Big news!

     In the last few days, I've received a lot of exciting news.  I don't know where to begin!  So here it is, in no particular order.

     Yesterday, I got mail at home from Michigan State University.  I got on the phone with my dad while he opened it for me... It was my official acceptance letter for the Fall of 2013!  I applied to MSU during my senior year and was accepted for Fall of 2012, but when I decided to do AmeriCorps and wait a year, the admissions office had to technically re-review my application for Fall 2013.  I was fairly positive that since I got accepted once, I'd be accepted again... but it still feels good to have official confirmation.  Go green!  (Side note: to anyone viewing this who is considering doing NCCC as a gap year, email me!  I have a lot of advice about navigating through the process of setting things up for AmeriCorps and then college.  It can be done!  Also, serving in NCCC helps you earn an education award to help pay for part of school.)

     My other big news came today; I found out who my primary team leader and teammates are and where my Round 1 project is.  There was a big, fun reveal that was sort of like a scavenger hunt.  It feels so good to know whom I will be with and where I'll be going next!

     My primary team is Fire 1, led by the lovely Lalita and full of great people.  It is called my primary team, not my permanent team, because everything in AmeriCorps is subject to change!  Also, our Round 3 is a "shuffle round" where we pick projects on more of an individual than a team basis, then we serve with people from other teams who picked the same projects.  So unless something crazy happens, I should serve with Fire 1 for Rounds 1, 2 and 4.  They're my little AmeriFamily!  I'm really excited to get closer with them and have this adventure together.  We don't have a team picture yet, but when we do I will post it pronto.

     Our first project will be serving with Habitat for Humanity in Oklahoma City!  We deploy on November 9 after we finish training here in Denver.  We will be living in apartments, so I should still have cell service and hopefully internet.  That's all I really know about my project so far, but I should find out more soon.  I'm really excited to be in a new city and serve with such a great organization.  Tonight I've been on lonelyplanet.com and wikipedia looking up neat things to do in the city.  Do any of you readers know the area and have recommendations?

     That's all of my exciting news!  As far as "normal" life, yesterday I had safety training and media training and today we had orientation with the American Red Cross. NCCC works with them a lot, especially when responding to disasters.  We also will benefit from their training in CPR, First Aid and Shelter Management.

My awesome parents sent me a care package with Halloween decorations and candy, so I tricked (and treated!) out my dorm room!  My bed slides under that shelving unit to create more floor space during the day.  I am getting cozy in Walsh 245... and soon I'll be leaving!  I think that's how this program will go for the most part.  As soon as I get settled in, it will be time to move on.  But at least I'll never be bored!  And I will get to have so many new experiences.  (Kenny, it's hard to see in this picture, but one of those papers taped to my shelf is a drawing you sent me!  Thank you so much!)

Here's the beautiful view from our cafeteria after the first snowfall.  It's mostly melted now.  Can you see the mountains in the distance?

     Love to all!  Thanks for reading. <3

Fall Meets Winter

     My favorite tree on CHU campus showing all of fall's colors.

Hello all!

     The last few days have been very busy!  I guess that's the new normal, though, and it will only get busier from here.  I like all the activity though, it means I'm never bored.  Keeping busy is also a good medicine for homesickness!
   
     On Sunday I got to volunteer at the Humane Society of the South Platte Valley with a group of corps members.  All of us miss our pets so much!  Being with the cats and dogs there was a temporary fix, but I think it made us all miss our pets even more when all was said and done.  It's a very nice facility; I highly recommend a visit there to anyone in the Denver area looking for a pet!  There were so many great animals.  I also recommend it as a volunteer opportunity to future AmeriCorps members.  They had us alternating between doing chores (usually cleaning) and walking the dogs, so we never got burned out on one particular task.

     On Monday I got to help out at the Food Bank of the Rockies with my temporary team and a few others.  I was amazed at its magnitude!  It was a warehouse FULL of food, with forklifts buzzing around and volunteers everywhere.  We worked on distribution, which meant going around filling orders that organizations in need had placed.  We wheeled huge carts around through the aisles looking for the items on the lists... like extreme grocery shopping.  It's important that all of the items organizations request are in one place and ready to be picked up.  I definitely recommend this as an ISP to future CM's, but keep in mind that they are open every weekday but only one Saturday a month. 

