2017 – Debbie Gillum Wakefield

2017, blog, debbie gillum, debbiegillum

A Day in the Life: Q + A with Debbie Gillum

September 29, 2017 Debbie

Recently, I had the honor of being featured on Portfolio Creative’s blog. They do really great “Day in the Life” features on creative professionals living in Columbus. I wanted to share the post here on my website:

Hey, I’m Debbie and I’m the Marketing and Digital Communications Specialist at Volunteers of America of Greater Ohio. I currently live in downtown Cbus across the street from the North Market (above Barley’s and Brewcadia). I’m originally from Indianapolis but moved to Hilliard in middle school and have been in the Buckeye state ever since. I went to Denison University, a small private liberal-arts college and studied English and Communication. I was President of the Quidditch team and editor of the student newspaper. Now, I’m a Founding member of Women in Digital, a national group devoted to empowering women in digital careers.

Morning

I’m utterly addicted to coffee so I always consume an enormous amount of black coffee in the morning. I listen to the radio as I get ready because it helps me stay informed about what’s going on in the world. I’m a fan of making smoothies for breakfast. It’s a yummy way to sneak in a lot of healthy foods. On Fridays, I’ll treat myself and swing by Upper Cup Coffee for a muffin and an amazing large cup of Joe.

Afternoon

At work, I live and breathe social media. My favorite part of my job is interacting with fans who shop at Volunteers of America thrift stores. I love writing blog posts sharing the best thrifting tips and tricks. As a kid, I always enjoyed creative writing and as I got older, I liked strategic problem solving so it’s exciting to be in a career where I can do both for a living. I keep an on-going to-do list at work that helps me stay organized and gives me a rush of satisfaction when I can cross off a task. Seems like there’s always a future fundraising or open house event to plan for, so I’m often crafting email invitations, postcards, signs and event programs. I keep my beloved radio on in my office all day and it’s usually tuned to either NPR (big fan of All Sides with Ann Fisher), CD102.5 (love the variety and local music) or WNCI (Dave and Jimmy’s Morning Zoo).

My favorite place for an afternoon pick-me-up coffee is Cherbourg Bakery in downtown Bexley. They take such pride in their coffee and artfully craft each pourover.

Evening

In the evening, I take horseback riding lessons out in Canal Winchester. I grew up riding my own horse and have adored horses all my life. I love the thrill of jumping and the comforting nuzzle of horses. For dinner, I go to Houndogs in Clintonville with my boyfriend and friends for Wednesday PB&J (a pizza, pitcher of beer and shot of Jameson). I have two side hustles helping a trivia company and mobile low-cost veterinarian with their social media and blog posts. I love keeping busy!

2017, blog, blogpost, may

Career Growth Tips for Millennial PR Professionals

June 4, 2017April 15, 2018 Debbie

Being a young professional in the public relations industry is so exciting! And yet, kind of scary at the same time. There’s a lot to juggle and unfortunately, your Communications 102 course didn’t cover networking. Here’s some advice for millennials looking to grow their career in the PR industry.

Utilize all of LinkedIn

You probably made a LinkedIn when you were in college and it’s been collecting dust for a few years. Well, brush off that dust, look up your password and log back in.

Add descriptions and job titles for previous work experience

Include college and high school internships as well as volunteer work
List job duties, responsibilities, achievements, projects, and instances where you went above and beyond your job description. Include work samples and show off projects.

Write articles on LinkedIn. This asserts your expertise on a topic, will be displayed at the top of your profile and shows you’re participating and adding content to the LinkedIn community.
Endorse skills and write recommendations for co-workers and people you’ve worked with in the past. What goes around comes around, as the great Justin Timberlake once said.
Update your Headline and keep in mind LinkedIn’s algorithm uses these keywords.
Write a summary that stands out from the crowd, avoids jargon and cliché’s and reflects who you are. Have some fun with it.
Use a professional profile photo that is a nice headshot that doesn’t look like it came straight from Instagram. Sorry Mayfair filter, you don’t belong on LinkedIn.
Participate in LinkedIn by Liking and Commenting on articles in your news feed. But, keep in mind, your entire network will be able to see what you like and comment on. With great power comes great responsibility.

