Reflections on an Americorps VISTA Year

Our own Alexia Mendez is finishing up her Americorps VISTA year with ARI/FLV. Here's what she has to say about the experience!

So you worked for one summer a while back with the Kids Out to Lunch program. What was different about your VISTA experience from your first experience with FLV?

So with my first experience, I was just strictly Kids Out to Lunch. … It was fun and everything, but compared to my VISTA experience, I really got to put my hands on everything and really understand what FLV does on a greater scale than just being like, oh, yeah, they give out free produce every week. It's, no, we do more than that. We have the Mobile Market, we have Grow a Row, we have our Composting program. And when I was here before, the composting program wasn't as big as it is now. I have dipped my toes into everything and I've gotten more experience with working with food insecurity and trying to direct community members to resources and really being able to, for the Mobile Market, bring produce to these rural communities, and then just being able to make connections with those rural communities where they really appreciate us being there, and it just feels good.

You alluded to this, but you really took over some important programs from Composting to the Volunteer program and the Mobile Market. What were your biggest challenges as you stepped into those roles? And then what are you most proud of from your time as a VISTA?

So, yeah, I took over composting, and I think that one was a challenge just in the sense that I know nothing about composting! I think growing up, you kind of know about it, but I didn't understand the magnitude of the composting that we do. We're the only place in town that does composting. So it was really cool to understand how the process works. … And then just having those community partners that really want to know what composting is and just seeing the interest in that.

But I do think my biggest challenge was the volunteer program … eventually I just got more and more ideas, so I was like, hey, what if I tried this? And I think that in itself was a challenge, trying to restructure it in a way where I know it would be appealing to the whole community, not just tailored towards college students. What’s gonna work with everyone? So I figured out how to do weekly emails and use Signup Genius and how to get out there what opportunities are we gonna have. … I’m very proud of that because I really feel we have more consistent volunteering every week. … So it's an easier system for us in general also, just in the sense of okay, these are the volunteers … we're expecting this week instead of just being two days before, like, hey, I need volunteers for a farm project. And that way it's already out there a week in advance, and we can plan ahead. I think that has been something that I've been really proud of.

And then this year we had our first Volunteer Appreciation event a couple weeks ago, and that was a bit stressful, but I'm really happy with the way it turned out. And I've gotten emails from volunteers saying they had a really good time, so I'm really glad to hear that. … I think that was the biggest challenge just in the sense of I haven't had to plan anything from start to finish. I've always just been like, oh, yeah, I'm here. But this time it was really something that I got to collaborate on from the start. But I'm really proud of how everything turned out … yeah, it was awesome.

Do you have any favorite memories of your time as a VISTA? Whether it's just crazy or fun or heartwarming or, uh, getting attacked by bees. But any memories that stand out?

There's definitely a bunch. But just, honestly, just coming into work every day and being able to talk to my co-workers is something that I'm gonna miss with these people leaving. But yeah, honestly, just coming in and talking to everyone … it's just a very welcoming environment for the most part where we all get along. We all can talk about life problems with each other.  I think that really was my favorite part. It's just us being able to talk and sit down.

Do you have any words of wisdom for future VISTAs at FLV?

Don't be afraid to ask for help. I know it's daunting at first to be tasked with something, and you're just kind of, oh, what do I do? Definitely ask for help. And just basically not getting frustrated at times just because you are gonna have your hard days, but you're also gonna have your easy days. So essentially just being able to say, okay, you know what? We had a bad day today. It is what it is. But tomorrow is a new day type of thing. Because I do understand sometimes this work does get a little bit frustrating and things don't go as planned. But just knowing also that the staff members have your back and will help you with anything that you need.

So what comes next for you? And how does your time at FLV help prepare you for your next goals?

I'm going to be staying on part-time as a Volunteer Coordinator. But my biggest jump that I have going on is that I was accepted into the full-time Masters of Social Work program here at UW. So I'll be continuing my education and getting my master's in social work, and I start that in May. So it'll be really exciting. What I think has prepared me was being able to capacity build, since that's what VISTA drives a lot. Because essentially, I do think being able to understand those systems and starting them from the ground up and just understanding how our programs really help out communities, I think really helped me get a better sense of advocating for those who really need our programs. It really helped me get my practicum where I'll be helping them capacity build and create infrastructure for one of UW's newer programs at WIND [the Wyoming Institute for Disabilities]. So I think in that way it really helped me build skills.

Also I feel I'm a very shy person when it comes to people I don't really know. I don't get where people say I'm very outgoing, but public speaking—I absolutely have a huge fear of it. But I feel when you have this job, you have to talk to community members a lot. I think also it kind of helped me with my imposter syndrome just because I'm only 24. … I feel it kind of helped me gain that little confidence of just being, like, I know what I'm doing; I have a role in this place. And I'm just really excited to use those skills in my program and then hopefully become a therapist. But yeah, I definitely think those skills for sure have helped me: 1) get into my program; and 2) they're just skills I'll be able to use in the future.