Volunteer Spotlight

As a Career Development volunteer for over 12 years, Meridith Webster brings extensive Human Resources, Recruiting, and Customer Service experience to Working Wardrobes after working 35 years at the Disneyland Resort.  With a background in Career Counselling, Recruiting, and Training, and Master’s degree in Human Resources, as well as having hired over 1,000 Disneyland “Cast Members,” she truly enjoys working with our clients to help them prepare for and pursue their career goals.  She encourages our clients to look at their job search from the point of view of their target job’s recruiter and the needs of that company.  She has developed this quote to help our clients:  “Make the recruiter’s job easy to see how great you are!”

Abraham Lincoln may have coined "Leave nothing for tomorrow which can be done today,” but Brigitte Dole, a Working Wardrobes volunteer, lives by this favorite quote. After graduating Chapman University’s esteemed film production program amidst the chaos of Covid, Brigitte temporarily returned to her native Sacramento only to realize she’d developed a genuine affection for Orange County and its people. With the film and television industry at a temporary standstill, she switched gears applying the principles of production - everything from design to budgeting analytics.

Her agile pivots led to her current position as an Executive Strategic Analyst at Orange County Credit Union where her duties include seeking out grants and other programs connected to the state. It's the perfect blend of finance and serving a population that’s underserved. Within Brigitte’s industrious self lies the heart of a philanthropist and the soul of an artist. Knowing she wanted to mix her full-time employment with some additional community volunteerism, it was not lost on her that Working Wardrobes appeared on her radar twice - first through a colleague and, shortly thereafter, the OC Business Journal. She reached out hoping she’d find a little something that would mesh with her 40+ hour work week.

To her surprise and delight, the serendipitous connection was able to engage Brigitte’s production talents as a storyteller and editor while adhering to her free evening and weekend schedule. The result? The spectacular 34th Annual Gala video that brought to life (and screen) the resilience and vulnerability of our clients, the extraordinary efforts of the entire staff, and the palpable sense that from collaboration comes goodness. Equally as fulfilling was reacquainting herself with her passion for filmmaking while immersing herself in the A to Zs of Working Wardrobes. She also interviews clients who wish to share their stories.

When Brigitte is not making the world a better place, she is writing, going to the movies, reading books, anything that celebrates creativity. Her advice to those contemplating volunteering? “Don’t think of it as something finite and rigid in which you have to work a specific amount of hours. There is so much flexibility. State the skills you’re passionate about and your availability as there’s bound to be something that will align.”