Brennan
Grignon has been a part of the Junior League Washington for 12 years. She became a Sustainer member just last year. Brennan and her mom (a fellow JL member), had just returned from
a walk with her very friendly dog Duma, who ended up falling asleep at
my feet while we laughed and chatted easily.
She lives with her husband and Duma in a beautiful house in the
Brookland neighborhood of Washington, DC.
On a lovely fall afternoon, I was given the opportunity to sit down with her at her house to interview her for this column. Brennan grew up in Long Beach, California. Despite working very long hours (60-80 per week) for the past three years at the Department of Defense, volunteering and being active within the community is a big part of her life. Brennan and her four brothers feel you must “take care of where you live”. Brennan has served as the Rising Co-Chair for Kitchen Tour, Chair and volunteer for the 826DC – Reading All-Stars, and as Chair and Vice Chair for several years for the Corcoran Gallery of Art.
On a lovely fall afternoon, I was given the opportunity to sit down with her at her house to interview her for this column. Brennan grew up in Long Beach, California. Despite working very long hours (60-80 per week) for the past three years at the Department of Defense, volunteering and being active within the community is a big part of her life. Brennan and her four brothers feel you must “take care of where you live”. Brennan has served as the Rising Co-Chair for Kitchen Tour, Chair and volunteer for the 826DC – Reading All-Stars, and as Chair and Vice Chair for several years for the Corcoran Gallery of Art.
How
has the Junior League influenced you? JLW has given me the ability to connect
with a network of women who supported me through our shared desire to volunteer
in our community. I have had the opportunity
to volunteer at varying places like at the Sunflower House, 826DC – Reading All-Stars
program, and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and each experience had its own set
of rewards and challenges. I was the
Chair for the Corcoran Committee when the gallery closed in 2015. The Junior League volunteers provided
incredible support to the Corcoran staff during the final summer the gallery
was open, and we gave the last tours on the final day, which was bittersweet. Evolving the JLW’s relationship with 826DC –
Reading All-Stars, from providing grants to providing volunteers, was a unique
and enriching experience, especially as I was able to help children learn and improve
their reading skills.
Besides
working full time and volunteering, what do you do in your very little spare
time to decompress? Anything that keeps me physically active
like riding my bike to work, running, swimming. I love to cook and bake. Baking sweet treats are my specialty, and I
love to make them for neighbors, friends, coworkers, etc. My husband and I like to travel especially
anywhere we haven’t been before. We
recently took a trip to Croatia, driving through towns eating delicious food and
wine that was all locally grown. My
favorite vacation spot is anywhere I haven’t been. Next trip: Patagonia, Chile.
What
advice would you give to a fellow League member; Provisional, Active, or
Sustainer? My advice to other members is that it is okay to say “no” when you
need to take care of yourself. One year I
was co-chairing a committee and realized that I could not be as dedicated a JLW
leader as I wanted to be due to work commitments. I was working 80-90 hours per week, bringing
work home and working on the weekends for months at a time. When I realized I couldn’t provide the support
to my co-chair and my committee that I expected of myself, and still balance
work and the other aspects of my life, I knew I needed to scale back my
volunteer commitments, so I went from being a co-chair to being a Sustainer. It was one of the hardest decisions I made as
a JLW-member, but the League leadership at the time was tremendously supportive
and understanding. Be sympathetic to
fellow members who have to make that choice between work, family, or other
priorities. Everyone needs to prioritize
things differently at different points in our lives, and the more we can
support each other through those times, the more invaluable our JLW experience
becomes.
