Volunteer Spotlight
Marvelous Mayra:
How one guest's nickname says everything about Mayra Fairbairn
"Oh my gosh, it makes me emotional. It fills my heart and makes me so happy just to be helping and doing something different. I feel like I'm making a difference."
— Mayra Fairbairn
Somewhere along the way, one of Rainbow Place's guests gave Mayra Fairbairn a nickname: Marvelous Mayra. It's hard to argue with the guest's judgment. Mayra brings warmth, patience, and a smile to every shift and, apparently, a name tag too, so the ladies always know who she is.
Mayra grew up in the D.C. area, born in the 1960s to parents from Guatemala. She spent parts of her early childhood in Guatemala before her family settled in Silver Spring and Wheaton. She's called Gaithersburg home for 39 years, raised four grown children, and is a proud grandmother to a 13-year-old grandson.
Her professional career spanned decades in technology and hospitality, from Falcon Systems (later acquired by Oracle) to IBM to Georgetown University Hotel, but one thread ran through all of it: volunteering. It began in high school when she baked brownies for a local shelter. In her early 20s, she was out on the streets passing out blankets and socks to people experiencing homelessness. She even wrote a paper on homelessness in college.
"It made me feel good to do something," she says simply, "something worth doing."
That spirit of service didn't come from a specific program or role model. Her parents weren't volunteers themselves, but they raised their children to be caring and loving, and for Mayra, that translated naturally into a life of helping others.
For over 23 years, she has managed volunteer teams, race directed a few events, and filled countless volunteer positions for events like the Credit Union Cherry Blossom road race as well as for the Montgomery County Road Runners Club. She was named their Volunteer of the Year in 2017 and has since been nominated for their lifetime achievement award. She also volunteers with So What Else, a local nonprofit serving children and families in need of food and other basic necessities.
Mayra first volunteered at Rainbow Place in December of 2003, took a long break, and then came back this season, drawn back by the memory of how fun it was to prepare and serve food and, most of all, to talk with the ladies. This past season she volunteered as a server and laughed as she told us that she “worries her cooking is not the tastiest so she wants to save the ladies from her cooking.”
What Mayra truly loves, though, is the human connection. Fellow volunteer Meg Thale put it well: "She is a hard worker, warm and friendly with a nice sense of humor." Kitchen coordinator Louise agrees adding that “Mayra always has a smile on her face, is patient, and always tries to make the ladies feel special.” Louise adds that “Mayra is also a natural trainer for first-timers.”
Left to Right: Louise (Kitchen Coordinator), Mayra, and Desiree (Overnight Staff)
In March, Mayra helped serve a meal from The Bean Bag Deli which included a variety of sandwiches (roast beef, tuna, ham and cheese), and of course, their enormous cookies. That made quite the impression. "Everything was super soft and fresh," she recalls. "The ladies want The Bean Bag Deli to come back!"
As for what keeps Mayra coming back? She doesn't hesitate: Louise. "I always ask if Louise is there when I arrive. She's a big part of it, always so welcoming and excited to see me." She plans to return again next season.
Volunteering, Mayra says, is "a big, big part of my life. Something I can't live without." Rainbow Place is lucky to have her, and the ladies know it.