Participate in Industry Groups

Connect with individuals who share your passion for PR in your community. Look at the websites of groups like American Marketing Association (AMA), American Advertising Federation (AAF), Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) or other related groups in your area. These groups are great for staying up to date on industry trends and networking.

Sign up for their email newsletters
Attend their events to learn more about what they do and who they are
Consider investing in a yearly membership
Get involved by joining a committee
Stay up to date with PR industry trends by subscribing to relevant email newsletters and reading trade magazines.

Networking doesn’t have to be work

Sometimes the word networking can make introverts want to pull the covers over their heads. Re-frame the word by thinking about networking as making new friends and just keeping in touch with them.

· You can meet people to network with anywhere, not just at specified networking events. A great place to meet new people is through volunteering at local events like fairs or festivals.

· Most people will be happy to sit down with you and offer their perspective and advice. Everyone loves to talk about themselves and will be flattered you asked.

· Offer to grab coffee with someone you’d like to get to know more. Come prepared by looking at their LinkedIn profile beforehand and jotting down some relevant questions. Pay for their coffee and respect their time by keeping it under an hour.

· Take time to nurture relationships and make a commitment to go outside your comfort zone to get to know new people. It’s okay to talk about non-work related topics and this can even help you find things you have in common.

Keep it Professional or Private

Potential employers will likely search your online presence and don’t want to see your drunk tweets. Take time to clean up your online presence.

· Google your name and see what links and photos come up. Clean up the less than flattering content.

· Make your social media platforms private if you have any questionable content.

· Be aware of how you carry yourself online and try to keep it professional as much as possible.

Be Proud of Your Work

Humility is an admirable trait, except when it comes to job interviews and portfolios.

· Keep track of your successful projects, campaigns, and works by adding them to your LinkedIn or portfolio.

· Maintain a personal website that showcases who you are as a PR Professional, your resume or skills, contact info and most importantly, your work samples or portfolio.

· When chatting with others in the industry, it’s okay to give yourself some props and mention a successful campaign you managed. Mentioning an achievement once is not the same as bragging. Hogging the conversation and only talking about how great you are is bragging.

Have a Side Hustle

As a young professional, it can be hard to get the necessary experience. If you’re starting out, consider offering up your skills and expertise to small organizations or charities.

· This is a great way to increase your portfolio, learn other skills, meet new people and increase your value to an employer

· Reach out to local non-profits or small businesses and offer to write press releases, plan events, create graphics, help boost their social media presence, etc.

· Be realistic about how much time you have to commit to a side hustle. Do you have the necessary time to help this organization on evenings and weekends?

· Make sure it doesn’t interfere with your current position and your company allows it.

· Just because you’re young doesn’t mean you have to work for free. Stand up for yourself and ask to be reasonably compensated.

Wow, that was a lot. It’s okay not to do everything all at once and expect perfection. Don’t compare yourself to where other young professionals are in their career. Focus on improving yourself and learning new skills. Good luck on your journey and always be yourself!

2017, april, blog, classpass, fitness, may, myblog, review

ClassPass

May 22, 2017 Debbie

I wanted to start exercising this spring. When I was researching gyms to possibly join in Columbus, I stumbled upon ClassPass. I’d seen their Facebook Ads and wanted to learn more about them. The trial offer was a good deal and I was excited about the idea of trying new studios to consider joining.

From April 17- May 17 I did ten various fitness classes in Columbus. At first I thought ten classes a month wouldn’t be enough but I later found it tough to squeeze in all ten classes into my busy schedule.

I enjoyed ClassPass and would recommend it to those who like variety, new adventures and can afford it.

There were times in classes when I just had to take a deep breath and laugh at myself. There’s always going to be people in a class who have done that routine or those moves for years and are way better than you. That’s okay. I liked trying new classes that I otherwise wouldn’t have booked. I also met some other nice girls, some of them also “ClassPass” like me.

