Hi everyone!
Today was supposed to be the highlight of CTI...we were supposed to find out our teams and first service project. But......we didnt. Apparently they have them all together, but they're still waiting on all the results of the drug tests that we had on Monday because they don't want to make the teams and then have to take people off them to send them home. Today 4 people went home..but I'm not sure how many more will. They promised us that we'll find out for sure on Monday though. So we're all grumpy and what not..but oh well.
On top of that, today was our baseline test which meant we had to run 1.5 miles around campus, as many sit ups in a minute and as many push ups in a minute as we can do. My results weren't spectacular, but it doesn't really matter. Between each round we'll do it again and try to improve. The altitude definitely killed us and we were all complaining about how it felts like our lungs were bleeding! But we survived and all my girls did well :) we were proud. Tonight's our halloween party and I'm dressing up like a clown!! We get to sleep in tomorrow, and then tomorrow night all of us girls are going out for sushi and then going out dancing :) we're so excited! And Sunday I have more ISP hours working with the Denver Police Department helping them decorate and set up for their annual Halloween party for the kids in the inner city. The neighborhood where the kids would trick or treat is not actually safe for them to do so...so instead they get to come to the party and get candy and go to haunted houses and everything! The party isnt until Monday, so Sunday is just set up...but it still gets me more ISP hours! woohoo! ok that's all...the girls are waiting on me! :) I'll post monday after we FINALLY get our teams!!!
Love,
Abby
Friday, October 28, 2011
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
lots of service projects!
Helloooooooo!
I feel like I've been super busy since the last time I posted! Friday night at the Boys and Girls Club was a lot of fun. Other B&GC from around Denver all brought their teenagers to the one that I was at for a teen dance. We even tried to dance with them, but we werent very successful! We also played some basketball with some boys, made some lanyarns with some younger girls, and some xbox kinect, it was neat! That counted for 4 of my 80 hours for ISP. On saturday a group of us went to Lifeline Puppy Rescue. It was pretty far from campus, and seemed a little sketchy as we pulled up. But it ended up being a lot of fun. I scooped poop out of a lot of kennels, spread gravel, moved some brush piles, unloaded dog food, walked a puppy with weak legs, and played with a of puppies :) And that gave us 6 hours, I'm up to 10 already! And I may be going back to Boys and Girls Club tomorrow night for like 3 hours just to hang out with the kids. I really want to knock out these hours as quick as I can since we have a pretty good amount of freetime here in Denver during CTI.
On Sunday my friend Jessica and I went into the city. Jess is from a super small town in upstate New York, so we understand each other a lot. We were proud when we successfully took the bus to the lightrail station, and the lightrail station all the way to downtown Denver. There is a HUGE outdoor mall that we walked around with multiple levels. Some stores were familiar and some werent, but we had a blast just exploring...and I also got a headstart on my Christmas shopping!! We were also proud when we made it all the way back to campus without getting lost :)
Yesterday (Monday) we got our steeltoe boots!! I feel like such a badass when I wear them! hahaha. Most people complain about them, and I'm sure I will eventually because we will be wearing them alllllllll the time when were on project, but for now I totally dig them! Other than that we just did more training. But today my team got to do a service project all day at The Food Bank of the Rockies! For some reason, when I heard we were going to a food bank I kept picturing a soup kitchen instead. I thought we'd be serving homeless people lunch...but when we walked in it was a HUGE warehouse stocked full of packages of food. I was a little nervous about how I'd like it, but I ended up LOVING it!! I worked for a guy who was in charge of the Nutrition Network. Bascially, after school programs, community centers, and schools from around Denver would come to our loading dock with a bulk food order, and we would fill that order either on a cart or on a palate (I have no idea if I spelled that right). The whole point was to get food to kids that didn't get much food at home. The schools that came were part of a "backpack" program. If teachers could tell that the kids with free and reduced lunches didn't have food at home, they would send them home with tote bags, backapacks, etc. full of food on Friday so that they would have food for the weekend, because hunger doesn't stop on the weekend! Anyways, I felt super lucky that my team went to the food bank. And it's also just another reminder that I shouldn't be quick to judge things right away, I came in all worried and when we left I didn't even want to leave!!
