Five Questions With: Gail Cavanaugh

"In order to provide this training for the women, the sewing center must have the adequate training materials, teachers and supplies."

Gail Cavanaugh is a licensed Independent Life Insurance Producer with the National Agents Alliance, a group of independent insurance agents in the U. S. She has more than 15 years of experience in the insurance and financial services industry.
Cavanaugh has a bachelor’s degree in Spanish from Stonehill College and is working on her master’s in business at Liberty University.
Her company, Gail Cavanaugh’s Business Solutions, is based in Portsmouth. Cavanaugh is founder of a new nonprofit, Gail Sewing Center International, in Pakistan.

PBN: What made you decide to launch your own business in the financial services industry? How has it expanded?
CAVANAUGH:
Wherever I worked, I’ve always had ideas of what I wanted to achieve and I always felt restricted. I have a lot of skills and I wanted the security and freedom of having my own business. Now I’m starting a nonprofit and will be raising money to start a sewing center in Pakistan, and after that, in other countries. Even though I haven’t been to Pakistan yet – I’m going in June – when the women there heard I was going to sponsor it, they wanted to name it for me. It was their idea. So it’s called Gail International Sewing Center.
PBN: The weak economy obviously provides many challenges for nonprofits. What do you consider will be your initial challenge at the Gail Sewing Center International in Pakistan? From your perspective of 30 years of experience in financial leadership, are the challenges relatively similar, or are there new or more complex ones?
CAVANAUGH:
The challenges for nonprofits are in finding resources to fund the projects. The states have not recovered from the spending cuts they had to undertake when they cut their programs during the last recession in 2008. Therefore, it will be difficult to locate funding for new projects. Additionally, tax collections and federal aid to the states have been slow, which have resulted in shortfalls in the states’ budgets. I believe the challenges are more complex, because despite the budget cuts in Rhode Island, more new nonprofits continue to surface, making it a more competitive market for locating funding sources.

PBN: What’s your vision of combining the financial needs of the Gail Sewing Center International in Pakistan with the mission of the organization?
CAVANAUGH: /b> Pakistan is a very poor country with very few opportunities for women to become empowered. As a result, many of the women are marginalized, disenfranchised, disempowered and poverty-stricken. The mission of the Gail Sewing Center International is to provide an opportunity for women and young girls to learn sewing, skills which will enable them to secure jobs and open their own boutiques. In order to provide this training for the women, the sewing center must have the adequate training materials, teachers and supplies. Having access to a funding resource is key to fulfilling that mission. Additionally, the women must be trained in managing money so that they have more control over their lives. So I am raising money for the nonprofit and that will complement the mission of helping the women working at the sewing center in Pakistan become more financially secure.

PBN: Do you see any changes coming in financial planning or priorities for the Gail Sewing Center International? Are you expecting to make substantial investments in upgrading technology to achieve the mission? Are there other major expenditures required in the upcoming year or two?
CAVANAUGH:
Gail Sewing Center International will need a local office in order to administer this project, more board members and with one staff member to coordinate the activities. To ensure that the center has the adequate funds for supplies, we would need someone who is willing to live in Pakistan to disperse the funds for expenses and purchase the necessary supplies. We have been considering moving the sewing center from its current location at a church in Gojra Gity to allow for more working space. We have even considered opening a garment factory in the future. The center currently has one teacher for wedding garments and is seeking a second teacher for the children’s clothing. We also need to resolve the problems with intermittent electricity by adding solar panels to the building. However, we will not consider solar panels unless the center is located in a more permanent location. If we opt for solar panels, we would be able to add electric sewing machines to replace any hand operated sewing machines. The sewing center would also need computers to enable the women to view video tutorials and to organize their records. We are also in the process of creating sewing classes for local children. This would give them an opportunity for enrichment.

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PBN: Do you have any new strategies to increase funding from individuals, corporations and foundations? How will the Gail Sewing Center International stand out in the stiff competition for funding?
CAVANAUGH:
Our first initiative will be to attract board members who are sensitive to the needs of a sewing center in an impoverished area. We will apply for grants and keep the public aware of our activities through newsletters. In this way, we hope to attract the donors that we need for this project. We also plan on having at least one fundraiser per year. Our plans to offer instruction in knitting, crocheting and cross- stitch to help them provide warm clothing for their families during the winter months will help us to stand out in the stiff competition. Finally, we will employ the services of a professional fundraiser.

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