Meet Your Client Success Team: Mercedes Ledezma

Charities that call the Chimp office for support are usually greeted by Mercedes Ledezma’s bubbly hello and friendly voice. Mercedes is Chimp’s charity liaison, and she unfailingly brings her enthusiasm for helping others to her work every single day.

If you ever need help setting up your Chimp Charity Account, planning or launching a fundraising campaign or managing Giving Groups, Mercedes is here to help by phone or by email.

And just to put a face to her friendly voice, here’s an introduction to Mercedes.

Meet Mercedes Ledezma

Mercedes has worked with Chimp for about a year and a half.

What brought you to Chimp?

Being from Venezuela, I’ve always wanted to give back to Vancouver, as it has welcomed me as one of its own. Chimp offered me the opportunity to be able to make a difference through fundraising and volunteering, while empowering me to go further and help others do the same through my work. It’s a beautiful thing!

What’s your favourite part of your job?

What I enjoy the most about my job is being able to connect with great people across Canada who come from all walks of life and who are striving to make a positive impact for the betterment of our communities.

What project are you most proud of?

Back in September 2014, Ignite Giving empowered Vancouver charities working to alleviate poverty to fundraise for their cause while leveraging $225,000 generously provided by the Bienfaisance Foundation of Canada. It was very exciting for me to see how 1,500 donors came together through this Chimp campaign to raise over $726,000!

What’s the first thing you do when you get to your desk every morning?

First thing I do when I get to my desk is to greet everyone with a ‘good morning!’ That’s followed by checking my email, drinking one too many cups of coffee, setting daily priorities and then I’m off to make charitable giving happen.

What cause is most meaningful to you and why?

The most meaningful cause to me would be mental health. Having moved solo to Canada at age 16, I understood the value of having a healthy mind and reaching out to a support system when life gets a bit hectic. I’ve also met people who battle with mental illness on daily basis, and they have made me realize the importance of supporting organizations that offer help through programs and resources.

What’s your favourite way to spend the weekend?

Venezuelan style: surrounded by family and friends, music, food and dancing if possible!

If you could wave a magic wand and change one thing in the world, what would it be?

I believe that all children — girls and boys — should have access to school and thorough education. If I had a magic wand, that’s the one thing I’d change.

Tell us something most people don’t know about you.

I don’t know how to ride a bike so it’s this year’s commitment to learn. I’m very lucky to have the best and most talented instructor: my 7-year-old daughter Gabrielle 🙂