     My favorite training this week was diversity training.  AmeriCorps NCCC is a very intentionally diverse program, so the staff created a day focused on how we can best embrace and take advantage of all the diversity here.  The people who led the day made it very fun and interactive.  The best part was that discussing diversity helped us all to open up with each other.  That was really exciting!  Deeper connections among us are beginning to happen naturally, too.  I feel very close with Fire Unit, and on Friday I will get to find out who my primary team is.  I'm really excited to begin establishing relationships with my primary teammates and team leader; those relationships will be very crucial to our success this year.  I'm also just itching to know who I'm with and what we'll be doing! 

     My favorite thing about AmeriCorps NCCC so far is definitely the people.  We are all practically strangers, but we have two things in common: we want to help people and we want to grow.  Being in an environment where those two goals are so prevalent is really inspiring. 

     Today we were planning on exploring Rocky Mountain National Park, but the weather forecast was iffy so we went to Chatauqua Park in Boulder instead.  That's the same park I went to on my first hiking excursion.  This time, I chose a moderate hike on the First and Second Flat Iron Trail.  I was really glad that I pushed myself, it was worth the effort!  Some of the best parts of the hike in no particular order: I learned that Chatauqua is the oldest city park in the nation.  A chipmunk ate out of my hand like I was Snow White!  Our unit leader Jolie brought her beautiful dog, Sunshine Merryweather.  There was free hot chocolate in the visitor's center at the end.

Me and America (my roomate) on our way down the mountain. The journey down is much faster than the journey up!  You can see other parts of the flat irons behind us.  

     After our hike, we got to explore Boulder a little bit.  It is such a cute town!  While in the Pearl Street Mall area I saw a great street performer and explored a three story book store.  After that we got a tour of the Celestial Seasonings tea factory!  All of their tea is made here in Boulder.  I learned a lot about tea, and they had a great sample bar.

Our very flexible street performer.  See the box on the left and the tube on the right?  He fit himself into those!  In this picture, he's just warming up!

Great quotes lined the bottom of one of the shops we walked past.

The same tree just a few days later!  We had our first snowfall. =)

1st All Corps Service Day

Hi all!     

     The end of the week wrapped up nicely with some really cool training and unit bonding activities.  My favorite training this week was on service learning.  Service learning is something I'm really passionate about, and a huge part of NCCC!  The best definition of service learning I've found so far is from servicelearning.org : "Service learning is a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen communities."  It is basically a method of learning through serving, and it's really exciting.  When I get my regular team (next Friday!!), we will each take on special roles for the year.  I really hope to be the Service Learning Initiator!  More on that later.

     Friday was the first day that everyone in the corps did a service project.  We worked with the Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC) restoring some of the areas devastated by wildfires this summer.  My group went to High Park near Fort Collins.  Wildfires are natural and they benefit the ecosystems they go through, but they can cause a lot of problems for people.  When wildfires burn up the plant life on a mountain, the plants are no longer able to absorb rain water.  Rain water then tends to run straight down the mountain; that causes erosion, contaminates water supplies and floods low lying areas. 

     To prevent these things from happening, VOC has a plan!  To help them implement it in the High Park area, we planted seeds, raked them in horizontally and covered the area with straw.  The new plants will absorb water with their roots, the horizontal grooves we raked will impede the water flow down the mountain, and the straw will protect the seeds and also absorb water!  It was fun work, and it was amazing to see how much we got done in a small amount of time.  It's exciting to think that one day, not in our lifetime, there will be a forest there even healthier than the one that burned. 

As we drove up the mountain, we looked out the window for the first signs of the fire.  When we came upon it, I got this picture that showed both healthy forest and burnt land.

