Since I was eight years old, I’ve been a community organizer. Of course, I didn’t know that then, but in looking back, I realize that my ability to help my mother gather people together for meetings with a common focus is full circle to what I do today.She and my dad both brought people together and built up the community in different, yet always all-inclusive, ways.My mom always had a focus on getting people what they need, whether it meant organizing her coworkers to create a bank for sick time or visiting people in the hospital. My dad was great at getting people to work together toward a common goal. Everyone they encountered was treated with love and respect, and it was amazing how people instantly felt comfortable enough to share their life stories with my parents.I watched and listened to how they talked to people, how to share information, make disparate people feel comfortable in a room, and how to make everyone want to come back for more conversations.They modeled behaviors I’ve embraced throughout my life. I’ve brought these skills and behaviors into my advocacy work and have honed skills in facilitation and consensus building to help others work for positive change in their own lives.I’ve always been a very confident person, too, somehow. After becoming a young single mother and learning to navigate the welfare system, working up to four jobs at a time while going to college, I developed a “what’s the worst that can happen?” mentality. And that lends itself directly to my ability to know that the bad thing you think is going to happen, probably isn’t going to happen. It enables me to see people’s potential and power they aren’t yet using, and to help them plan a way to reach their goal.I’m an empathetic communicator – I often feel what others are feeling and that helps me to be a good listener – to words, of course, but also to what is deeper than words.And I’m a strategist. I’m good at figuring out what people might do next, whether that’s related to change in the world, change at work, or health and fitness.I‘d love to help you chart a path towards your goals, to help you develop your own leadership, build your confidence, or work with your organization to recognize and use your power for positive change.Let’s connect for a conversation!Fun facts: I love exploring places across the U.S. by traveling in “Vanny,” a 1986 Chevy Trans Van – and contra dancing whenever and wherever possible.
Listed skills include Policy, Political Campaigns, Public Policy, Strategy, and 25 others.
