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| Alex (second from right) with fellow VIP AmeriCorps members Sabina Ahuja and Cody Cibart (left), and supervisor Lauren Serpa (far right). |
By Alex Rowan, Local VIP Leader at CalSERVES in Rohnert Park, CA
Becoming a VIP has been an exciting, albeit hectic, journey. A month ago, I was home in Colorado, packing up my car, ready to move to Philadelphia to begin graduate school. The prospect of grad school excited me, and I couldn’t wait to immerse myself in a new city. However, tucked away somewhere in the recesses of my mind, a thought began to emerge which told me that spending the next year in classes accruing a huge amount of debt would ultimately leave me unfulfilled. It told me that what I needed was to work in a community, and have opportunities to grow through service that grad school just couldn’t provide.
So I applied to AmeriCorps to see if there was something out there for me. I didn’t think I would actually give up my ideal education no matter what opportunity presented itself. I felt more like I was tangentially indulging in a never-to-be-pursued dream of committing a year to service that would quickly be passed by. That is until I found myself sitting in the dining room fiddling with my webcam so that I could interview with Lauren Serpa via Skype.
Dressed in my nicest polo and my most comfortable pajama pants, I logged into Skype and began the interview. Lauren told me about CalSERVES. She asked the standard questions about my strengths and weaknesses, all the while offering an overview of what I might be doing as a VIP. The opportunity seemed interesting, but what really struck me was that even though we were 1,300 miles away, I could feel Lauren’s enthusiasm for the program radiating from the screen in front of me. I was sold.
I accepted the position, finished packing my car, and headed west! After a few days driving, I made it to my new home, Santa Rosa, CA. I should clarify that I mean home in the broadest sense. I didn’t know anyone in Santa Rosa, I wasn’t exactly sure what I had gotten myself into, and I didn’t have a place to live, save for the couch of a few generous AmeriCorps alums. The next day was our first training, and so began my year as a VIP Fellow.
Throughout the following week, I received calls from friends, and even my sister, on the east coast who didn’t get the memo that I had moved to California. They were still intent on visiting me in Philly before school started. When I told them the news, they were understandably shocked to discover I had seemingly made a wrong turn back in Colorado and ended up on the wrong coast. I let them know that plans had changed, and that I followed that tangential dream and made it my new reality.
Although I’m still crashing on a couch, with a very modest income, recently on food stamps, and living a life that is the exact opposite of everything I anticipated my life being at UPenn, I couldn’t be more excited about working as a CalSERVES VIP Fellow for the coming year. The staff have provided unwavering support, my fellow VIPs are amazing individuals who I am excited to work with, and everyone has the same enthusiasm and excitement for service that Lauren showed when I first spoke with her.
And so I welcome my fellow VIPs at all of our partner organizations. With continuing support and a passion for service, I know this will be an amazing year of growth for all of us, and for the communities that we are here to serve.