As we hiked up to our worksite, the mountain seemed so sad and desolate.  No birds were singing, we didn't see any wildlife.  It was hard to remember that wildfires are good things for the forest.  Little green plants poking up here and there gave us hope.

This week I was issued my work boots!  I thought I would post a picture of them before their first use so that I can compare it with how they look at the end of the year.  One of the VOC staff who trained us on Friday did AmeriCorps 12 years ago, and he was wearing the boots he was issued then when we met him!  I guess they'll last a long time.  =D  I have been meeting many AmeriCorps alumni in the different nonprofit organizations I've worked with since arriving here.  It seems that being in AmeriCorps can tend to put many people on similar paths!

I took this picture this morning when I got to do ISP at a Diabetes Walk.  The cloud was a perfect puff ball.  The best part of the ISP was cheering on the runners and walkers at the finish line!  I remember how good that made me feel when I ran cross country, it felt good to do it for other people.

     I'm headed to dinner now and I get to relax for the rest of the evening.  I'll post again soon! <3

Exploring Denver & Hiking in the Rockies

     Prepare yourself for a long post and tons of pictures!

     Saturday night I went downtown Denver for the first time.  If safety lies in numbers, then I was practically wrapped in bubble wrap... I went with a group of 15 corps members!  We walked around without concrete plans, just hoping to see what there is to see.  There were lots of cute shops and restaurants.  There was also a lot of solicitation and poverty, and that was really hard to process.  Overall, I loved downtown and can't wait to explore it more.

 This was my first ride on the light rail!  It's a great electric train that helps you get around in Denver.  I am growing my bus and train legs!  Also learning a lot about navigating public transportation.  From left: Mazz, Roxanne, Robin, me.

My view of the city skyline from the light rail window.

 Our huge group at Diego's. The birthday girl is in the red hat.  The food was very good and fairly priced.  I got a black bean and cheese burrito.  It was an a la carte item, but huge and filling!  

     On Sunday, I got to go hiking for the very first time!  A large group of corps members and team leaders went to hike in the flat irons of the Rockies in Chautauqua Park.  We split up into different groups depending on how challenging of a hike we wanted.  I went with the "easy" group because I'm so inexperienced!  We took Mesa trail up to Mallory Cave trail.  Round trip it was about 5 miles.  I didn't think it was very easy, but it was definitely worth it!  The views were breathtaking, I can't describe how they made me feel.  I also got to bond with two other girls who have asthma and were at the back of the pack with me!  I feel that taking the hike helped me adjust to the altitude.  It was my first strenuous exercise since I've been here, and I felt so much better at the end than I did at the beginning.  Dan Dutkiewicz was right: one time hiking will make you fall in love with the mountains.  

The view upon entering Chatauqua Park.

 Winding down the trails together. 

It was such a sunny day!  I waaayy overdressed; I thought it would be very cold.  But at least I wore layers.  I just ended up with two coats in my backpack and my hoodie tied around my waist.

 The view from the top!

     After the hike, we had lunch at Illegal Pete's in Boulder.  It has a burrito/taco bar like Chipotle, but a much cooler atmosphere!  I highly recommend the primavera vegetarian taco.

     On Monday, I got to explore the Denver area more with my temporary team at the time, Christine's Fire 2.  Some corps members were being trained as van drivers and needed practice on the road, so we all tagged along and turned it into a field trip.  We saw Red Rocks amphitheater and the Columbine memorial.  We ate bag lunches at Washington Park (the place I served at on Saturday!).  Christine bought us all ice cream at Sweet Action and helped us find halloween costumes at a great thrift store called the ARC.  I found one but it is a secret for now. ;) 

There was a statue of a CCC member at the entrance of Red Rock Amphitheater because CCC'ers helped build it!  That was really cool to see because the CCC is kind of the grandfather of NCCC, we are modeled after it. 

Red Rock!

The view from the stage.

My temp. team and other CM's at Red Rock.

 Columbine Memorial healing wall

 Columbine Memorial healing wall

  Columbine Memorial healing wall

  Columbine Memorial victim plaque

 Sweet Action was ahhhmazing.  They make all their ice cream there and the flavors change all the time.  I got the carmelized pear and loved it!  Go there.