The rest of the week will be more training and exploration time, and on Friday we FINALLY find out our permanent teams and where we will be going for our first project!! We are all getting so anxious to just find out already!! Other than that everything's going great...I made a hula hoop last night so I've been practicing my tricks. I'm getting closer to a lot of people which eases my nerves a little bit about the team selection, I know I'll wind up with at least a few people I like! I miss everyone at home...but I'm still having a hell of a time!!
Love,
Abby :)
I feel like I've been super busy since the last time I posted! Friday night at the Boys and Girls Club was a lot of fun. Other B&GC from around Denver all brought their teenagers to the one that I was at for a teen dance. We even tried to dance with them, but we werent very successful! We also played some basketball with some boys, made some lanyarns with some younger girls, and some xbox kinect, it was neat! That counted for 4 of my 80 hours for ISP. On saturday a group of us went to Lifeline Puppy Rescue. It was pretty far from campus, and seemed a little sketchy as we pulled up. But it ended up being a lot of fun. I scooped poop out of a lot of kennels, spread gravel, moved some brush piles, unloaded dog food, walked a puppy with weak legs, and played with a of puppies :) And that gave us 6 hours, I'm up to 10 already! And I may be going back to Boys and Girls Club tomorrow night for like 3 hours just to hang out with the kids. I really want to knock out these hours as quick as I can since we have a pretty good amount of freetime here in Denver during CTI.
On Sunday my friend Jessica and I went into the city. Jess is from a super small town in upstate New York, so we understand each other a lot. We were proud when we successfully took the bus to the lightrail station, and the lightrail station all the way to downtown Denver. There is a HUGE outdoor mall that we walked around with multiple levels. Some stores were familiar and some werent, but we had a blast just exploring...and I also got a headstart on my Christmas shopping!! We were also proud when we made it all the way back to campus without getting lost :)
Yesterday (Monday) we got our steeltoe boots!! I feel like such a badass when I wear them! hahaha. Most people complain about them, and I'm sure I will eventually because we will be wearing them alllllllll the time when were on project, but for now I totally dig them! Other than that we just did more training. But today my team got to do a service project all day at The Food Bank of the Rockies! For some reason, when I heard we were going to a food bank I kept picturing a soup kitchen instead. I thought we'd be serving homeless people lunch...but when we walked in it was a HUGE warehouse stocked full of packages of food. I was a little nervous about how I'd like it, but I ended up LOVING it!! I worked for a guy who was in charge of the Nutrition Network. Bascially, after school programs, community centers, and schools from around Denver would come to our loading dock with a bulk food order, and we would fill that order either on a cart or on a palate (I have no idea if I spelled that right). The whole point was to get food to kids that didn't get much food at home. The schools that came were part of a "backpack" program. If teachers could tell that the kids with free and reduced lunches didn't have food at home, they would send them home with tote bags, backapacks, etc. full of food on Friday so that they would have food for the weekend, because hunger doesn't stop on the weekend! Anyways, I felt super lucky that my team went to the food bank. And it's also just another reminder that I shouldn't be quick to judge things right away, I came in all worried and when we left I didn't even want to leave!!
The rest of the week will be more training and exploration time, and on Friday we FINALLY find out our permanent teams and where we will be going for our first project!! We are all getting so anxious to just find out already!! Other than that everything's going great...I made a hula hoop last night so I've been practicing my tricks. I'm getting closer to a lot of people which eases my nerves a little bit about the team selection, I know I'll wind up with at least a few people I like! I miss everyone at home...but I'm still having a hell of a time!!
Love,
Abby :)
Friday, October 21, 2011
Getting into the swing of things...
Hey everyone!
I know I haven't posted for awhile, so I'll try to go over a quick recap of what I've been up to. Monday we had boring classes about driving the huge 15 passenger vans. It felt like driver's ed all over again. But, in the afternoon our team leaders took us into the city and we got to explore a little bit! That was really neat. We didnt have much time, so I know I'll want to go again. Tuesday, we spent all morning taking our 15 p's (the vans) on a "confidence course" in the parking lot. basically we had to swerve around a lot of curves and maneuver into tight spaces. It was difficult, but not too bad. That afternoon we practiced something called community mapping. Each time we go on a spike project we are expected to do community mapping where we familiarize ourselves with the community we're living in. Observe the strengths and challenges of the area, ask community members for their opinions on social issues and also the history of the place. We got to "map" the community surrounding City Park which was pretty neat.