Here’s the fitness classes in Columbus I did and how I reviewed them:

Fit Jump

Big Bounce

Tue, 05/16

6:00 – 7:00 pm

1645 Gateway Cir, Grove City, OH, 43123

Did not like this class. It was boring and repetitive. The instructor was a high school freshmen who kept looking at a printed out sheet of notes. She never corrected anyone’s form or said anything motivational. I could hardly hear her. We’d bounce for a minute, do push ups for a minute, then repeat. I found myself zoning out and counting down the minutes til the class was over. The instructor seemed to be doing the same. At one point, we did exercises on the ground and I could’ve done those at home myself. I wanted to do exercises on the trampolines or in the ball pit. This class was disappointing.

Intro to Aerial Silks

Studio Rouge

Mon, 05/15
6:00 – 7:30 pm
1411 W 3rd Ave, Columbus, OH, 43212

I thought I wouldn’t enjoy this class but I actually did. It was easier than pole dancing but still required upper body strength. I was challenged and the instructor was willing to help. She was so patient and kind. That made all the difference. I was amazed at what I was able to do. I wouldn’t mind taking this class again. I was a bit sore the next day.

Barre in the Village

Studio B Wellness

Mon, 5/8
6:00 – 7:00 pm
503 City Park Ave, Columbus, OH, 43215

This wasn’t my favorite class. I felt very cramped and close to my neighbor. I couldn’t extend my legs or arms all the way without hitting her. Throughout class, I wasn’t sure if I was doing any of the moves right. The instructor was loud and friendly. She introduced herself by asking me if I had any injuries. Um, no. If I did, I’d let you know. My arms felt sore the next day so I guess it was a good workout.

SpinFlex60

PAI Dublin

Sun, 5/7
5:15 – 6:15 pm
6367 Sawmill Rd, Dublin, OH, 43017

This was a great workout and I liked the variety and loved the instructor. She was really down-to-earth, motivational and offered modifications and corrections. It’s a very nice studio, right by Trader Joes. I would go back and definitely take classes from Sarah again. She was fantastic.

Barre7

Seven Studios

Thu, 5/4
6:00 – 7:00 pm
275 S 3rd St, Columbus, OH, 43215

Julie is the best instructor I’ve ever had. It was a great workout. I wish I could give it six stars! She’s so inspirational and filled with knowledge. It was a challenging yet achievable workout. Highly recommend this class to everyone.

Fit Jump

The Bounce Club

Mon, 5/1
7:00 – 8:00 pm
3967 Presidential Pkwy, Powell, OH, 43065

It was a tough but fun workout. I couldn’t help but smile when we were bouncing on the trampoline but then that smile faded when we started doing suicides, frog legs, push ups, etc. I worked up quite a sweat. The instructor is tough but fair. I wish she had explained how exactly to do some of the more tricky moves. The class was small with just me and 5 “regulars”

Zumba

Columbus Fit Life

Fri, 4/28
6:30 – 7:15 pm
640 Lakeview Plaza Blvd, Suite A, Columbus, OH, 43085

Not super intense, but a great way to blow off some steam. Had a good time

Beginner Pole

Vertical Bliss Fitness

Wed, 4/26
7:45 – 8:45 pm
3408 Indianola Ave, Columbus, OH, 43214

I left class feeling frustrated. The class was labeled Beginner but the majority of the class had been dancing for years/ had their own pole in their basement/ could do spinning pole dancing. Everyone else in the class got the hang of it instantly. The instructor, Devon, gave up on me after awkwardly trying to help me twice. It wasn’t much of a workout and the pole was crazy slippery. Only take this class if you can do a few pull ups and have great upper body strength. And wear shorts. You can’t do the class in yoga capri pants. You have to wear shorts. Even though their website says you can wear yoga pants. Don’t.

