School has officially started, and it is overwhelming! I feel like this semester is starting off strong in terms of projects I’ve been assigned, and AHO is starting new things as well! AHO used to host weekly Youth Leadership Meetings at local cafes in Marin for many years. With the onset of COVID, these in-person meetings primarily became Zoom meetings. From the recent input Zara received from some of the OG youth of AHO about restarting in-person leadership meetings, it was decided to start those meetings back up again to build community and support for youth.
It was decided that the weekly youth leadership team will begin meeting again this upcoming Wednesday at 4:30 Aroma Café in San Rafael. I am very excited to participate in these community gatherings to meet new AHO youth and others who have passed through the doors of AHO who continue to work with the organization well into their 30’s and early 40’s. I love
getting the opportunity to learn new things, taking on more responsibility, learning new skill sets and getting comfortable in different environments.
This week I also got to grab lunch with the AHO youth I’m working with. At these meetings, I check in on his progress toward his greater overall stability with work, school, and housing and support him as a partner, not a case manager, in his goals! He just started his school semester at Santa Rosa Junior College. He, much like me, is also adjusting to being back in school and juggling a new and demanding work and school schedule. He’s working towards the goal of being a paramedic and firefighter and Zara found a mentor for him in this career field. The mentor, who is already working in the field, is the nephew of my professor at Dominican, LeeAnn Bartolini. This is a great opportunity and connection for the youth I’m working with to get someone’s lived experience and perspective for the career he’s working toward. A special bonus is they are both age 24!
Overall, everyone is settling in for the next few months and all the work that comes with it.
Cheers to structured chaos,
Kayla