VISTAs in Action: MLK Day of Service

Thanks to the Winston-Salem office Vistas (Denise and SJ) and former Vista Tina for volunteering at this years MLK Day of Service read-in event at Wake Forest. Nearly 100 children were paired with volunteer reading buddies to learn more about Martin Luther King Jr. Tina and SJ demonstrated their superior interviewing skills by interviewing dozens of volunteer participants. Denise did a fantastic job of keeping the community updated on the unfolding events of the day through social networking. Everyone did a great job!!

MLK Day of Service!

This is the only time you will ever hear us utter this phrase, but...

Please stalk us!

Tomorrow is Winston-Salem's MLK Day of Service at Wake Forest University and we OE VISTAs are in charge of on site publicity and social media. VISTAs from all over the country will be atwitter with service updates, so don't be left out. Follow our updates on...

FACEBOOK via "Handson NWNC" (Friend them!)

TWITTER via @HandsOnNWNC and @1Economy_VISTA

YOU can participate in the MLK day of service too, no matter where you are! Go to this link and search for opportunities all across the country.

A Colorful New Year

After the New Year, the OE Vistas returned relaxed and refreshed. Last weekend, Denise and Griffin (technically an intern, but we still consider him one of us) drove to the Bertie County Resource Center and gave the computer lab a much needed face lift. It's good to know that if AmeriCorps doesn't work out, we can at least color in the lines.

Here are some before/after pictures:

A BIG thank you to the people at OE who helped us plan this as well as the community members who came out to paint!

Send the VISTAs Gifts!

Don't worry - we're not pocketing them! These gifts are for eight families in Bertie County, NC where our fellow VISTA Derrell serves (Hi Derrell!). Thanks to everyone's generosity, deliveries are starting pile up in the Winston-Salem Office and though we have a ways to go, this is certainly a promising beginning!

As we mentioned in our Cyber Monday post, you can make the holiday season brighter for families in need via our Target Registry. Each item on that list - no matter how small or basic - represents something on someone's special wish list. So far we've received toys, socks, tools, and family games. It's really neat to see packages arrive regularly like that. It brings smiles to our faces every time! Bertie County has gone through a rough year and we want to do all we can to support our neighbors in rural North Carolina. These gifts are much appreciated. Never before have we seen children put items like "socks" and "school supplies" on their holiday wish lists...


It's not too late to give back! Visit the registry today and pass on the link to friends and family. You can even order items with a large group to save on shipping. As you can tell by some of these images, we VISTAs are getting in the spirit of things. Please join us in this merriment. Doesn't it look fun?

Cyber Monday for a Cause!

Once upon a time there was a young, innocent little girl who was dragged to an outlet mall at midnight on Black Friday. Claustrophobic and unprepared, she tried her best to keep up with the sea of people scurrying to sales and discounts. Much like salmon swimming upstream, it was natural selection and only the strong survived. Eventually she emerged from the crowd, but had no bags. The only thing she had to show for this late night adventure in consumerism was PTSD (Posttraumatic Shopping Disorder).

Yes, I am that girl. She is me. We are one. Even now, years after that fateful night, I stubbornly refuse to participate in Black Friday.

Recently a new tradition has emerged: Cyber Monday. I haven't jumped on the bandwagon yet, but I have a feeling this day involves less waiting, shoving, and cramped spaces than its in-person counterpart. This makes me hopeful. After all, giving is one of the greatest parts of the holiday season and shopping is often a necessary step to get there!

With that in mind, I have some uplifting news. You can now participate in Cyber Monday with a greater cause in mind! This year, One Economy has complied has a special registry at Target.com that includes the wish lists of eight families from Bertie County, NC. Items include everything from small toys to toolboxes. Some children even asked for school supplies. The list goes on and includes many basic needs - things that we Winston-Salem VISTAs have unfortunately taken for granted in our own lives. We hope you consider giving back this holiday season. Even one gift goes a long way!

So, guess what? Holiday shopping doesn't have to be terrifying. In fact, it can be inspiring! As a victim of Black Friday madness, I'm relieved to discover this.

'Tis the Season!


Denise and the Winston-Salem VISTAs

Motivational Monday Resurrected

How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.

~Anne Frank

P.S. - The VISTAs are on Twitter! Follow us @1Economy_VISTA

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Before I say anything else, I have to say a big thank you to all the VISTAS here in the W-S office for making my birthday ridiculously awesome yesterday. In particular, I appreciate their enabling my Halloween Oreo addiction.

In terms of work, my trail to One Economy was slightly unorthodox and at first, I wasn't sure how I felt about working with a non-profit that is driven primarily by technology. I'm a political science major and technology is not my forte. My friends would tell you that the scene in Office Space where they take the copier out to a field and completely destroy it... is one of my favorite moments ever. I've wanted to re-enact that scene on numerous occasions. However, most of my previous work has generally involved working with policy affecting low to moderate-income individuals and families. Working to change predatory lending laws, point out flaws in the indigent defense system and identify shortcomings of the federal poverty measure are what I know. Not computers. Not digital literacy.

So, I was a bit anxious starting out but that anxiety has long since vanished because it is hard not to get excited about one's work when you are surrounded by passionate and dedicated individuals. The VISTAS and staff in the Winston-Salem office and the staff elsewhere that I have met are incredibly hard-working and approach their work with a zeal that is contagious. Despite powerpoint's best efforts, I have found myself extremely excited about my work, both what I have done and what I will do by June. For example, a fellow VISTA in the office informed us that he has a birthday in mid-April. Now, after a statement like that, there are a large number of directions you could go. You could talk about how your cousin has a birthday near then or how that's still a good ways away. One could ask if it is a major birthday or if there is a trip planned. But me? Oh, none of that would suffice. In choosing to add to the conversation, my comment was "oh... that's right after the tax season comes to a close!" If zeal is a disease, I believe I may have it.

In the short time that I've been here, even this political science major has come to realize the value that the internet can bring to one's life. Changing policy is one way to affect someone's life in a positive way but providing folks with a vast amount of resources at their fingertips works just as well... if not better.

-S.J.