Wednesday was our fun day where they took us all to Rocky Mt. National Park!! It was a 3 hour drive, but the drive was beautiful! When we got there we had lunch by Bear Lake, and then took about a mile hike to Alberta Falls. It was totally worth it! We were all so happy to have a day out instead of inside doing training. Thursday consisted of driving the vans all over the place so that each corps member wanting to drive could do so with an instructor. Along the way we stopped at neat places and gave our legs a chance to stretch. Our first stop was in Columbine, CO. We got to go to the park and walk around the memorial a little bit. The memorial was VERY neat but of course sad as well. They had quotes of students, parents, and faculty at Columbine High School. From the memorial, I drove the 15p all the way to Red Rocks ampitheater!! I was sooooo nervous but our instructor was really good. He even made me put the van in manual and learn to shift up and down as you drive through mountains. Red Rocks ampitheater has huge red rocks that make natural acoustics as good or better than any manmade acoustic design. They had a rock 'n roll hall of fame there and we found out that pretty much any singer/performer/band you could possibly think of has performed there. It was incredible. From Red Rocks we went to Buffalo Bills which is at the top of a mountain and has a museum, gift shop, and cafe. Very beautiful views and we had our little picnic lunch there. The rest of the day we spent driving around.
And today (Friday) were sitting through lots and lots of training. Disaster stuff, discrimination stuff, etc. I think this afternoon we have to try to memorize the Americorps NCCC pledge too, our regional director is obsessed with the pledge! Haha, it is pretty good though. I'll post it some other time. I'm REALLY excited though because tonight some of us our going to the Denver Boys and Girls Club to help with a Halloween party. This will count towards part of our ISP hours that we need 80 of. It should be a lot of fun because we just get to hang out with the kids and play games with them. AND tomorrow, some of us are going to Lifeline Puppy Rescue where we get to play with puppies and try to get people to adop them. That counts for ISP hours too. I'm actually getting things accomplished!
Ok well I gotta run, because meeting are starting up again soon. Oh yea, for anyone who doesn't have facebook you can go to my shutterfly acount. go to shutterfly.com click on sign in. my username is niekamp.25@osu.edu and my password is abigail. Under my albums you can click on the album called Amerilife and see my pictures! Because posting them to this blog takes a long time and I can only do a few at a time. Going on Shutterfly will allow you to see all of them! Ok that's its! :) :)
Love,
Abby
I know I haven't posted for awhile, so I'll try to go over a quick recap of what I've been up to. Monday we had boring classes about driving the huge 15 passenger vans. It felt like driver's ed all over again. But, in the afternoon our team leaders took us into the city and we got to explore a little bit! That was really neat. We didnt have much time, so I know I'll want to go again. Tuesday, we spent all morning taking our 15 p's (the vans) on a "confidence course" in the parking lot. basically we had to swerve around a lot of curves and maneuver into tight spaces. It was difficult, but not too bad. That afternoon we practiced something called community mapping. Each time we go on a spike project we are expected to do community mapping where we familiarize ourselves with the community we're living in. Observe the strengths and challenges of the area, ask community members for their opinions on social issues and also the history of the place. We got to "map" the community surrounding City Park which was pretty neat.
Wednesday was our fun day where they took us all to Rocky Mt. National Park!! It was a 3 hour drive, but the drive was beautiful! When we got there we had lunch by Bear Lake, and then took about a mile hike to Alberta Falls. It was totally worth it! We were all so happy to have a day out instead of inside doing training. Thursday consisted of driving the vans all over the place so that each corps member wanting to drive could do so with an instructor. Along the way we stopped at neat places and gave our legs a chance to stretch. Our first stop was in Columbine, CO. We got to go to the park and walk around the memorial a little bit. The memorial was VERY neat but of course sad as well. They had quotes of students, parents, and faculty at Columbine High School. From the memorial, I drove the 15p all the way to Red Rocks ampitheater!! I was sooooo nervous but our instructor was really good. He even made me put the van in manual and learn to shift up and down as you drive through mountains. Red Rocks ampitheater has huge red rocks that make natural acoustics as good or better than any manmade acoustic design. They had a rock 'n roll hall of fame there and we found out that pretty much any singer/performer/band you could possibly think of has performed there. It was incredible. From Red Rocks we went to Buffalo Bills which is at the top of a mountain and has a museum, gift shop, and cafe. Very beautiful views and we had our little picnic lunch there. The rest of the day we spent driving around.
