Serve America

Maybe it's my background. Small city, military town (Augusta, Georgia) that makes me perhaps a bit more patriotic than people "expect".  As a youth it was my secret dream to be a Naval Engineer.  Oddly enough it was one of the reasons I convinced myself that my parents were right about me having gastric bypass surgery. Of course 160lbs lighter now know that weight loss surgery makes you ineligible for the reserves. Ah well, what can you do.

So I see Americorps as my chance to serve my country.  And it's with pride that I begin my second year, this time in the ClimateCorps Bay Area.  For my second year I will be the Volunteer and Training Associate for GRID Alternatives, a non-profit here in California that provides renewable energy sources such as Solar Panels for electricity, also known as photo-voltaic (PV) systems. I will be recruiting, training, and managing volunteers so it's a big responsiblity. It's a unique situation because in the Bay Area, GRID actually has a waitlist for volunteers. It is "the" place to volunteer at for a number of reasons. For 1 it's just plain awesome and 2. volunteers at GRID actually help install the PV systems so job experience!  Yep, really. And as a Laney College student/employee and one searching for work in the energy field I have heard solar companies tell experienced construction people who need skills in PV installation to call GRID.  You don't have to pay money to take a course or see if you can tag-along with someone's company you can come and volunteer, in turn helping a family in your community. It's such a win-win situation.  Providing sustainable power at helping Americans gain the work skills they need..

Did she just say "America" *again* Well it is my country, for good or for bad, and the freedom to say "for good or for bad" is why I do love it. No it's not perfect, where is that perfect country?  Living here has given me great opportunities for knowledge and experience that may have not be so easily accessible for me elsewhere. For this I'm truly thankful.

The next 11 months are going to be awesome and as always I'll let you know how it's going along.

take care!