Not sure if VISTA is right for you? Meet our current capacity builder Natalie below and see why she chose to serve as an AmeriCorps VISTA member. Don't forget the deadline to apply is only days away so contact us immediately if you have any questions.
You can also learn more about the AmeriCorps VISTA program HERE. If full time isn't right for you or if you're looking for a direct service opportunity United Way of Southern Nevada's AmeriCorps program will be recruiting part time AmeriCorps members. You can find out more about the AmeriCorps program HERE.
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Meet Our Current Capacity Builder
Name: Natalie Ann-Marie Minev
Host Site: Volunteer Center of Southern Nevada
Hometown: Las Vegas, NV
What is your favorite thing about your AmeriCorps position?: I love the team I work with at the Volunteer Center. They are funny, amazing, and beautiful people. I also love doing huge service projects in the community, meeting awesome volunteers who want to make positive change, and interacting with great non-profits around the valley.
What is your favorite place to eat in southern Nevada?: I love Streets of New York pizza in Centennial Hills for a great slice of pizza. I also love going to Roberto's for a carne asada torta.
What is your favorite thing to do in your spare time?: Chilling with family and friends, reading, spending time outside, playing the guitar, volunteering, eating out, and shopping.
What is your favorite thing to do or place to go in southern Nevada?: Red Rock. My favorite area of Red Rock is the sandstone quarry. It is a really cool area to hike or have a picnic.
What is your favorite movie or TV show?: I am a big American Idol fan.
What are your plans after AmeriCorps?: Attending law school this fall to study public interest law.
What is your favorite quote?: "Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language. Do not now look for the answers. They cannot now be given to you because you could not live them. It is a question of experiencing everything. At present you need to live the question. Perhaps you will gradually, without even noticing it, find yourself experiencing the answer, some distant day." - Rainer Maria Rilke
Why AmeriCorps VISTA?: I joined VISTA because I was involved in social justice and service activities in college, and I wanted to take the next step. I wanted to utilize the skills and education I gained in college to give back to my hometown Las Vegas, which was deeply impacted by the nationwide recession. I was interested in making the transition from direct service experiences to capacity building, strengthening programs, and making lasting changes by mobilizing large groups of people. The position at United Way's Volunteer Center was a great opportunity to explore my hometown and help strengthen non-profits through large-scale service projects that helped to relieve poverty and revitalize the community.
I have enjoyed working on diverse service projects that engage volunteers throughout the community, whether it be organizing a project to pack bags of food for hungry children, coordinating a city-wide food drive for local food pantries, or revitalizing schools throughout the city. I've loved seeing the different sides of Las Vegas that I did not notice as I grew up here. I have enjoyed meeting new friends, volunteers, and non-profits and working with great community partners eager to make a positive impact in Southern Nevada.
As part of National AmeriCorps week Natalie was honored as the 2010 AmeriCorps VISTA Member of the Year. Natalie Minev has been in the AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers In Service to America) Program since last June. She is a dynamo of event coordination and nonprofit outreach. Natalie organized the Volunteer Center's September 11th Day of Service, which collected a whopping 3.5 tons of donated personal items, 400 banners, and 1,476 hand-written cards for the troops. She coordinated a Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Project at two local elementary schools, and tackled the National Letter Carriers Food Drive on May 8th, which was her biggest project yet. The Food Drive far exceeded last years donations with 401,922 pounds of non-perishable food being collected across southern Nevada. On top of all that, during her VISTA year, Natalie found time to reach out to 98 new nonprofits to understand their volunteer needs and make them partners of the Volunteer Center, which recruits volunteers for them. When she found a few minutes to spare, she busied herself preparing taxes for low-income individuals and staffing health and resource fairs. Natalie exemplifies the AmeriCorps spirit of getting things done!
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How can you help?
By becoming the next AmeriCorps VISTA Capacity Building Coordinator!
AmeriCorps*VISTA is the national service program designed specifically to fight poverty. Founded as Volunteers in Service to America in 1965 and incorporated into the AmeriCorps network of programs in 1993, VISTA has been on the front lines in the fight against poverty in America for more than 40 years.
VISTA members commit to serve full-time for a year at a nonprofit organization or local government agency, working to fight illiteracy, improve health services, create businesses, strengthen community groups, and much more. With passion, commitment, and hard work, VISTA members create or expand programs designed to bring individuals and communities out of poverty.
By serving through VISTA, members gain new skills, friends, and experiences-plus they'll receive the satisfaction that comes from helping others. During a term of service, members also receive a modest living allowance, health care, and other benefits. And, upon completing service, members can choose to receive either an education award worth $5,350 to pay for college, or $1,200 in cash.
Click HERE to download the full Capacity Building Coordinator Description.
If you feel a term as an AmeriCorps VISTA could be right for you please call 702-892-2367 and speak with Danny Horen for details on how to apply. The Capacity Building Coordinator will be selected by Friday, May 28, 2010 so interested applicants should apply immediately. If you know someone who would make a great VISTA member please forward this information to them and encourage them to apply.
To expedite the process submit your application online HERE.
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