Meet our May Employee Campaign Manager (ECM) Spotlight: Jocelyn Mourning of The Family Conservancy!
Jocelyn is the Vice President of Advancement at The Family Conservancy, a 2024 Impact 100 partner committed to helping children and families achieve a lifetime of success with the vision of bright futures for children and families.. In her everyday role, she leads fundraising efforts to secure resources and cultivates relationships with donors and partners who believe in building a stronger community for families and children.
Jocelyn became an ECM when she joined The Family Conservancy and found that leading their United Way campaign was a natural extension of her role. “Becoming an ECM offered a meaningful opportunity to continue my support for United Way in a professional capacity while helping connect my colleagues to causes that strengthen our entire Kansas City community,” she shared.
Now 12 years into her ECM journey, Jocelyn’s dedication has been fueled not only by her professional passion but by her personal experiences. Before she was born, her twin sisters received life-saving care from Children’s Mercy Hospital, a United Way-supported organization. United Way later reached out to highlight the support her family received.
“At just five years old, I couldn’t fully grasp the significance when my sisters and I were featured in a United Way campaign ad, but that experience stayed with me,” she said. “As I grew older, I came to understand the real impact of those contributions—how they translate directly to helping families like mine in moments of crisis”
Jocelyn’s passion in her role as an ECM stems from seeing the alignment between United Way’s focus areasand The Family Conservancy’s mission. “When United Way campaigns succeed, our entire Kansas City community benefits, including the families we serve. There’s something genuinely Midwestern about the way we look out for each other, and United Way embodies that spirit of neighbors helping neighbors,” she explained.
By fostering an inclusive atmosphere in campaigns and organizing creative, community-centered activities, Jocelyn ensures every team member feels valued and connected to the impact they’re helping create. With a primary goal of 100% participation, they emphasize that every contribution matters, no matter the size. “We’ve consistently achieved high participation rates through creative engagement activities that bring our teams together while supporting our larger community,” she said.
One of her most memorable campaign stories goes back to their 2014 campaign where they organized a county fair-themed event featuring games, a funnel cake truck, and a leadership pie-in-the-face challenge. “What we didn’t anticipate was the scorching 99-degree late September heat! No one wanted to stand next to the blazing funnel cake machine,” she shared. “The saving grace came when our CEO participated in the Ice Bucket Challenge, giving everyone a much-needed cool-down. Despite our carnival meltdown, we ironically had one of our best campaign years ever!”
Outside of work, Jocelyn has a long history of volunteerism. “Volunteering has been a thread woven throughout my life, thanks to parents who believed in the importance of giving back,” she shared. Her earliest memory is from childhood when she volunteered alongside her family at Cross-Lines Community Outreach, a United Way 2024 Impact 100 partner. “In a wonderful full-circle moment, I’ve had the opportunity to return in recent years to volunteer in their food pantry and Cross-Lines is a fellow Impact 100 partner!” she said.
As a nonprofit partner, Jocelyn sees firsthand how collaboration with United Way strengthens the entire community. “Being an Impact 100 partner connects us to a broader network of organizations all working toward similar goals from different angles,” she explained. “It’s a reminder that we’re part of something larger than our individual organization—we’re part of a community-wide effort to support Kansas City families.,” She emphasizes how that spirit of shared commitment is what makes creating pathways for families to thrive within our community possible.
“I believe we’re all part of the same community fabric, and at different points in our lives, each of us will need support. While I’ve been fortunate to participate in many volunteer opportunities throughout my life, what matters most isn’t counting hours but remembering that we’re all connected in this journey together,” shared Jocelyn.
Whether she’s rallying participation in a campaign or rolling her sleeves up to volunteer, Jocelyn leads with heart. Her words are a powerful reminder that when we connect passion with purpose, we can create lasting change. For more stories featuring ECMs and how they are making a difference through their roles in the workplace, click here.