Opinion

Heated Rivalry, if it were set in nonprofit and philanthropy

6 minutes ago
by Vu Le
Written by Vu Le

Hey everyone, thanks to the recommendation/threats of several colleagues, I finished watching Heated Rivalry, a smoldering Canadian show about gay/bi hockey players. When everything is so awful in the world, it’s nice we can find some reprieve in stories of love, romance, and community. And softcore smut (Do NOT watch this show with your family).

While watching it though, I thought about what it would be like if instead of being set in the world of hockey, the show were set in our sector. And since I am too unmotivated to do real work today, I started working on the script. Here’s some excerpts from it:  

Episode 1:  

Shane: Hi, are you Ilya Rozanov?

Ilya (drags on his cigarette; blows some smoke): Who’s asking?

Shane: I’m Shane Hollander. I run a homelessness advocacy organization. We’re applying for this grant from your corporation’s CSR funds. Thanks for putting on this information session.

Ilya (looks at him blankly): You’re advocating for homelessness?

Shane: No, I mean, we’re advocating for policies that would help—

Ilya: I know what you mean, Hollander. Good luck on application. (Leaves)

(Hayden, Shane’s development director, arrives)

Hayden: Was that Ilya Rozanov walking by?

Shane: Yeah

Hayden: You told him about our org, eh?

Shane: Yeah. The guy’s an asshole, though.

Hayden: Don’t let it get to you. Come back inside. There’s poutine for lunch.

(9 months later)

Shane: Nice running into you at this conference. I just got news that my organization got a grant from your team. So I wanted to say thanks.

Ilya: Hollander, you don’t need to fawn over me like baby deer. I was not on grant decision team. Are you always this boring?

Shane: Are you always such an asshole? I was just saying thanks. And I’m not always this boring. I’m in a curling league. We placed second in regionals–

Ilya: 1039

Shane: What?

Ilya: My hotel room number. I might be there after the reception. If you’re not boring, you’ll be there.

Shane: Maybe I won’t be “boring” tonight.

Ilya: Maybe I won’t be bored.

(later that evening)

…

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About the author

Vu Le

Vu Le (“voo lay”) is a writer, speaker, vegan, Pisces, and the former Executive Director of RVC, a nonprofit in Seattle that promotes social justice by developing leaders of color, strengthening organizations led by communities of color, and fostering collaboration between diverse communities.

Vu’s passion to make the world better, combined with a low score on the Law School Admission Test, drove him into the field of nonprofit work, where he learned that we should take the work seriously, but not ourselves. There’s tons of humor in the nonprofit world, and someone needs to document it. He is going to do that, with the hope that one day, a TV producer will see how cool and interesting our field is and make a show about nonprofit work, featuring attractive actors attending strategic planning meetings and filing 990 tax forms.

Known for his no-BS approach, irreverent sense of humor, and love of unicorns, Vu has been featured in dozens, if not hundreds, of his own blog posts at NonprofitAF.com.

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