Board Involvement: Greg Grimm, Director, Benefits Division

Greg has served on the board of Montessori Children’s House of Valley Forge (MCHVF) for two years. Its mission is to cultivate the child’s innate love of learning. This organization is especially important to Greg because his children attend this school, however it is the mission and what the organization achieves that first attracted him to this board. Greg states that when he was asked to get involved, “it was a no-brainer. [I] was so excited”. He is on the fundraising and finance committees, and has gotten very involved with the healthcare aspect of it.

The campus of this school has 10 acres of land and it is the only Montessori school that is in a National Park. Every week, a Valley Forge park ranger comes in to teach and interact with the kids, something Greg believes is an amazing learning environment. When asked what makes this mission powerful to him, he responded, “the way that they’re engaging and cultivating these kids is incredible. With the Montessori philosophy, it is a lot about teaching the children decision-making and achieving a greater good. It sets them up to be independent thinkers but also have the ability to collaborate.” The most important reason for Greg to join the board was to keep the mission and success of the school. He felt that he could bring a lens of business acumen, as well as being able to provide this educational environment for kids beyond his two boys. Being on this board has given Greg the opportunity to network and meet really great people; overall it has been a positive experience for him.

When asked why joining a board is important to Greg, he said that to share the talents and experiences as well as lending a level of expertise is such a great benefit. Having many different members from different backgrounds produces a better result because everyone shares from their individual lenses. He said, “it is not about improving ourselves, but helping the organization; we have the resources and we should share them”. He concluded by saying that when you are on a board, the two hours (or so) that you meet each month is really beneficial.

“Sacrificing those hours for a good cause is so worth it.”