And today (Friday) were sitting through lots and lots of training. Disaster stuff, discrimination stuff, etc. I think this afternoon we have to try to memorize the Americorps NCCC pledge too, our regional director is obsessed with the pledge! Haha, it is pretty good though. I'll post it some other time. I'm REALLY excited though because tonight some of us our going to the Denver Boys and Girls Club to help with a Halloween party. This will count towards part of our ISP hours that we need 80 of. It should be a lot of fun because we just get to hang out with the kids and play games with them. AND tomorrow, some of us are going to Lifeline Puppy Rescue where we get to play with puppies and try to get people to adop them. That counts for ISP hours too. I'm actually getting things accomplished!
Ok well I gotta run, because meeting are starting up again soon. Oh yea, for anyone who doesn't have facebook you can go to my shutterfly acount. go to shutterfly.com click on sign in. my username is niekamp.25@osu.edu and my password is abigail. Under my albums you can click on the album called Amerilife and see my pictures! Because posting them to this blog takes a long time and I can only do a few at a time. Going on Shutterfly will allow you to see all of them! Ok that's its! :) :)
Love,
Abby
Monday, October 17, 2011
Make each day a holiday! :)
(The title comes from my friend's Dove chocolate candy wrapper, but she's gotten it repeatedly so she's starting to feel she really should follow it)
Hi everyone!
The first weekend in Denver was good. Saturday we went to Washington Park to help with trailbuilding and tree planting. I mentioned that my team was assigned to food distribution for all the volunteers, but we actually go to do some trailbuilding as well! Which was really neat...it seems like you'd just dig out a trench thing and throw in some dirt, but it's actually quite the process! Washington Park was beautiful and no joke it was bigger than Fort Recovery! I was in awe while we walked around it.
So...another thing we've been trying to organize is our ISP's, because we have to get 80 hours of our own projects. Hopefully this weekend we'll be able to set up some hours at the Denver Children's Museum. I'm really really excited about that, so I hope it works out. A few of us are also talking about making a day trip to Boulder and go for a hike and explore! It's supposed to be amazing there so we'll see! :)
Here are some pictures of around campus...they really don't do it justice, but it's the best I could do! Our dorms aren't that great, but they get the job done :)
Hi everyone!
The first weekend in Denver was good. Saturday we went to Washington Park to help with trailbuilding and tree planting. I mentioned that my team was assigned to food distribution for all the volunteers, but we actually go to do some trailbuilding as well! Which was really neat...it seems like you'd just dig out a trench thing and throw in some dirt, but it's actually quite the process! Washington Park was beautiful and no joke it was bigger than Fort Recovery! I was in awe while we walked around it.
So...another thing we've been trying to organize is our ISP's, because we have to get 80 hours of our own projects. Hopefully this weekend we'll be able to set up some hours at the Denver Children's Museum. I'm really really excited about that, so I hope it works out. A few of us are also talking about making a day trip to Boulder and go for a hike and explore! It's supposed to be amazing there so we'll see! :)
Here are some pictures of around campus...they really don't do it justice, but it's the best I could do! Our dorms aren't that great, but they get the job done :)
Oh! and another thing is that I joined the hula hoop club! It sounds ridiculous, but it's really really really fun! We get to make our own and everything. And I'm learning new tricks and everything! hahaha so funny. Ok, well that's all I have for now. But..if you would like to send me any letters or packages send it to...
Abby Niekamp/Class 18
AmeriCorps NCCC
3001 S. Federal Blvd.
Walsh Hall, Rm. 136
Denver, CO 80236
Love,
Abby
Friday, October 14, 2011
training, training, and more training....
Hey everyone!
Corps Training Institute (or my 30 days of training before I get to go do a real project) is going great! I mean, it's a little boring....we've literally been going over rules and regulations, but we're getting there. It's a lot of just sitting and listening to either one of the team leaders or our unit leader talk to us....but oh well. We gotta do what we gotta do. We officially have our uniforms so now we all look like dorks in our BDU's (battle dress uniforms). I'll post pictures at some point, because they're hilarious!