Hydro Power Jam

Premier at Sawmill Athletic Club

Mon, 4/24
7:00 – 8:00 pm
3111 Hayden Rd, Columbus, OH, 43235

Laura is a really nice instructor. The workout wasn’t the most intense. I wanted it to be more challenging. There were a lot of older women in the group and some of them seem more focused on gossiping than doing the moves. Sawmill has a nice pool, locker room, hot tub and sauna.

Dance Mixx

Jazzercise – Upper Arlington

Fri, 4/21
6:00 – 7:00 pm
1145 Kenny Centre Mall, Columbus, OH, 43220

The staff is really friendly and welcoming. The instructor came over and introduced herself and explained how the class would go. I liked the music and the dance moves. The instructor was so upbeat and motivating. It was a good workout.

And that’s all I have to say about my experience with a one-month trial of ClassPass in Columbus.

2017, Baking, blog, cookies, debbie, may, myblog, recipe

Cookie de Tacos

May 9, 2017 Debbie

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

I celebrated by creating these adorable cookie tacos for a surprise birthday party for one of Nate’s friends.

Colorful Cookie Tacos

This type of plate helped the tacos stay upright

Ingredients:

Golden Oreos

Sprinkles

Chocolate Frosting

Food Coloring (green, yellow, red)

Coconut flakes (I used unsweetened)

Instructions:

Using the food coloring, dye the coconut flakes a green (lettuce) or an orange-yellow color (cheese) I used shot glasses to stir the food coloring into the coconut flakes.
Remove the top part of the Oreo and remove the inner frosting (My frosting disappeared into my mouth…)
Carefully cut in half the Oreo cookie. Sometimes I just broke it apart and other times I used a knife in a sawing motion.
Put the two half pieces together in your hand and add a spoonful of chocolate frosting
Dip it into sprinkles and colored coconut toppings

After the first couple, I had a nice assembly line going and it wasn’t too labor intensive.

My work station

I saw this on Pinterest and wanted to try to make it myself

Inspiration: http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/989755/mini-taco-cookies-recipe

2017, blog, debbie, may, myblog

It’s me, blog. Been a while.

May 5, 2017 Debbie

I don’t know if I can even call myself a blogger anymore because this “blog” has been nothing but dust and tumbleweeds. Ugh, I hope this isn’t one of those “Heyyyy guys srry I fell off the face of the earth” blog posts.

I’ve been living IRL and leaving reviews of Columbus places I’ve been to on Yelp. Most recently, I wrote about The Eagle and Tea Zone Bakery and Cafe.

My roommate and I got a cat. So that’s what I’ve been up to right meow. Get it?

Plumpkin’s Photo Booth session

I’ve been staying busy with my new job at Volunteers of America of Greater Ohio, which I love. I’m doing a lot of fun and impactful work that I sincerely enjoy.

I’m also helping Last Call Trivia with their marketing strategy and social media. I’ve been writing blog posts and social media strategy for them.

I’m volunteering as a Committee Member for the Activities Village for The Columbus Arts Festival in June. I volunteered last year and liked it so I thought I’d take the leap and join a committee.

I traveled to Michigan and Tennessee with my boyfriend Nate. Can you say fun? I love spending time with him and exploring new places together.

I joined ClassPass as a one month trial and have been going to fitness classes 2-3 times a week all over town. It’s been fun trying new styles of fitness classes like water aerobics, jazzercise, trampoline fitness, barre, and zumba.

I’m going to be a bridesmaid in a friend’s wedding in September. I bought my dress and so now I’m looking for shoes.

On the weekends, I work at the Pet Wellness Vet clinic, filling out paperwork, restraining animals, as well as talking to customers about dog and cat vaccinations and medicine. It can get pretty hectic sometimes and my background isn’t in veterinary medicine so people will often ask me questions I have to admit I don’t know the answer to and ask a co-worker for help. I also make Facebook posts and events for the clinic. It’s pretty fun to “research” cute dog videos to post.
Furthermore, I launched Pet Wellness Vet’s new website. It’s based on WordPress so it’s easy to update.

