came through there, and um, this woman saw, you know, Maxine's Joy on the shelf there. And her grandmother, this woman's grandmother was named Maxine. Maxine had red hair, like my mom. She picked up the book and she said, I could not it, she said eerie similarities. It's like my mom's story was her grandmother's story.

Ann Price 33:42

Oh wow.

Rena Olson 33:43

And so, you know, it's like my it's like my mom's story brought joy to this family, you know, and it's like that connection was just so cool. And it was just on the shelf in Thermopolis, Wyoming, when she just so I mean, there's been some really, really cool things. So yeah, yeah.

Ann Price 34:02

I'm sure people come and they they have their own stories and they connect with the book so much. So do you do you feel like this has helped, you know, feel that that need to honor your mom?

Rena Olson 34:14

Absolutely. And I feel closer to my mom than I have in a long, long time. It's just fun to be saying her name and talking about her. You know, I think when you lose a loved one, you know, it's like you just don't talk about them enough. And I've been talking about my mom vaccine so so much.

Ann Price 34:32

Yeah.

Rena Olson 34:33

And um, the illustrator I hired was in India, and she just got my mom, like the sparkle, you know, she just I I I I had a lot of illustrators submit, you know, kind of a sketch drawing. And the first one, she just she just got it. So that was another cool thing to be able to work with somebody across the world to bring this story to life. So so many cool layers, and yes, I but now I'm like, I want to do, I want to do more. And it's kind of got me in the the Alzheimer's lane about, you know, how can we help? How can how can we do more? I mean, this is hopefully just one one peg. Right.

Ann Price 35:12

Yeah, yeah. Who knows what what it will what it will all lead to. All right. Well, I I will get my copy and I will just keep it in my car so that the next time, or we'll just have to meet for coffee and I'll just have you sign it. Oh, that might that might have to be Ellie's uh uh one of Ellie's grist Christmas gifts. Um, yeah, congratulations on new new baby, by the way. I'm I'm sure you're you're in Vinny are spoiling her rotten, no doubt about it. Oh my god. Rena, Rita, what so what did they call you? Is it Nana, Gia? I know you told me, but I can't remember. So I am honey. Honey, you are a honey. You are a honey. Honey, um, you know, this podcast is all about um interviewing uh community leaders, nonprofit leaders, coalition leaders who are really doing the hard work of community change. That's kind of what we've been talking about. What's your advice for those folks who either are in the slog of things, and as you know, 2025 has not been a fun year for nonprofits. It's hard. Yes. Or people who um have that thing that breaks their heart. What what advice do you have for those folks?

Rena Olson 36:23

Well, um so being a person of faith, we all have valley moments and we have mountaintop moments. And it's often in the valley where we learn our great greatest lessons. That is true. So if you're in a valley moment and according to the Psalms, know that we're going through the valley. You know, you don't stay in the valley. Life is dynamic, and you have to just sometimes be ready for the ride and know that, okay, we're going through a hard time right now. This two shall pass, you know. Let's just let's keep focused, let's keep moving ahead, um, stay hopeful. I think that's um, I don't know, consume less social media. You know, it's just that does help such a mess. It's such a mess. It just store, I think it just distorts our actual reality, you know, because we're just getting the algorithms that are, you know, it's it's not real. You know, we're not we're being fed what they think we want to hear. And it's like, you know, and some of it's divisive and some of it's not, and some of it's nonsense, you know. But it's like choose to make a difference with your one life. You know, and if you're hopeless hopelessly, if you feel hopelessly stuck, do the get the journal out and start journaling. You know, it's like a lot of times I think we get stuck and we just feel like we can't move. And I just I believe in the power of a pen and paper and um, you know, for me it's a Bible to to help me find my way to um to a different, you know, to a different place. And don't be, don't be afraid to make that change.

Ann Price 38:15

Yeah.

Rena Olson 38:16

If that's what, you know, if that's what you feel you need to do.

