Four women sit around a table, their nimble fingers sorting through mounds of jewelry nestled in little white baskets, the conversation rolling comfortably from one topic to another.
Some of them clean, some sort, some write prices on tiny stickers. The “jewelry ladies” (as they’re affectionately referred to) do their tasks with ease, without missing a beat. Many have been doing this for years.
Vali Ebert enters with some snacks and distributes them around the table. She glances around at the women and asks the question she asks at every such gathering:
“What would people like to drink?” The answer is usually “wine.” Today, though, all the women opt for water. “Really?” Vali says in mock disbelief at the requests for the “other W” drink. Maybe it’s too warm, or too early. Vali puts the wine bottles aside, ready for next time.
***
If the dozens of loyal volunteers Vali Ebert can always count on are known as jewelry ladies, then it only stands to reason that Vali – also a volunteer – is the jewelry queen.
It’s a crown the former child welfare advocate doesn’t wear readily, since she generally prefers to be behind the scenes, eschewing the much-deserved recognition. But let’s stay with this queen theme for another few moments, because if the crown fits, we’d like to see her wear it.
“Vali is a true treasure to FAAS,” says John Lipp, FAAS director and CEO. “She is a sparkling gem who has made a huge, huge difference to FAAS for a very long time. We are so lucky to have her shining in our midst!”
To that end, Vali is this year’s winner of the Noah Award for outstanding service in improving the lives of animals. She’ll be given the award at our annual fundraising gala, After the Ball, on October 18.
“Vali epitomizes selflessness and dedication all to help our many lifesaving programs at FAAS,” says John. “She is an amazing woman, and we’re thrilled to have her as this year’s Noah recipient.”
Vali has reigned over jewelry sales for FAAS for the last 11-plus years. She and her team (more than 50 volunteers have worked with her through the years) have raised more than $300,000 from special jewelry sales events, and through sales at our beloved thrift shop, The Thrifty Kitty. All the money goes to FAAS. With most pieces selling between $3 and $8, that’s a LOT of jewelry!
She likens what she and the volunteers do with donated jewelry to what FAAS does with the animals who come our way.
“We re-home jewelry, just as FAAS re-homes animals,” she says. “In a way, the principle is quite similar.”
***
The jewelry events happen about twice a year, but The Thrifty Kitty needs a steady stream of jewelry. It’s no secret that The Thrifty Kitty has some of the best, most eclectic and diverse pre-owned jewelry in the area, and for incredibly good prices.
This is Vali’s doing, with the help of the devoted jewelry ladies. They make sure anyone they know is aware that when they have jewelry they no longer need, it can go to a very good cause. Their networks are deep, developed over decades of relationships to others in the community, from neighbors to golf buddies to organizations that happily help the cause.
Vali and the jewelry ladies are able to provide The Thrifty Kitty with all the jewelry it needs for its steady turnover of necklaces, rings, earrings, brooches, bracelets and other gleaming delights.
Vali has a nickname for the store. “The Hungry Kitty,” she sometimes calls it, thanks to the store’s voracious appetite for jewelry. She visits The Thrifty Kitty weekly, feeding it a good 30 pounds of jewelry each time. (She likes to use the weight of the jewelry to illustrate the quantity.)
***
If you’d asked Vali during her 30-year career in child welfare, she would never have guessed that one day, jewelry would be taking up most of her waking hours. But as so often happens in the world of nonprofit organizations, Vali wore many hats during her tenure. Along the way, while advocating for the good of children, picked up skills that would lead to this transformation.
During her 16 years at Adopt a Special Kid, she became entrenched in fundraising and networking. One of their events was a jewelry sale. At the time she didn’t realize the skills she would learn would not only affect her future, but that of an organization she was getting to know and love – FAAS.
Vali got involved with FAAS in 2011, a year before FAAS began contracting with the city.
“I did not want to see the shelter closed,” she says. “I love animals. How we treat our animals is an indicator of how we treat each other. My career had been built on the fact that every child deserves a safe and loving and nurturing home. It’s the same with animals. I wanted to help in any way I could.”
Vali ended up co-chairing FAAS’s first gala, in 2011. The small committee had only six weeks to prepare and ended up making $60,000. She chaired the event for a total of three of more years, and along the way started weaving in extras like Artists Unleashed, where the animals did the painting, and plant sales – with many hundreds of plants being sold to benefit FAAS’s lifesaving programs.
Vali and her loyal team of jewelry ladies have been working diligently since 2013. Even during Covid, they barely took a break before they were back to it, wearing safety gear, social distancing, and doing their work outside. Always with the option of wine, of course.
These days Vali works about 15 to 20 hours a week, with sabbaticals here and there.
“I get so much more out of it than I put in. Volunteers become friends. There’s so much positivity and community spirit. I also enjoy using ‘old’ skills and learning new ones, and networking is awesome. It’s so rewarding knowing how much this helps FAAS, which I always see as a role model for other shelters,” she says.
***
And now the crown jewel.
Last year, when Vali learned about the desperately needed spay/neuter clinic FAAS was planning to build, she had one question for John Lipp:
“What can I do to help?”
This woman who has already given so much of her time and energy to help our animals blew us away more than ever. She made an incredibly generous donation that helped kickstart the project.
“My hope is to increase awareness of spay/neuter, and the ability of FAAS and other rescue groups and shelters to have access to this vital surgery,” she says. “I was happy to help.”
The state-of-the-art FAAS Animal Medical Services & Training (FAMST) Campus is set to open by the end of the year!
“Vali’s support at such an early phase of this project was just what we needed to realize we could make this happen,” says John.
“We’re so deeply grateful to Vali, who has given everything to help FAAS and our many lifesaving programs through the years. She is a shining example of a dedication to help animals in need, and we can’t wait to present her with this much-deserved award!”
Vali will be presented with the Noah Award at our signature fundraiser, After the Ball, on October 18, 2024. The theme this year is A Night in Paris! Tickets and information here.
If you'd like to support our soon-to-open spay/neuter campus, we still need help. We offer many sponsorship opportunities, and we're even selling commemorative bricks!
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