Alison Feighan learned about the power of community development to change communities and lives as a Fair Housing advocate in Quincy, Massachusetts. In her first "real" job out of college, Alison became a Fair Housing advocate for Quincy Community Action Agency where she worked for and was mentored by her executive director, the late Rosemary Wahlberg. The lessons learned from Rosemary - listening to the community, being problem solving and taking local stories to a national stage on Capitol Hill - are foundational to Alison's work. As Founder of The Feighan Team, an advocacy and lobbying firm for nonprofits, Alison gets her clients seats at the table on the Hill and then "gets out of the way." She works with them to identify their goals, understand the Congressional timeline, and build their "muscle memory" as advocates on their issues. And she encourages a non-partisan approach, a significant challenge in the current political environment. Her clients, which include the Native CDFI Coalition, National Migrant & Seasonal Head Start Association and the Responsible Business Lending Coalition, have become resources to Congressional members and their staffs. They are developing and using their muscle memory to make their case, push back against Budget cutbacks and create bi-partisan champions in the US Congress. Is your nonprofit keeping its mission and strategies on the radar in Washington DC? Listen to Alison for the story of how it is done.