Ann Price 38:20

Yeah. And I love it when you talked about, you know, I sat down with my journal and I got quiet and the story came. The answer came. Like just yeah, amazing.

Rena Olson 38:31

After 28 years of knowing I needed to do something, and it took five minutes. But it all leads up to, you know, it's like it, we're all we're all we're all going somewhere. So exactly. And I think when you're intentional, and that's you know, that's another thing about uncommon philanthropists, it's like I think a lot of people, not the high wealth people, but just people people that that have disposable income are not strategic about a giving strategy. You know, if you give a thousand dollars away a year or ten dollars a month or whatever, you know, you can be strategic and how you do that. And at the first of the year, perfect, you know, most people do kind of a health reassessment or get, you know, it's like let's do a, you know, do try doing a simple generosity plan. Oh, I love that. And it can, you know, what it can be, you know, give, serve, love. You know, it's like, what does that begin to look like for for your family?

Ann Price 39:40

You know, there's a um a family connection collaborative in in in Pike County. And for I don't know if they still do I they probably still do it. Their kind of whole thread, their theme that held them together was love thy neighbor. Right? Yeah. What is that? What would that look like? Not that, you know, and the It and it's not like we're gonna convert everybody. That's not the that's not the point. Although that absolutely that could that comes from the heart. But yeah, what does it look like if we really loved our neighbor? Exactly. How would we behave differently? What would we do with the income that we have? What will we do with the time that we have if we really loved our neighbor? That's very true. Oh, so simple, but so true. So simple. So powerful. Rita, what's giving you hope these days? Obviously, your faith. Got that. What else is giving you hope these days?

Maxine’s Joy: Honoring A Mother

Rena Olson 40:38

Oh gosh. So I have um I have a faith-based book in the works called The Be Attitudes, the Handbook for Life, B-E, Be Attitudes. And that baby has been three years in the works. And um kind of the premise of that book is it is it is it's a book, but it's like a workbook. And it's like I want people to read a chapter, I want them to dig into the questions, and then I want people to be open to life transformation. And um my belief is that so it's not the beattitudes as Jesus shares in Matthew, which those are amazing and beautiful, and I touch on those, um, but it's the be attitudes of be kind, be giving, be fun, be organized. Um, I mean, God just gave me the download, and I just started, you know, sketching out B after B after B. And I had about 70, and I was like, wow, you know, what would this look like if a very long book? What am I supposed to do with this? Now I guess I'm gonna write a book. So I have been working on on that, and there's a little bit of scripture, and um, it is it's a book for people who may be curious about faith. It's a book for Christians who may kind of feel stale in their faith or who need a little something more. Um, so yeah, so I just got it back from the editor, and that will be coming out in 2026. So I um I'm I'm very hopeful for that book. And my editor, she said, she said, this book has changed my life.

Ann Price 42:26

Oh, nice.

Rena Olson 42:28

And um, she is a Catholic, and she said that, you know, I just I needed to hear a lot of these, these words, you know, it's like some hard truths that um we need to hear sometime, you know, we just get complacent or whatever. And um, you know, but I I try to approach things gently, you know, it's not a it's not a scolding at all. It's it's hopefully an eye-opener about, you know, loving our neighbors better and and you know, just um, yeah, trying to be the best person that we can be. You know, we've got this one life, and I think so many people are just you know stuck and wasting it on social media arguing with people that don't even know. So we can do better than that.

Ann Price 43:16

Exactly. Exactly. So we've gone from 28 to three years, we're making progress. Yeah. Yeah. Well, yeah, I have a new book I'm working on with my friend Susan. So yeah, how awesome. Hopefully, it won't take us.

Rena Olson 43:32

Well, I remember when you when your first book came about, and I was big time impressed that y'all cranked that out.