TBH mostly I’ve been hanging out with Fiona.

And that’s about all I have to say about that.

2017, blog post, lastcalltrivia, march

Blog post about Alzheimer’s Association

March 14, 2017April 15, 2018 Debbie

I wrote a blog post for Last Call Trivia about Alzheimer’s Association, a charity they are supporting at their upcoming national trivia tournament, Ludimentis.

2017, blog, book, book review, debbie, debbie gillum, myblog

Sugar Book Review

March 3, 2017 Debbie

Not as Sweet as Sugar

I have mixed thoughts about the new novel Sugar by Kimberly Stuart. I liked the beginning but had issues with the middle and end. I liked the overall story but not the execution and would’ve liked for it to be more risk-taking.

I appreciated the opening scenes when Charlie (the female protagonist) is a hard-working pastry chef, baking away her life in NYC. Those scenes caught my attention and drew me into the book. They were told with such authority and commanding details. Someone getting stabbed in the kitchen for misplacing a head chef’s knife is definitely attention grabbing. But alas, Charlie doesn’t stay at that restaurant or in NYC.

Later on in the book, once she has moved to Seattle, I found myself skimming through the scenes with the dates Charlie had with Kai because they felt so cheesy and rehearsed. It was like watching a CW or ABC Family TV show.

Also, Charlie is not the most likeable of characters. She’s so neurotic and controlling.

The chapters were short and choppy, not in a good way. A couple times I thought scenes needed to play out longer and that the author just didn’t want to write that scene.

Several parts of the book felt cliche to me, especially Manda’s kids and Avery as a character. It wasn’t a shocker when Avery turned out not to have Charlie’s best interests in mind. I liked the reality TV show aspect of the book but even that felt cliche. Like it seemed as if the author just guessed at what a reality TV show is probably like or did research by watching reality TV. Ugh.

The ending of the novel was a beautiful fairy tale one where all Charlie’s dreams come true. Life doesn’t work that way. What if Kai didn’t take her back? What if Charlie couldn’t get out of her contract?

It was an entertaining read but I don’t want to read it again. I’d recommend it to someone who likes baking or reading about high-stress upscale baking and wants an easy beachy read.

2017, january, ThisWeek, ThisWeekNews

Reynoldsburg council mulls contract with Constellation

February 28, 2017April 15, 2018 Debbie

Discussions about a new two-year aggregation contract with Constellation Electric began at the Reynoldsburg City Council meeting Jan. 10.

By DEBBIE GILLUM, THISWEEKNEWS.COM

Discussions about a new two-year aggregation contract with Constellation Electric began at the Reynoldsburg City Council meeting Jan. 10.

City Director of Public Service Bill Sampson gave council a report on electric aggregation because the city’s current aggregation program will expire in March.

merican Municipal Power (AMP) solicited pricing last week for a 24-month period. AMP is under contract with the city to administer the program.

Three bids came in from IGS Energy, AEP and Constellation. The latter came in at the lowest rate of 5.5 cents per kilowatt hour, which is indicative pricing as the rates change daily. The current aggregation rate is 7.1 cents per kwh.

All bids stated there is no termination fee if residents want to cancel their participation in the program at any time.

This rate includes a $100,000 city grant for a use yet to be determined. Sampson said in his presentation he hopes the grant is used for a comprehensive city master plan.

The previous aggregation contract from 2014 with AEP Energy included a similar grant.

Sampson said the city’s goal is to get the best possible price for electricity.

“We will contract with AMP and at the present time Constellation is the lowest firm,” he said. “Residents always have a choice, but the city will contract with one firm.”

Sampson will present legislation to city council at its Monday, Jan. 23 meeting, along with a finalized rate and his recommendation for the next electric aggregation provider.

The decision about the electricity provider will be reviewed by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio for certification before it takes effect.

http://www.thisweeknews.com/news/20170117/reynoldsburg-council-mulls-contract-with-constellation


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