     Also on Monday we had our first day of physical training (PT).  We went to Centennial Park and practiced for our baselines.  Baselines are an evaluation we will have next week where we will record how fast we can run 1 1/2 miles and how many pushups/situps we can do in one minute.  There is no pressure, we just do baselines every few weeks during our service to set goals for ourselves and to measure how we've grown.  I felt surprisingly very good during the run yesterday, but today I feel pretty sore!  Oh well.  I'm glad that being in this program will help me to develop healthy habits. 

     Today we had team bonding time with new temporary teams.  Right now I'm with Jarrett on Fire 3!  I went to REI for the first time.  I thought it was overpriced, but cool.  The store we went to was the flagship store!  We also checked out a great book store called Tattered Cover.  If you ever go, don't forget to venture to the second floor!  It is quiet and has lots of comfy chairs.  Our last stop was one of the best candy shops I've ever been to, Rocket Fizz.  In the afternoon, we learned a lot about van safety and this evening I did laundry and watched the presidential debate.

Jarrett taught us how to make balloon animals!  He went to Disney University.  No big deal.

     I'm pretty tired and sore and a bit homesick, but I'm loving all these adventures.  Thank you for reading. =)

Love,

Rachel

Training/Pumpkins/ISP

Hello! 

     Things are going really well here.  Thursday and Friday I was in training for most of the day.  The training was really varied, and covered things like the rules and policies of AmeriCorps and this campus, van driving safety, equal opportunity, the culture of disaster relief and the opportunities we have to earn awards for our service.  It was a long time to be in a classroom setting, but everything I learned was interesting and important, and the presenters tried to go through it as quickly as possible.  Thursday and Friday I rotated through another temporary team: Fire 2, led by Arthur.  He helped me shorten the AmeriCorps issue belt that used to wrap around me twice, and he took our team to Chipotle for bonding time.  It was really nice!  For the next few days, I'll be on Fire 3 led by Christine.  It's a lot nicer than I thought it would be to rotate through these temporary teams.  I thought it would be a little stressful, but it actually makes things easier.  It gives me a chance to focus my attentions on getting to know one small group of people at a time instead of everybody at once.

     On Thursday a lot of us gathered in the lobby of the residence hall to watch the vice presidential debate.  So many of us are first time voters!  It's really exciting.  Last night, I got my first mail at my new address from my mom and Andrea Ferrier.  It made me so happy.  Thank you, guys! Also last night, we all had the chance to carve pumpkins together.  I shared one with some friends, and it turned out pretty awesome.

     From left: me, Chelsie, Reggie, our awesome pumpkin, random photobomber, Roxanne.

All the pumpkins outside Walsh the next morning.

     NCCC requires that Corps members complete 80 hours of independent service projects (ISP's).  This doesn't mean they have to be projects you do completely alone, instead they are just projects that you have to choose, initiate or give up personal time for.  Today I got to do my first ISP!

     Other AmeriCorps members and I went and helped prepare Washington Park for winter.  It is a beautiful park with many flower beds... they've won awards from the city of Denver!  The group that maintains the park needed help pulling out the dead annuals and then spading the soil of the beds so that water and air can get in and it will be easy to plant new flowers next spring.  

     It felt good to get my uniform dirty for the first time, and be outside after a long week of indoor training!  All the people we interacted with were very nice.  Many people from the community came out to help, I even saw some children and a woman with an oxygen tank.  We also saw people just out enjoying the park with their families, dogs or bikes.  It feels good to know that it is such a popular place and the work we did will help people continue to enjoy it.

   

     When we were headed back to our vans, the head honcho of the Southwest Region campus, Ken Goodson, made a surprise visit.  He and his daughter brought us homemade, warm chocolate chip cookies.  It made us feel so appreciated!

There were tons of geese at the park!  Chris, remember when we went on a "wild goose chase" at Charlton?  They made me think of you!  :)  I didn't chase any though!

