#VISTA50 comes to Berea!
And just like that, it's practically July! Slow down time!!!!
Quick life update: Still in my apartment (God help us). Still have the cats. Still love what I do. Sis is going to Peru in just under five weeks. Life is still good!
Yesterday was a much-anticipated day, a day that had been in the works for, at least, a few months. Yesterday, a couple hundred currently serving VISTAs, VISTA alumni members, VISTA site sponsors, Corporation for National and Community Service staff members, and community members gathered on Berea College's campus for one of five national (Yes, national) 50th anniversary events sponsored by AmeriCorps VISTA! Yeah...kind of a big deal. It was a full day's agenda, with the day starting out with a bus tour of several sites in eastern Kentucky. Which is where my story begins...
I drove down to London bright and early and awaited this bus tour of about 30 some odd folks. The destination: one of Grow Appalachia's partner sites in Laurel County, the Laurel County African American Heritage Center. LCAAHC has been with Grow since...well, since the beginning of Grow; they were one of the original four sites when Grow started back in 2010. Anyway, after waiting a good while for the bus full of folks, I disappeared to the restroom and when I came back not even two or three minutes later, PEOPLE. Kind of awkward. Ok, really awkward. Aside from having to talk over a wood chipper, as well as standing under some ominous-looking clouds, I say all of us, myself included, represented Grow very well. Shook a lot of hands; it was almost dizzying! After my little spiel I got the chance to talk to a reporter from West Virginia; she had reached out to me via Grow's Twitter page and she works for the West Virginia Public Broadcasting Corporation (of which their CEO was also a VISTA in the 90's!). Since she wanted to stay behind and talk to some more folks, due to the bus tour being on a rather tight schedule, we all hung around for a while afterwards and she rode back to Berea with me! We even got stuck in some traffic along the way, which was kind of fun. Not sure when online links to the stories will be live, but I'll be sure to get them on here when they do! :)
After more than an hour's drive that should have taken 40 minutes, I got back to Berea for the rest of the event, where it was essentially non-stop after that: speakers, presentation, panel discussions from former VISTA members, some rather enthusiastic icebreaker/discussion and collaboration activities, and an awards ceremony spotlighting outstanding VISTA alums. Honestly, it was nothing short of inspiring, getting that inside scoop on life as a VISTA "back then"; it was almost like a metaphorical passing of the torch. I served as the unofficial "live tweeter" for the day, so I definitely look forward to reliving this day again through one of my social media platforms. It was also really humbling to have CNCS members in the room; they traveled all the way from Washington DC to be in Berea! Yeah...some of these folks probably bump elbows with President Obama! (say whaatt?!). Of course, it was a joy to reconnect with some VISTAs that I've gotten to know pretty well over the last few months; many of them were in Pikeville last month at the SOAR event and we've all connected quite closely since then. I mention this frequently when talking about VISTAs, but the bond that we share as a group really is special and unlike anything I've ever been a part of. It's neat to be able to share and discuss the work I'm doing with a group of my peers, and I think that's the defining tether in these relationships I've formed. I don't doubt for a second that the work we all do is meaningful and impactful, and it'll be something we carry for the rest of our lives. At least I hope so.
We all made our way to Boone Tavern for an evening reception, during which I had probably the worst strawberry daiquiri I've ever had in my life (So sorry Boone Tavern!! Your food is still fantastic!). A group of us sat together in this randomly located little table next to the "bar"...and we all just LAUGHED and shared stories of our lives and our future plans. Again- it's special, for lack of a better word! Deciding that hors d'oevres were not enough of a full meal, we made our way over to Papaleno's, where I educated my fellow northern Kentucky VISTAs on Berea Italian dining at its best! The ravioli florentine was a big hit! (It also just happens to be my favorite...)
A good day indeed, and definitely a highlight as I enter the last two months of my service! Yeah...I can't believe it either!
