History
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- Member for
- 1 year 36 weeks
*My Story
- I am
A 25 year old woman, mother, wife, friend, daughter and advocate for children and families.
- I earn my daily bread
Working with children and families from a variety of backgrounds who utilize hourly drop in child care. I work as the Director of a unique program called KidsPark which provides child care for children 2-12 years old. We serve families during extended hours including nights, weekends and most holidays. I believe we support parents to be the 'best they can be' by providing much needed flexible child care.
- How my leadership has changed as a result of OTV
Before OTV I had little to no experience as a 'leader' or supervising staff. Through my experiences in OTV I realized my personal and professional power. I found my voice and practiced using my voice to ensure my message was heard.
- Where I’ve come from and where I expect to be in the next 3-5 years
I am nearing the end of my BA program at Sonoma State University in Women and Gender Studies. My work experience includes working with young children Birth to 5 years old and low-income families. Currently I have expanded my depth of knowledge and experience by working with children 2-12 years old and families from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds. In 3-5 years I expect to be in a Master's of PhD program in Early Childhood Education or Women and Gender Studies. In addition, I expect to be working for a company that strives for social justice or working within the social service arena.
- My story of impact
The following is a copy of the speak I gave at my OTV graduation. In short it is a summary of my years experience in OTV.
"One thing I have worked on this year, and will continue to work on, is my voice. I am purposefully not using a mic in order to challenge myself to use my voice. If at any point you cannot hear me please be honest and give me a signal such as raising your hand."
"Through my experience in On the Verge I have realized the power of my voice and I have practiced my voice in all aspects of my life. One area that I have practiced my voice is in my relationships with others. At the beginning of this past year I was the girl in the corner of the room who never said a word. During our first retreat, with support from fellow vergers and coaches, I challenged myself to use my voice and became the facilitator for planning our homecoming performance. During our homecoming performance last July I again challenged myself to use my voice. I was the first person to speak for each section of our performance."
"As the year went on I continued to struggle with using my voice. I felt that I had important things to say, I had an opinion, but nothing would come out. I was afraid that I would embarrass myself or even worse, my supervisor, my agency, my family or my husband. Most of the time I felt that other people didnt want to hear what I had to say and that they didn't value what I had to say. Throughout the year I reluctantly listened to feedback from coaches, vergers and my husband about using my voice."
"At our mid-year retreat personal requests were made for me to use my voice, people wanted to hear what I had to say. They were patient when I was not clear, they helped me clarify what I wanted to say and they acknowledged me when they knew I was pushing myself to really use my voice."
"From these pushes I was able to have difficult conversations with my father, my husband and my supervisor. In each situation I had the fear that my honesty and the use of voice would scare these people away and that I would be abandoned."
"I did a lot of thinking and a..l..o..t of crying. Each time I had the opportunity to have real conversations with these people I feared that my crying would be seen as a weakness and that my voice would not be heard. It took many, many months but finally I was using my voice."
"I began speaking up in meetings, standing my ground on important issues (inside and outside of work) and I took the chance to really be heard. It wasn't easy and at times it wasn't fun, but I knew I wanted to be heard, and people wanted to listen."
"At some point during the year I started to consider the impact my voice has on how I am viewed as a leader. I wanted people to know that I am a leader and I want to learn how to be a better leader. At first I tried to fit myself into the model of leadership I felt others wanted me to be, but something just didnt feel quite right. I then reflected on what didn't feel right for me and why I couldn't fit into someone elses idea of who I should be (or at least what I thought others wanted me to be). I realized that I needed to figure out what leadership means to me and determine how I would become the leader I wanted to be."
"I believe a leader is someone who values the importance of relationship while still holding a high bar for others. I believe a leader is someone who realizes when they need to lead and when to follow. I believe a leader is strong, but does not let go of their passion (and is not afraid to cry). I believe a leader can be anyone a co-worker, a political figure, a supervisor or even a friend."
"I realized that in order for me to be a leader I need to believe that I am a leader, because if I dont believe in myself then I cant expect anyone else to believe in me."
I am:
Passionate about justice
Loved and loving
Honest
Direct
Protective
Kind
Powerful
