Friendship Can Change the World
Carol Kemp's first experience with FriendshipWorks was in 2018 when she participated in the Walk to End Elder Isolation with then Board member Dean Denniston. She recalls strolling around Jamaica Pond and laughing with a group of women who were jumping around with pom-poms and noisemakers, cheering her on as though she had run a marathon.
Intrigued and inspired, Carol later attended another fundraiser for FriendshipWorks where volunteers shared stories. She was particularly moved by the story of a lonely widower who wanted someone to accompany him to ballgames and through FriendshipWorks’ Friendly Visiting program, was matched with a volunteer who was more than happy to do so. “I thought of the difference between doing an activity alone and doing it with a friend. I couldn’t solve all the problems of the world, but I knew that friendships can change the entire world for an individual. That’s what I liked about FriendshipWorks.”
Carol officially joined FriendshipWorks’ Board upon her retirement just before the pandemic shutdown. Through her own personal experience she began to understand how easy it is for people to become isolated once they stop working. She also thought about all the people who stepped in to help and befriend her mother who lived alone across the country in California. “I wanted to pay their goodness forward. I wanted to spread that goodness to my personal friends, but I also thought that FriendshipWorks could help me multiply it even more.”
Carol has had an amazing 42-year career as an attorney and brings her expertise in the legal field to the FriendshipWorks Board. She worked at a major Boston law firm, in-house with an investment advisory firm, and as a lawyer with the Massachusetts Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance working on real estate transactions. Carol says that her background as a lawyer enables her to spot issues quickly so they can be addressed by the Board, and that her years of work in state government have made her a better advocate for the public interest.
As a member of the Governance and Nominating Committee, Carol has helped bring five new members to the FriendshipWorks Board. She is excited to welcome this group of initiates who bring a wide range of professional skills from fields such as psychiatry, elder social services, strategic planning, grant making, and finance. They also help the Board reflect the diverse backgrounds and perspectives of the communities that FriendshipWorks serves. Carol is currently FriendshipWorks Director, Secretary.
Looking to the future, Carol is excited about FriendshipWorks increasing outreach to the LGBTQ+, African American, Latino, and low-vision communities. She hopes that FriendshipWorks will continue to evolve and stay true to the mission and the vision of founder Janet Seckel-Cerrotti. “Older people have become isolated in new ways now, but the vital necessity of friendship will never be obsolete,” Carol says.
In addition to her work with FriendshipWorks, Carol volunteers at a local community theater called The Footlight Club and is a member of the King’s Chapel Music Committee which supports Heinrich Christensen’s annual professional concert series. She loves visiting museums and attends dance, theater, and music performances as often as she can. Beyond these passions, she is also fond of construction. Carol has volunteered for two different house-building projects for needy families in a suburb of Cluj-Napoca, Romania, stacking and reclaiming lumber, pounding nails, and learning that no matter how old or unskilled one is there are always things that one can do to help as part of a construction team.
