Teamwork makes the dream work
ILLOVO – While she holds the position of CEO, Julia Sotirianakos said it is important to understand that what the foundation has accomplished, and continues to accomplish, would not be possible without the team.
If you strongly believe in something and work hard at it, you can realise your dream.
This was the mantra of Reach For A Dream Foundation CEO Julia Sotirianakos, who for 14 years has been making the dreams of children with life-threatening illness come true.
According to Sotirianakos, what really attracted her to the foundation was its power to offer hope to communities across the nation. “For 33 years now, Reach For A Dream has inspired hope and that is very important because when you look at the media right now, there is really hardly any hope and good news stories being highlighted.
“At the foundation, we get to see hope come to life every single day in our dream performance.”
She added that while she holds the position of CEO, it is important to understand that what the foundation has accomplished, and continues to accomplish, would not be possible without a phenomenal team. “It is really just about a collective of passionate individuals – board members, staff, volunteers, doctors, nurses and donors – who make these children’s dreams come true.”
Much like many other community organisations, Covid-19 and the pandemic have had quite a drastic effect on operations at Reach For A Dream.
According to Sotirianakos, the foundation was forced to adapt because it was determined to make sure that it was still able to fulfil dreams, no matter the circumstances. “As a leader, you can prepare for every case scenario but no one prepared for a pandemic like we have experienced. But what came out of the pandemic was a renewed hope and a new way of fulfilling dreams.”
Partnerships with companies like DHL allowed the foundation to fulfil dreams, by means of a dream-in-a-box, via courier. “It is important to tell the children that they are not alone and that Reach For A Dream is thinking of them.”
After 14 years, Sotirianakos admitted that her role continues to challenge her each day. She has learnt to be a lot more resilient and courageous in both her personal and professional capacity.
“I think our children in hospital are facing the biggest battle of their lives and when I look to them for inspiration, they are the ones that keep us going. The [the children and their families] are the ones who motivate us to wake up and know that you can impact a child who is facing a terrible battle.”
Details: Reach For A Dream Foundation 011 880 1740
Related articles:
https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/297507/celebrate-33-years-of-dreams-with-reach-for-a-dream/
https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/286685/reach-for-a-dream-goes-virtual/
