Danny Fields, 36
Director, Our Lady of the Lake Foundation
PROFESSIONAL ACHIEVEMENTS:
- Serving on the leadership team to fundraise for the new Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital.
- Serving in the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals national hospital relations committee, representing 25 hospitals in the southeastern U.S.
- Co-founding the Dance Marathon student organization at LSU, raising more than $1 million for Our Lady of the Lake since 2013.
COMMUNITY:
Past president of Cortana Kiwanis and serves as vice chair of the alumni board for the Leadership Baton Rouge program; active with Association of Fundraising Professionals Greater Baton Rouge chapter and will serve as president in 2019, and previously served as a board member of the Charles W. Lamar YMCA branch.
NAME ONE BOOK THAT HAS INSPIRED YOU PROFESSIONALLY
Boundaries: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life by Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend
WHEN YOU WERE A CHILD, WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GREW UP?
An NBA basketball player.
WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB, HOW OLD WERE YOU AND WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM IT?
Junior camp counselor at Kehoe-France Northshore Summer Camp. I learned that organizations are always looking for good people to lead and take on extra responsibility and that by putting forth above and beyond effort, you won’t be stuck in the same job for long! I was quickly promoted to lead their computer lab program and the camp’s extended care program and they doubled my pay!
WHAT IS THE STRANGEST JOB YOU’VE EVER HAD?
Resident assistant at LSU. You learn a lot about how wonderfully different people are when you have to manage them where they live!
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE FOR A BUSINESS LUNCH IN BATON ROUGE, AND WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE DISH THERE?
I love BRQ. Any of the barbecue dishes and the homemade chips!
WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER YOUR GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT?
Convincing my wife, Melony, to say yes to marrying me! And being a father to our two daughters, Addie and Noella.
WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST FULFILLING MOMENT IN YOUR CAREER SO FAR?
Seeing the new Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital finally come to fruition. It will transform healthcare for kids in our state!
WHAT WAS YOUR PROFESSIONAL “AHA” MOMENT?
I would say every day that I wake up is my “aha” moment. I have breath in my lungs and I can make a difference with what I do for people all around me. I realize every day that I can do something (big or small) to make a big change in the world.
WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED THE HARD WAY?
Life is too short. Don’t take things too seriously, or too lightly!
WHAT GIVES YOU PROFESSIONAL INSPIRATION?
I love to watch entrepreneurs grow their businesses and organizations and learn from their stories of success and failure. I also love listening to the ideas of my kids. Ideas lead to progress.
WHAT IS THE BEST COMPLIMENT YOU’VE EVER GOTTEN FROM A COLLEAGUE OR BOSS?
It’s hard to pick, but I’ll narrow it down to any of the encouraging words I’ve received from Kelly Hurtado, my boss at Our Lady of the Lake Foundation. She’s a great mentor and friend.
ARE YOU ACTIVE ON SOCIAL MEDIA? IF SO, ON WHICH PLATFORMS ARE YOU MOST ACTIVE?
Facebook and LinkedIn mostly.
HOW MANY TEXTS DO YOU SEND ON AN AVERAGE DAY? HOW MANY EMAILS?
I always prefer to do face-to-face or phone, but still send about 75 to 100 texts and probably more than 50 emails.
HOW LOW WILL YOU ALLOW YOUR REMAINING PHONE OR COMPUTER BATTERY LIFE GET (IN %) BEFORE YOU HAVE AN ANXIETY ATTACK?
0%—I don’t let that make me anxious. It’s a nice reminder to take a break!
HOW MANY UNREAD MESSAGES ARE IN YOUR INBOX RIGHT NOW?
Don’t laugh, but I don’t clean up my inbox too often—15,218. If it’s important, call me!
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE APP AT THE MOMENT?
It’s a tie between FitBit and Libby (East Baton Rouge Library).
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT OF THE PAST DECADE?
iPhone
WHAT TECHNOLOGY DO YOU WISH WAS NEVER INVENTED?
Automated robot calls
WHAT TIME DO YOU GET UP ON WORKDAY MORNINGS?
5 a.m.
BREAKFAST AT HOME? BREAKFAST ON THE GO? BREAKFAST AT YOUR DESK? NO BREAKFAST AT ALL?
Breakfast at home with my wife and girls, except every Thursday morning I eat at Piccadilly on Sherwood with Cortana Kiwanis.
THE SAYING GOES: “BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE IN THE WORLD.” SPECIFICALLY, WHAT ARE YOU “BEING” TO MAKE BATON ROUGE BETTER?
I hope that I am being someone that makes a difference in the lives of kids, whether helping them get better access to healthcare, or mentoring/volunteering through Kiwanis or Leadership Baton Rouge, or teaching my own kids. Every day that I have breath is a gift that I don’t want to waste.