Here's what part of the park looked like before we began.  It was too big to get a picture of the whole thing!  I can tell that it must be gorgeous in the spring and summer.  I hope we can come back and help again.

Everybody hard at work.

Some of the people I got to work with for the day. 

     Tonight I'm exploring downtown Denver with friends and tomorrow I get to hike for the first time in the Rockies!  I'm so excited.  Hopefully I'll have lots of great pictures to post!

Love,

Rachel

The Beginning

  I'm here!  So much has happened in the last two days, I can hardly believe it.  I have so much to share.  I guess I'll just begin at the beginning. =)

     My last "see you later"s with my family had very few tears and lots of smiles.  That felt really good!  My flight to Denver was smooth and safe.  Unfortunately, once I got on the plane my camera was out of battery power, so I couldn't take a picture out the window.  But here's me right before I left Grand Rapids.  It's blurry, but you can see my plane in the background. 

    As soon as I got to the Denver airport, people with AmeriCorps signs were waiting for me.  From that moment on, I have met so many extremely friendly, welcoming, interesting people!  We rode a bus to the place we are staying: Colorado Heights University.  It is a beautiful campus with a unique history and function.  At one point it was a Japanese business school, at another it was a convent for Catholic nuns.  Now it hosts graduate school classes, a small high school, international students and AmeriCorps NCCC!  The campus is in a breathtaking location.  I can look to the east and watch the sunrise over the city of Denver, and I can look to the west and watch the sunset over the mountains.  This picture is of me in the best spot I've found so far to take in the view.

This is the view from our cafeteria.

     I keep catching myself looking at the mountains and thinking "Oh yeah, what was I supposed to be doing?  Where was I going before I got distracted by these?"  The pictures don't do them justice.  I'll try to get a sunset picture to share with you soon. =)

     I'm living in Walsh Hall Room 245 with an awesome girl named America.  She's in the fire unit too, and they had these cute signs on our door for us when we arrived.  I'll try to take more pictures of my room soon!  I am practically all settled.  It felt so good to unpack.  I know I'll be moving a lot this year, but for now this is "home" and I want to make it feel like one.  (By the way, even though I live in Room 245, my address is still Room 136! That's our mail room.  My address has changed a little in a different way, though  I updated the address post with the correct version.  It's just Class 19A instead of 19, and add Fire Unit.)

     This is my dorky "first day of school" picture for my mom.  Because she demands them and because I love her.

     They've been keeping us pretty busy so far with paperwork, training and welcome activites!  These first few days are called "in-processing".  I got to take a campus tour and go exploring with new friends.  I had my first official meeting with the Fire Unit and got to spend time with my first temporary team: Fire 1, led by Lalita.  Tomorrow I'll be on a new temporary team: Fire 7, led by Arthur.  It's weird to shuffle around so much, but it's really helping me get to know people.  One of the most exciting parts of the day, drumroll please!.......... I was issued my uniform!

     This is me giving my best Rosie the Riveter impression.  This is a pretty standard version of what I'll be wearing most days!  Gray, black and khaki are the main colors.  I think some would consider the uniforms dorky, but I am really excited about them.  It felt like Christmas getting so much new stuff!  And for me, the uniforms helped me feel really connected to other people on campus.  We have so many differences to celebrate, and now we have something that makes us all the same in a small way, too. Before too long, the excitement will probably wear off and I will long to wear my own clothes.  But I will enjoy the excitement while it lasts!

     I will probably seldom wear this outfit, but it made me laugh so hard I needed a picture in it.  Props to my roomate America for being so gracious and helping me document my experience and laughing with me.  My favorite part is that it came with complimentary paint splatters!

     This morning was exciting with all the meetings and uniform issue, but the evening was the best part of my day today.  I ate mashed potatoes with vegetarian gravy and vegetarian stuffing while I watched the sunset over the mountains out the window.  I sat with some great people who formed an impromptu band while we ate.  It started with one girl plucking on her guitar, then someone pulled a violin from under their chair and another girl ran in with her djembe and some vocalists piped up.  It was amazing and it made me feel so peaceful.  People walking by stopped to listen and crowded around.  Music has such a special way of connecting people.  It reminded me of how music helped me meet Chris! 
     I'm going to go back to Walsh 245 and rest for now, another busy day will be here tomorrow!  Love to all of you.  I'll try to post again soon.

