Meet Lisa Saneda!

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Meet (and friend!) Altru user, Lisa Saneda, with the San Diego Museum of Art!

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Meet Lisa Saneda! This week's member spotlight shines on Altru User, Lisa Saneda, with the San Diego Museum of Art! Lisa's Community Profile
Tell us about your family (fur babies count!) "I live with my husband and our fur and feather babies Mingus, Ella, Coltrane and Wally. We have had as many as 15 fur/feather babies living with us at one time!" Where do you live? "Lemon Grove, CA." What do you like to do for fun? "I like to hike, garden and be outdoors. Being around people is always fun for me, whether I know them or not! And being around animals! I am certified in canine massage and enjoy working on friend's dogs and my own big guys."
	What’s a life achievement you are particularly proud of? "There have actually been a few as I have gone through my career changes! Starting an arts education program which used the Internet for online viewing of live arts performances and provided teachers with curriculum was nationally recognized in 2000. Helping care for displaced animals during the Cedar Fire in 2003 and the 2008 fires was my own personal achievement. I also helped with community relations and logistics during the 2008 fires at a local city animal services shelter where we kept displaced pets that had been dropped off. Volunteering there for many years, I also trained the staff how to use the shelter software." \ What’s one memory that always makes you smile? "One of my dogs, Satch, was very special. He taught me to always be happy no matter what. (he died of cancer). I always picture him lying on his bed surrounded by stuffed animals (he knew all their names) and just staring at me with his mouth open making huffing noises and then burying his face in a stuffed animal. He would keep repeating this and it always looked like he was saying 'I love you so much, mom. I am too happy!!' before going for the stuffed animals. He still makes me smile."
Tell us about your organization: "I have worked at The San Diego Museum of Art for 7 years as Manager of Membership and Information Services. We have roughly 6,500 members and over 400,000 visitors a year. The mission is to inspire, educate and cultivate curiosity through great works of art. There are over 20,000 objects from across the globe, and ranging in date from 5,000 B.C. to the present. Perhaps best known for its Spanish old master paintings–including works from Zurbarán, El Greco, and Goya–the Museum holds a broad collection of European, American, Latin American, and Asian Art.Among the most important aspect of the Museum’s holdings in Asian art are the world-class South Asian paintings from the encyclopedic collection of Edwin Binney 3rd;The collection also includes works by internationally recognized artists such as Matisse, Dalí, Magritte, Monet, O’Keeffe, Durand, Cassatt, Rivera, Tamayo, Miró, Calder, Eakins, Moore, and Hepworth.The museum has an education program that includes outreach to underserved populations, going to and bringing in school groups, summer camps and more." What’s a typical day like for you? "No day is typical for me. I am here about 8am and leave between 5:30-6. Every morning I check my emails/calls (which may take time if we have programs on sale-I spend a lot of time fixing the info for every online sale), I process all donations and donor letters for the Museum, make calls/send emails to members, logistical planning for member events. I spend a lot of time in Altru in order to keep accurate reports for the COO and the development dept. Making sure updating information, making corrections in Altru are done by my team. This is all before 11am. There are a lot of meetings during the week: 1:1 w/ COO, team meet w/ Exec. Dir., Museum Logistics, Restaurant logistics, Moves Management, etc. I try to take at least 2 webinars a month whether it's on Altru or something else job related. That's how I spend my lunchtime! I handle all Altru trainings and we do an "Altru-15" every few weeks. I'm sort of the "go-to" for everyone in development and administration so there's always someone at my door. I spend a portion of each day researching donors and potentials. And if there's an event coming up, I handle the logistical set-up for membership and ticketing and well as working the event in all capacities."
	What’s the best part of your job? "I want to say going home at night, but only because I'm exhausted! The people, both whom I work with and the members/visitors are the reason I work here! Besides the fun with staff, I enjoy handling bad situations and turning them into something positive. People should have a positive experience when they are around all this beautiful art!" What advice would you give someone starting out in the non-profit field? "Plan on working long hours with little pay for most of your career. If you're going to work with nonprofits, make sure the mission is one you care about deeply." What do you love about the Blackbaud Community? "I love being able to get advice on things that stump me in Altru. The community has been great for that!"

Finally.. if you could have a theme song, what would that song be?: "Theme song would be Mission Impossible. Why? Because I can solve any impossible mission!"

News ARCHIVED | Member Spotlight 01/10/2018 9:00am EST

Added by Crystal Bruce

4 Comments

Colleen McEniry Feb '18

Hey Lisa! I just joined the Community - it's nice to see a familiar face in the member spotlight! I hope all is well at the Museum, I enjoyed reading your story, and congrats on the promotion :)

Ranelle Huber Jan '18

Hi, Lisa!
So nice to have a face to go with your name - you have an amazing job and clearly are terrific at it!
Best,
Ranelle Huber
Holden Forests & Gardens

Barb Faasse Jan '18

So lovely to learn more about you Lisa! It must be very inspiring to work at an art museum (if you ever have time to actually view the art!)

Jon Nelson Jan '18

Hi Lisa - I think it's amazing that you are certified in canine massage! A friend of mine took canine accupressure classes from the San Diego Humane Society and SPCA .