WHEN DID YOU REALIZE YOU WERE “GROWN UP?”
Who said that I was?
WHAT WAS THE BEST VACATION YOU HAVE EVER TAKEN?
In 2004 I took a LSU semester abroad in Granada, Spain, followed by 2.5 weeks travel in Morocco, Spain, France and Italy. I did three of the boldest things in my life on that trip—I jumped off 40-foot cliffs into the Mediterranean, ran with the bulls in Pamplona and I proposed to my wife in Venice.
FAVORITE GIFT YOU WERE GIVEN AS A CHILD?
A twin brother
WHICH TALENT OR SUPERPOWER WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO HAVE AND WHY?
Probably the ability to travel through time and space to be able to share more moments with people and to see more places.
WHAT’S A NICKNAME YOUR FRIENDS OR FAMILY MEMBERS HAVE FOR YOU?
Everyone has always just called me Danny, short for Daniel. I once tried to reinvent myself in college and go by Dan and it only lasted about three weeks. Four or five people in the world still call me Dan and I know that I met them early in my freshman year.
WHAT ARE YOU SUPERSTITIOUS ABOUT?
Washing my hands. Working at the hospital has made me a big germaphobe.
WHO FASCINATES YOU?
My wife and daughters. I still can’t figure out how I got so lucky.
WHICH FICTIONAL CHARACTER DO YOU MOST IDENTIFY WITH?
Captain Kirk on Star Trek (Chris Pine version, not William Shatner)
FAVORITE DRINK?
Coffee, and a classic old-fashioned
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BAND OR SONG?
I was the lead singer for an incredible band in college called Ice Cream Spectacular. But as far as bands you’ve actually heard of, Pearl Jam.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE?
“Stand By Me”
WHO WOULD PLAY YOU IN A MOVIE?
Aaron Rodgers, the Packers quarterback, would make his cinematic debut.
IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE YOUR 18-YEAR-OLD SELF?
Hug your parents and call your friends. Your time is the most valuable thing you have.
PETS?
We have a Chihuahua–Shiba Inu mix named Cinnamon.
HOBBIES?
Volunteering, cooking, kayaking, swimming, running, strength-training, singing, playing guitar and piano
TELL US ABOUT A MOMENT THAT CHANGED YOUR LIFE.
On the evening of September 11, 2001, after all of the horrible terrorist attacks, I was coming back from Christ the King Church to my dorm at East Laville Hall, and an amazing girl in the lobby said, “Hey boy, go get your books and come study with me!” All of our classes were canceled that week, so I didn’t have any homework, but I sure as heck went and got my books. Seventeen years and two kids later, it’s still the day that changed my life forever.
WHAT’S THE NEXT BIG PERSONAL OR CAREER CHALLENGE YOU PLAN TO TAKE ON?
In addition to continuing to help raise money to help kids have better healthcare, I plan to focus on investment opportunities and consider entrepreneurial options. I always like to keep options open.
WHAT CONCERNS YOU MOST ABOUT THE FUTURE?
I’m not that worried. I believe in focusing on the things that you can control, letting go of the things that you can’t, and having the wisdom to know the difference.
WHAT GIVES YOU THE MOST HOPE ABOUT THE FUTURE?
I can already tell that my kids are going to be a lot smarter than me. They are fun to watch grow up and they give me so much hope.
WHAT WOULD BE YOUR ADVICE FOR FUTURE FORTY UNDER 40 HONOREES?
Don’t peak now! The best is yet to come!
DO YOU PLAN TO BE IN THE CAPITAL REGION FIVE YEARS FROM NOW? WHY OR WHY NOT?
Yes. I think there is a lot of good opportunity to do well here. And I like being a part of making things better.
IF NAMED KING FOR A DAY, WHAT IS ONE CHANGE YOU WOULD MAKE IN BATON ROUGE?
I would make everyone do something nice for someone else.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN BATON ROUGE; WHAT WORKS AND WHAT NEEDS IMPROVEMENT?
Overall, it’s a great place to live, but sometimes I think we make the vision of perfect the enemy of good or great. From amazing food to social opportunities and culture, we have a lot of tremendous assets, but transportation and education infrastructure are behind and we have to work as leaders to collaborate more and avoid implementing policies and procedures that are polarizing to benefit only a select few. It’s hard to do that overnight, but if we do a little each day, we can make things steadily better.
DO YOU HAVE A BUCKET LIST? IF SO, WHAT ARE THE TOP 3 THINGS ON IT?
Travel the world and visit every continent and as many countries as I can (So far three continents and 10 countries). Help my girls achieve their hopes and dreams and walk them down the aisle at their weddings, and become a generous, rich philanthropist!
Honorable Mention on the Bucket List: Become healthier at 40-60 than I was at 20-40.
See the entire 2017 Forty under 40 class
