This week our member Jeff Franklyn will be hosting an Articulate Member Happy Hour. Jeff is the Northeast Regional Manager for the Special Olympics and took some time to sit down with me and tell me more about his work. Jeff individually plans roughly 30-35 events in Northern Colorado every year and discussed how it can be stressful at times but the payoff is far more rewarding. Read about our conversation below!
Logan with The Articulate: What is your background and how did you become involved in the Special Olympics?
Jeff with Special Olympics: I have been working with the Special Olympics since I was in college. Once I graduated I started doing event planning in Michigan and coordinated a nonprofit baseball league coaches’ convention for about 8000 people. This helped me grow in to a bigger role and eventually move to Fort Collins in 2015.
Logan: What do you do specifically for the Special Olympics?
Jeff: My region covers everywhere north of Thornton and east of Boulder. I am responsible for planning all of the athletic events, fundraisers, conferences, and a lot of other smaller things. My biggest focus is on athletic functions because these take the most time to plan and have the most participants.
Logan: What are your favorite things about your job?
Jeff: Definitely the events. There is a ton of backend work that goes in to planning them and a lot of people tend to forget or not understand that. Once the event is all planned and ready to go, it’s awesome to watch it unfold. It’s like when someone builds something and, while putting in the work can be hard and stressful, once it is completed it is extremely rewarding.
Logan: What struggles do you face in your job?
Jeff: Because I have so many different events and projects to balance and coordinate, prioritizing is the biggest challenge. It has been a big learning point for me to have a list of 15 things I need to get done and understanding that you can’t do everything for task number one before doing task number two. Everything overlaps and I have to carefully plan when I will do each task. I currently have an intern that helps me a lot with time consuming tasks like data entry. I plan to keep growing my intern program and form a strong partnership with Fort Collins.
Logan: Why do you personally like the Special Olympics?
Jeff: I really enjoy the mission and how much positive impact it has over the population. Individuals with disabilities have come so far in the past decades and its amazing to see how much we can impact not just an individual’s life but their family as well.
Logan: Do you have a favorite memory?
Jeff: The memories I make are what keep me going and inspire me to put in as much work as I can. My favorite memory that I will always remember was in 2010 when I was still working in Michigan and met a guy named Paul at a power lifting competition. After he competed he came up and gave me a huge hug and thanked me for my work. The next year and for six more after that, he would always come up to me and give me a hug, flex his muscles, and ask if he was strong enough to lift a house yet. It was awesome and he did the exact same thing for seven years in a row.
Logan: How has The Articulate helped/assisted in your work?
Jeff: Since my job requires me to work remotely, the dedicated desk space is great. I tried working at home but quickly realized that it wouldn’t be good for me. I love the space and the community of people.
If you would like to get in contact with Jeff Franklyn about how you can donate or volunteer for an upcoming event, you can reach him at jfranklyn@specialolympicsco.org.