Side note: I didn't take any pictures, really, but here's the reporter who rode back with me. She gave me a shoutout! :)
Quick life update: Still in my apartment (God help us). Still have the cats. Still love what I do. Sis is going to Peru in just under five weeks. Life is still good!
Yesterday was a much-anticipated day, a day that had been in the works for, at least, a few months. Yesterday, a couple hundred currently serving VISTAs, VISTA alumni members, VISTA site sponsors, Corporation for National and Community Service staff members, and community members gathered on Berea College's campus for one of five national (Yes, national) 50th anniversary events sponsored by AmeriCorps VISTA! Yeah...kind of a big deal. It was a full day's agenda, with the day starting out with a bus tour of several sites in eastern Kentucky. Which is where my story begins...
I drove down to London bright and early and awaited this bus tour of about 30 some odd folks. The destination: one of Grow Appalachia's partner sites in Laurel County, the Laurel County African American Heritage Center. LCAAHC has been with Grow since...well, since the beginning of Grow; they were one of the original four sites when Grow started back in 2010. Anyway, after waiting a good while for the bus full of folks, I disappeared to the restroom and when I came back not even two or three minutes later, PEOPLE. Kind of awkward. Ok, really awkward. Aside from having to talk over a wood chipper, as well as standing under some ominous-looking clouds, I say all of us, myself included, represented Grow very well. Shook a lot of hands; it was almost dizzying! After my little spiel I got the chance to talk to a reporter from West Virginia; she had reached out to me via Grow's Twitter page and she works for the West Virginia Public Broadcasting Corporation (of which their CEO was also a VISTA in the 90's!). Since she wanted to stay behind and talk to some more folks, due to the bus tour being on a rather tight schedule, we all hung around for a while afterwards and she rode back to Berea with me! We even got stuck in some traffic along the way, which was kind of fun. Not sure when online links to the stories will be live, but I'll be sure to get them on here when they do! :)
After more than an hour's drive that should have taken 40 minutes, I got back to Berea for the rest of the event, where it was essentially non-stop after that: speakers, presentation, panel discussions from former VISTA members, some rather enthusiastic icebreaker/discussion and collaboration activities, and an awards ceremony spotlighting outstanding VISTA alums. Honestly, it was nothing short of inspiring, getting that inside scoop on life as a VISTA "back then"; it was almost like a metaphorical passing of the torch. I served as the unofficial "live tweeter" for the day, so I definitely look forward to reliving this day again through one of my social media platforms. It was also really humbling to have CNCS members in the room; they traveled all the way from Washington DC to be in Berea! Yeah...some of these folks probably bump elbows with President Obama! (say whaatt?!). Of course, it was a joy to reconnect with some VISTAs that I've gotten to know pretty well over the last few months; many of them were in Pikeville last month at the SOAR event and we've all connected quite closely since then. I mention this frequently when talking about VISTAs, but the bond that we share as a group really is special and unlike anything I've ever been a part of. It's neat to be able to share and discuss the work I'm doing with a group of my peers, and I think that's the defining tether in these relationships I've formed. I don't doubt for a second that the work we all do is meaningful and impactful, and it'll be something we carry for the rest of our lives. At least I hope so.
We all made our way to Boone Tavern for an evening reception, during which I had probably the worst strawberry daiquiri I've ever had in my life (So sorry Boone Tavern!! Your food is still fantastic!). A group of us sat together in this randomly located little table next to the "bar"...and we all just LAUGHED and shared stories of our lives and our future plans. Again- it's special, for lack of a better word! Deciding that hors d'oevres were not enough of a full meal, we made our way over to Papaleno's, where I educated my fellow northern Kentucky VISTAs on Berea Italian dining at its best! The ravioli florentine was a big hit! (It also just happens to be my favorite...)
A good day indeed, and definitely a highlight as I enter the last two months of my service! Yeah...I can't believe it either!
Side note: I didn't take any pictures, really, but here's the reporter who rode back with me. She gave me a shoutout! :)
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