Ann Price 43:40

And yeah, well, yeah, we're excited about this one. This is all about um work, you know. The first one was about community consulting, and this one is really about coalitions. Because, you know, we just love the messier the better, right? Community coalitions are really hard, but kudos for you for writing a second book. We'll we'll both go out and celebrate. So, how can people um get in touch with you, learn more about uncommon philanthropy, get get the get their copy of Maxine's book, all the things?

Rena Olson 44:14

So the website is uncommonphilanthropist.com. Okay. And everything you need is there, all of the episodes. You can find me on YouTube. Uh if you'd like to watch the episodes on video, it's the you know, just search for Uncommon Philanthropist. Um, all the Spotify, Apple, um all the episodes there. Maxine's Joy, you can find that on the website, on Amazon. Um, so wherever books are sold, locally, we have this beautiful Poe and Co. Poe and Company bookstore. Have you ever been there? It's I have, I love it. Oh, fantastic. They had copies at one point. I don't know if they still do, but um, yeah, but it's it's ultimately a book of joy and family. And um, I think it would, I'm hoping that it finds um people who maybe have children who have a grandparent who's suffering with dementia. You know, it's just uh and and and I do have resources on the website. I've interviewed some some uh dementia coaches that um all of that is on the Maxine's Joy of my website. Um so you know, hope I just I just want to spread hope possible. And um, it's just not an intuitive disease to to be dealing with. And it's you know, it's all about your person is still there, you know. You don't want to you don't want to miss them because they are still there, you know. You just have to kind of meet them where they are, and yeah, you can't say, Mom, don't you remember that?

Ann Price 45:56

Right, exactly.

Rena Olson 45:58

It's real easy to get frustrated, but you have to kind of just meet them where they are.

Ann Price 46:05

Yeah, I hear the uh the same um thing from from my friend who's dealing with her father. Um, and not dealing is not the word, you know what I mean. He's walking this path with her father, and it I hear her talk about the same struggle. So I'm definitely gonna point her in that direction. So, other than the new book, anything else you're looking forward to in 2026?

Rena Olson 46:24

Well, I got a new grandbaby on the way. A little boy, Vince and Mary Kate are pregnant.

Ann Price 46:29

Oh gosh, I think if I knew that, I forgot that. Oh my gosh, that's awesome.

Rena Olson 46:34

Yeah, his um little boy, his name's gonna be Shepard. How cute is that? Shep. I love it. Yeah, so that's um, yeah, and just telling more stories and connecting with amazing people like yourself and um just trying to make the world a better place while while I'm here.

Ann Price 46:54

And that's right. That's right. Well, Rena, thank you so much for joining me on the podcast. And well, you know, I've got to ask you a question. Okay.

Rena Olson 47:02

What's bringing you hope these days, Anne?

Ann Price 47:04

Uh, you know what? Um, I just spent two days with a client in Macon, and we were in a room full of, I don't know, 35 site coordinators for our big communities and schools of Georgia Project. And these women and men do such great work for our students. I mean, they just love on them. They they do tutoring, they really are a bridge between the family and the school. You know, just really working with people who are in hard places and just being in the room out in our rural communities gives me such joy. I love it. I love it. I love what I do. People think, oh, evaluation, it's all crunching numbers and all that kind of stuff. Like you, it's really about telling stories, right? We really just want to help tell their story.

Rena Olson 48:00

Yeah. Yeah. Well, and you do that so well. Thank you. Thank you. Dr. Anne Price. All right, Miss Rena.

Ann Price 48:10

You still making sourdough? Uh, I I I am. I I need to get back at it. I'm still feeding it every day, that is for sure. But you know, um uh middle child is getting married in February. You know that, right? Aaron is getting married in February. So uh uh one of the two of us is on a wedding diet, and that is not my husband. So there is less bread in my world right now. Oh, that's no fun. You know what I mean. Yeah. Anyway, Rena, thank you so much for joining me on the podcast. Thank you for having me, Anne.

Rena Olson 48:44

So good to see you. Let's get together soon. Absolutely. Okay.

Ann Price 48:48

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