All the corps members have definitely been getting more used to each other. Our dorm used to be so quiet....and now there's literally doors open, music blaring, and girls showing each other their dances and stuff hahaha. We're currently in "temporary teams" for different stations in training and stuff...we've finally gotten used to those teams, and tomorrow night they'll swtich us up again. We'll get switched up every few days with new team members and a new team leader until Oct 28 when we get our official teams and find out our first project. We're all frustrated though because we just want to find out now!
So tomorrow we actually get to do some work! We're working with a group called Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC). We're working with VOC on coordinating the community volunteers to help build a running trail and plant 25 evergreen trees around Washington Park in downtown Denver. Apparently it's one of the most popular parks in the city. Each of our corps teams got assigned a task..some are helping with parking, some are helping with registration, some are actually helping build the trail or plant trees...and my team got food! We get to help serve everyone coffee, tea, and bagels in the morning, and then set up and help serve the taco bar for lunch for all of the volunteers. The work should be done by noon so then we have a celebration with tacos and a live bluegrass band! We're kind of bummed that we have to get up 6 am on a Saturday, but I think everyone's also excited for something to do and actually doing some hands-on stuff. Apparently we have either entire corps projects on Saturdays, or some optional ones that can get us some independent service project (ISP) hours...throughout our 10 months here we have to get 80 ISP hours..and everyone says its best to get a lot done while you're here in Denver, because it's when we have the most free time.
I think that's all I have for now! Today was a much more comfortable day for me than yesterday and Wednesday because I've finally connected with some of the girls...and just gotten familiar with faces and stuff. Everyone here is SO nice and helpful...and the staff is SO SO SO encouraging, it's great!! :) :)
Love,
Abby
Corps Training Institute (or my 30 days of training before I get to go do a real project) is going great! I mean, it's a little boring....we've literally been going over rules and regulations, but we're getting there. It's a lot of just sitting and listening to either one of the team leaders or our unit leader talk to us....but oh well. We gotta do what we gotta do. We officially have our uniforms so now we all look like dorks in our BDU's (battle dress uniforms). I'll post pictures at some point, because they're hilarious!
All the corps members have definitely been getting more used to each other. Our dorm used to be so quiet....and now there's literally doors open, music blaring, and girls showing each other their dances and stuff hahaha. We're currently in "temporary teams" for different stations in training and stuff...we've finally gotten used to those teams, and tomorrow night they'll swtich us up again. We'll get switched up every few days with new team members and a new team leader until Oct 28 when we get our official teams and find out our first project. We're all frustrated though because we just want to find out now!
So tomorrow we actually get to do some work! We're working with a group called Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC). We're working with VOC on coordinating the community volunteers to help build a running trail and plant 25 evergreen trees around Washington Park in downtown Denver. Apparently it's one of the most popular parks in the city. Each of our corps teams got assigned a task..some are helping with parking, some are helping with registration, some are actually helping build the trail or plant trees...and my team got food! We get to help serve everyone coffee, tea, and bagels in the morning, and then set up and help serve the taco bar for lunch for all of the volunteers. The work should be done by noon so then we have a celebration with tacos and a live bluegrass band! We're kind of bummed that we have to get up 6 am on a Saturday, but I think everyone's also excited for something to do and actually doing some hands-on stuff. Apparently we have either entire corps projects on Saturdays, or some optional ones that can get us some independent service project (ISP) hours...throughout our 10 months here we have to get 80 ISP hours..and everyone says its best to get a lot done while you're here in Denver, because it's when we have the most free time.
I think that's all I have for now! Today was a much more comfortable day for me than yesterday and Wednesday because I've finally connected with some of the girls...and just gotten familiar with faces and stuff. Everyone here is SO nice and helpful...and the staff is SO SO SO encouraging, it's great!! :) :)
Love,
Abby
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
I'm Here!
Hey everyone!
I successfully made it to Denver! I didn't chicken out, or get lost in Chicago airport..or miss the shuttle from Denver airport to Colorado Heights University campus. I MADE IT! When we first got to campus we had to check in and all that jazz. My roomate's name is Riley and she's from California! She's very sweet...when I saw her I felt instant relief to be living with her, because you never know what you might find! Riley and I went about unpacking our things together...our dorm is small but it'll be just fine since we won't be here much. We at least have our own sink in our room, so that's nice. The bathroom's like 2 doors down from us and then the showers are on the other side of that. Riley and I are opting out of showers tonight though. They're a little disgusting and something we just dont quite want to tackle yet. After we unpacked we went and had dinner in the dining hall. Salad and pizza! :) One whole wall is windows with an AMAZING view of the Rockie's. I think I can get used to that! After dinner we had our first unit meeting.