AmeriCorps Eve

     Tomorrow morning, I leave for Denver and my AmeriCorps NCCC adventure begins!  I fly out at 7:00 a.m. from Gerald R. Ford International Airport.  I can hardly believe it.  I have noticed the time going by and marked it... six months left... one month left... two weeks left.  Despite my countdown, now that the time has come, it hardly seems real.  I've prepared myself in every way that I can.  I've meticulously packed, clean and organized; I've done research on everything from adjusting to Denver's altitude to volunteering for Denver's most interesting nonprofit organizations.  It feels good to know that I've done everything I can, but I know that some things will happen tomorrow and this year in general that I could have never prepared myself for!  I think that is a good thing, though.  I will learn as I go. =)
     I was blessed to have a lot of awesome "See You Later"s (not goodbye's!) with friends and family this week.  (Chris and I had a wonderful one before he left for India!)  My dad was able to have four days off in a row to spend time with me.  I got to go to Art Prize for the first time with my mom, sisters, and friend Maggie.  I got to spend time with my friends at Olivet.  I went out for dinner and ice cream with my family and the wonderful family that I babysit for.  My mom and I got to see my cousins play ball in Portland.  I visited my grandparents.  I went on an awesome adventure with my oldest sister Amy to see Andrea Gibson perform.  I spent time with the lovely Smiths.  I got to help Catie pick out her homecoming dress and be with the Eldridges.  Hanna got to come home this weekend and we're having a sleepover tonight.  There's too much to write!  I'm so thankful for all the time I've gotten to spend with so many great people, and the encouragement they've given me.  There are many people I wish I could have seen one more time, but I know I'll be back and we'll have great times then! 
     I have mixed emotions going into this, but overall I feel good.  I am going to miss my friends and family so much, and it will be a little hard to go somewhere alone where I don't know anyone.  But I know this is what I'm supposed to be doing, and that I will have so many great experiences!  I'll get to travel, serve, learn, meet new people, and do things I've never done before.  It will definitely be an adventure!  It's exciting to be starting a new chapter of my life.  I have loved this last chapter so much, and so far in my experience, each chapter is even better than the last.
     Home, I'll see you later!  Denver, I'll see you soon.
    

Fire Unit!

     Exciting news... I received a phone call a few days ago that let me know I will be part of the Fire Unit of the Southwest Region!  Don't worry, that doesn't mean I'll necessarily be fighting fires.  There will be almost 300 Corps Members on the Southwest campus, so they break us into four units just to keep things organized.  The names of the units are Earth, Water, Sun and Fire, and they don't have any bearing on the projects you work on, they just provide structure (and are cool names)!  (There is something called the Fire Management Team that corps members have an option to be a part of in which they can choose to focus on fighting and preventing wildfires during their service, but I'm choosing not to do that so that I'll have more varied projects.  Being in the Fire Unit doesn't make me part of the Fire Management Team.)
     Each unit has 7 teams, each led by a Team Leader. They are numbered 1-7, ex: Sun 1, Sun 2, etc. During CTI (Corps Training Institute, my first month spent learning in Denver) I will rotate through different temporary teams within the fire unit so staff can observe how different people work together. At the end of CTI, they'll put the people who work well together and compliment each other's strengths and weaknesses onto regular teams!   To my understanding, my regular team won't necessarily be permanent, but I will at least be with them for my first project and probably (hopefully!) be with them for most of my service.  I've heard that your team kind of becomes a second family to you. =)
    So... there is still a lot about my team I don't know and won't know until the end of October!  But at least going in, I know I'm a part of fire unit, and that narrows down who I will be working with.  I'm really excited to make friends and form special bonds with these people (and everyone else in the Southwest Region!).