As the development director of the Walker Scottish Rite Clinic and program director for Kids Rock Cancer, both at Maryville University, Ebonee Shaw knows she cannot rest on her laurels, though her accomplishments are many.
Both positions take a lot of movin’ and shakin’, and by all accounts, she’s not about to let anyone down. During her 16-year career, which included nine years at Saint Louis Crisis Nursery, her fundraising efforts have generated upward of $12 million for the community. This year, those efforts helped raise around $500,000 at Maryville, where she executed the largest gala in Walker Scottish Rite Clinic history, raising $85,080 more than the same event in 2018.
Her primary role with the clinic is development and fundraising, which includes cultivating new relationships, creating awareness in the community, supporting the advancement committee and speech therapists, and stewarding donations. As the director of Kids Rock Cancer, in addition to developing the advisory council and fundraising, she supports music therapists as they travel to children’s hospitals to help children create songs that help them as patients and help their families cope with a devastating diagnosis of cancer or sickle cell anemia.
She has also been (or still is) involved with many boards and organizations, including the advisory board of TEDx Gateway Arch, as the race operations co-chair for the Susan G. Komen Mid-Missouri steering committee, as vice chair of the St. Martin’s Child Center board of directors, and chair of the civil service board for the city of Berkeley, Missouri, among others.
We wanted to find out a little more about how Shaw makes things happen. She was gracious enough to share her background, strategies and accomplishment with Gazelle.
You grew up in St. Louis, but started your career in New Orleans. What originally took you there? I moved to New Orleans to attend Xavier University of Louisiana for my bachelor’s degree. After graduation, I worked for Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Michigan. It only took six months to realize that it was not for me. I returned to New Orleans for graduate school at the University of New Orleans. Then, I began working with Catholic Charities New Orleans as the director of special events. It proved to be an enriching experience and launched my interest in a career in development. That was 16 years ago.
What brought you back home? Hurricane Katrina. The city was devastated, and I had to leave. After a three-day stay in Shreveport, Louisiana, we drove to a 7-Eleven to buy an atlas to guide us home – those were the days before smart phones! Catholic Charities St. Louis hired me, and I spent the next several months working at St. Patrick’s Center to help link Katrina victims and shortly thereafter, Hurricane Rita victims, to services and resources in St. Louis.
How does your experience as an event planner and your passion for helping children intertwine? There are many types of event planners. My passion is based on the desire to create unique and irresistible experiences for guests, who will want to return year after year. In the nonprofit world, an events position is typically within the development department and carries some responsibility for raising dollars. My heartfelt desire is to successfully fund raise through events to support the world’s most vulnerable beings – our children.
What do you consider some of your career highlights? The best fundraiser I’ve ever managed was the 2018 KidTalk Gala for the Walker Scottish Rite Clinic. It was my first really big event with Maryville and the clinic’s 30th anniversary, so no pressure, but it needed to be perfect! It was magical. We gave awards to a lifetime supporter who also turned 102 that weekend; we awarded two lifetime volunteers who were 90 years old; and we ended the evening with a performance by The Temptations. It was an incredible event. While our goal was to raise $100,000, we were able to raise $234,000.
Prior to joining Maryville, I worked for the Saint Louis Crisis Nursery for nine years. Some of those events that I loved include The Razzle Dazzle Ball, Celebrity Waiter’s Night and Napoli Night for the Crisis Nursery.
How does music play a role for children in Kids Rock Cancer? Telling the story – what a person is experiencing and how it feels – is often therapeutic. Putting those thoughts and words to music adds an entirely different level of expression. Since 2009, more than 1,700 children and families have participated in Maryville University programs and discovered the power of music to explain how they feel.
What are your academic degrees? A bachelor’s of science in finance from Xavier University of Louisiana, and an MBA in marketing from the University of New Orleans.
On the Lighter Side:
Are you married and/or do you have children? Not married. I have a 15-year-old son, Timothy Taylor Jr. a freshman at Whitfield School.
What do you do for fun? I like listening to live music and love concerts. I try to attend different festivals in St. Louis and out of town – Essence Festival is my favorite. Right now, my favorite performers are PJ Morton, Yebba, and my favorite of all time is India Arie. My sister and I have seen India perform all over the U.S. Sometimes, I feel like she’s talking directly to me!
When I have time and my budget permits, I love to travel. I prefer beach options, and not at any point, on any vacation, do I want to do anything that exerts energy! My favorite places to visit have been Rio de Janeiro; Venice, Italy; and my favorite place that has never failed me is Nassau, Bahamas. I recently booked a trip to Shanghai and Bangkok for my son’s 16th birthday in 2020.
Favorite St. Louis eatery? I’ll be honest: It’s the Waffle House – it’s good for breakfast, lunch and dinner!
Favorite thing that you can’t do without? Ruby Woo lipstick, the sultriest color of red made by MAC. I’m pretty sure every girl feels like she can run the world once she has it applied.
