Thursday 13: My Job

I get the question all the time,
"What do you do for a living?"

For THURSDAY 13 this week, I'm going to tell you 13 things about my job.

1. I work for St. Luke's Health System (it's a hospital) in Boise, Idaho.
2. I work in the Health Foundation. We are the philanthropy (fundraising) department of our hospital, which is a non-profit.
3. Our office is located in a tiny, historic old house called the "Aldecoa House." It was built in the late 1800's, has been moved 3 times, is on the historic home registry for Boise, and the upstairs bathroom still has the original wallpaper, pink toilet, and pink tub (in which it is rumored that someone committed suicide in... not like that's creepy or anything).
4. My title is "Development Assistant," but I am classified as a secretary, hence my name badge. 
5. My main responsibility at work is processing monetary donations that are received by the hospital. Whether it's a memorial gift, a grant, a just-because donation, or money from a fundraiser... it comes to my inbox and I handle it. 
6. I answer all incoming phone calls at our foundation. That wasn't originally part of my job, but once my supervisor realized I wasn't getting the interaction my bubbly personality craved, that soon became something that I was in charge of.
7. Part of my job is reading the newspaper obituaries daily. It's probably my least favorite aspect of my job because I sometimes know people in the obits. That's always hard.
8. I got my job because of a college internship that I had with a local diabetes clinic. After my internship, the diabetes center hired me. Less than a year later, the clinic merged with St. Luke's and my job was transferred to the Foundation. 
9. I have a gigantic A in my office that my mom gave me as a Christmas present. At first, I had NO IDEA what to do with it. When I moved to the Foundation, I knew immediately where the A was going.
10. I have French doors that lead to a tiny balcony right off my office. I can't wait for summertime when I'm able to open the doors and feel the breeze as I do my work.
11. I have 10 plants in my office. 4 succulents, 2 ivies, a money tree, a Christmas cactus, a parlor palm, and a lucky bamboo plant. I used to have more but I gave 3 to a coworker and took one home.
12. When I'm having a hard day at work, I walk over to our gift shop and buy Lemonheads. They're 10 cents each and I buy as many as I can with the change I have in my purse. It's my little, sour indulgence.
13. When I graduated college, my one goal was to work in the health promotion field at a hospital. I'm halfway to that goal, and not far from it at all.

So... that's what I do!
I hope you enjoy your Thursday!