Her Story
About Molly
Molly VanDerWielen serves as a fundraiser at United Way in Madison, Wisconsin, where she has spent the last two years after making a significant career transition. Prior to this role, she worked for 17 years at UW Credit Union in a variety of management positions in lending and financial education, often supporting community outreach efforts. She holds a bachelor's degree in business, which she completed later in life while raising young children. In her current position, Molly focuses on training loan executives, engaging corporate partners through CEO visits, and preparing large-scale volunteer events like the Day of Caring. She emphasizes the importance of philanthropy at any level and draws from personal experiences of receiving community support to connect with donors and highlight critical local issues. Molly values building human connections and encourages others to pursue opportunities even when not fully certain, crediting mentors and her husband for supporting her own leap into fundraising.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Molly
01What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I think that you don't have to be 100% there. If you're at 51%, to go and do it. Just try it. The worst case is something's gonna happen and you're gonna learn lessons. In the beginning, yeah, you might suck, but it's okay, because you're going to get better. Having those people in your life like mentors and my previous boss and husband helped.
02What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
There's so many fundraisers out there, it's really kind of defining what organization to give to. The younger generation seems more individual, and we're trying to talk about community and why philanthropy is important, why giving back to the community is important. Any amount is beneficial, you don't have to give a large amount.
03What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
People. I focus on people, connecting with others. We all have a story, and we're all connected. We're all human. Remembering that we've all gone through tough times and needed support, a hand up.
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