Oh yea, on Sunday before I came I got a call from my "temporary" team leader Josh..who informed me that I'll be part of the Earth unit! We still don't know our official teams yet though. The names of the units have hint as to what projects we'll be doing or anything..all it does is help them organize us. We met our Eart unit leader Kevin today. He is an older man who is in charge of all the team leaders...and essentially in charge of us as well.
So Riley and I are back in the room now and we're exhausted. Most people here are though right now...it seems like we've been up forever. It's 11:00 at home but only 9:00 here...yikes! I'll get used to it though. Something else I need to get used to....the altitude! They've been hammering us about drinking lots and lots of water because the altitude dehydrates you so quickly. But I guess we'll get adapted to it in like 7 to 10 days. So until then we just suffer through workouts, haha. I'm really excited for training to officially begin. It'll be a lot of lecturing and classroom, paperwork type stuff, but I know that it'll all be worth it in the end!
Ok that's all I have for now! :) If anyone has questions just post a comment or something and I'll try to answer it :)
Love,
Abby
I successfully made it to Denver! I didn't chicken out, or get lost in Chicago airport..or miss the shuttle from Denver airport to Colorado Heights University campus. I MADE IT! When we first got to campus we had to check in and all that jazz. My roomate's name is Riley and she's from California! She's very sweet...when I saw her I felt instant relief to be living with her, because you never know what you might find! Riley and I went about unpacking our things together...our dorm is small but it'll be just fine since we won't be here much. We at least have our own sink in our room, so that's nice. The bathroom's like 2 doors down from us and then the showers are on the other side of that. Riley and I are opting out of showers tonight though. They're a little disgusting and something we just dont quite want to tackle yet. After we unpacked we went and had dinner in the dining hall. Salad and pizza! :) One whole wall is windows with an AMAZING view of the Rockie's. I think I can get used to that! After dinner we had our first unit meeting.
Oh yea, on Sunday before I came I got a call from my "temporary" team leader Josh..who informed me that I'll be part of the Earth unit! We still don't know our official teams yet though. The names of the units have hint as to what projects we'll be doing or anything..all it does is help them organize us. We met our Eart unit leader Kevin today. He is an older man who is in charge of all the team leaders...and essentially in charge of us as well.
So Riley and I are back in the room now and we're exhausted. Most people here are though right now...it seems like we've been up forever. It's 11:00 at home but only 9:00 here...yikes! I'll get used to it though. Something else I need to get used to....the altitude! They've been hammering us about drinking lots and lots of water because the altitude dehydrates you so quickly. But I guess we'll get adapted to it in like 7 to 10 days. So until then we just suffer through workouts, haha. I'm really excited for training to officially begin. It'll be a lot of lecturing and classroom, paperwork type stuff, but I know that it'll all be worth it in the end!
Ok that's all I have for now! :) If anyone has questions just post a comment or something and I'll try to answer it :)
Love,
Abby
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Preparation.
Hi all!
I'm 6 days away from hopping on a plane to Denver, Colorado! I wanted to start a blog so that family and friends could check out what I'm up to while I'm there. I thought I'd start it before I left to try to give everyone a little outline about what it is I'll be doing there for 10 months! I've had questions ranging from stuff about Peace Corps, to college, to a career, etc. So, I'll try to clear things up a bit here.
Americorps is part of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). You may have heard about them on the radio or something. Anyways, within Americorps there are 3 separate programs. VISTA, State and National, and NCCC, which is where I fall. NCCC stands for National Civilian Community Corps. It's a residential national service program for people ages 18-24. About 1,200 people serve in this program each year, and I feel EXTREMELY lucky to be one of them! We were told that many, MANY, more people than that acutally applied....I am so blessed!
NCCC covers all US states and territories. The country is divided into 5 regions. Being stationed in Denver, my region is the Southwest Region which covers Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, and Arkansas. For the first month, we will be in CTI (Corps Training Institute). We'll be trained in CPR, First Aid, disaster services, mass care, shelter management, leadership, and others that I know I'm missing but can't remember at the moment. Basically, they do the best they can to prepare us for whatever projects we may encounter during our term. Because we work so much with disaster relief efforts, Americorps NCCC works closely with The Red Cross and FEMA, so lots of our training is provided by them.
I will be assigned to one of 4 units: earth, fire, sun, or water. Within those units, I will be placed on a team of 8 to 12 other people. This is the part where I feel like I'm about to go and do a season of The Real World! Hahahaahaha. Anyways, we are expected to prepare and eat meals together, travel in a 15 passenger van together, and live together. But, we will also be working together on a variety of projects that may address any of these areas: supporting the environment, infrastructure improvement, energy conservation, urban and rural development, and immediate and continuing disaster response. We won't be assigned to our teams until we're there for a little while, I'm not sure the exact time. So that's something I'm really really looking forward to. Once we get our teams, the next big step is finding out what our round 1 project will be! There are 4 rounds total, though if disaster happens anywhere in the U.S. we could get sent at any time, to anywhere..even out of our region!
I could keep going...but I think this gives a good idea of what I'll be doing at least for now. So now I'm just tying up loose ends with paperwork, brainstorming everything I may need, and trying to figure out how to fit everything in my luggage! I shipped a box out this morning with bedding and towels, so that will help. But we'll see. I'm am just SO excited to get on with it already, feels like I've been waiting forever! I'll probably make at least 1 more post before I leave just because it's pretty much all I can think about and this definitely helps calm me :) Please feel free to spread the word about this blog, I'd love to spread the word about Americorps NCCC and all the cool stuff they do. thanks!!
Love,
Abby :)
I'm 6 days away from hopping on a plane to Denver, Colorado! I wanted to start a blog so that family and friends could check out what I'm up to while I'm there. I thought I'd start it before I left to try to give everyone a little outline about what it is I'll be doing there for 10 months! I've had questions ranging from stuff about Peace Corps, to college, to a career, etc. So, I'll try to clear things up a bit here.
Americorps is part of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). You may have heard about them on the radio or something. Anyways, within Americorps there are 3 separate programs. VISTA, State and National, and NCCC, which is where I fall. NCCC stands for National Civilian Community Corps. It's a residential national service program for people ages 18-24. About 1,200 people serve in this program each year, and I feel EXTREMELY lucky to be one of them! We were told that many, MANY, more people than that acutally applied....I am so blessed!
NCCC covers all US states and territories. The country is divided into 5 regions. Being stationed in Denver, my region is the Southwest Region which covers Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, and Arkansas. For the first month, we will be in CTI (Corps Training Institute). We'll be trained in CPR, First Aid, disaster services, mass care, shelter management, leadership, and others that I know I'm missing but can't remember at the moment. Basically, they do the best they can to prepare us for whatever projects we may encounter during our term. Because we work so much with disaster relief efforts, Americorps NCCC works closely with The Red Cross and FEMA, so lots of our training is provided by them.
I will be assigned to one of 4 units: earth, fire, sun, or water. Within those units, I will be placed on a team of 8 to 12 other people. This is the part where I feel like I'm about to go and do a season of The Real World! Hahahaahaha. Anyways, we are expected to prepare and eat meals together, travel in a 15 passenger van together, and live together. But, we will also be working together on a variety of projects that may address any of these areas: supporting the environment, infrastructure improvement, energy conservation, urban and rural development, and immediate and continuing disaster response. We won't be assigned to our teams until we're there for a little while, I'm not sure the exact time. So that's something I'm really really looking forward to. Once we get our teams, the next big step is finding out what our round 1 project will be! There are 4 rounds total, though if disaster happens anywhere in the U.S. we could get sent at any time, to anywhere..even out of our region!
I could keep going...but I think this gives a good idea of what I'll be doing at least for now. So now I'm just tying up loose ends with paperwork, brainstorming everything I may need, and trying to figure out how to fit everything in my luggage! I shipped a box out this morning with bedding and towels, so that will help. But we'll see. I'm am just SO excited to get on with it already, feels like I've been waiting forever! I'll probably make at least 1 more post before I leave just because it's pretty much all I can think about and this definitely helps calm me :) Please feel free to spread the word about this blog, I'd love to spread the word about Americorps NCCC and all the cool stuff they do. thanks!!
Love,
Abby :)
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