One Month In--Observations

Although, I have been saying it from day 1, the coolest part of this internship is that I get thrust into leadership roles, and am treated with respect from everyone. I have now been given several opportunities to lead a team into the neighborhoods, an immense amount of responsibility and an incredible experience.
I am learning a lot thus far, and feel at home every time I walk into the office (Incidentally, I even have been put on the chore chart.)
As time goes on, I hope to do more and more as a member of the Wider Circle family; every day of work has been a new and exciting adventure.

Josh

Keep on Truckin

I am now a qualified truck driver.

Adding to the other awesome practical skills I am learning with this internship, I got to drive the moving truck on Friday and Saturday. Despite a few bumps and bruises, I think I did really well.
I'm starting to feel really confident, and even got to lead my own team on Saturday through Maryland. Things went well, even though Google Maps did its best to foil our plans.
Looking forward to this week, which is suprisingly exciting for someone who used to dread working.


J

Poverty is powerlessness, lack of representation and freedom

Tonight we had our internship orientation. Following along the team-theme, everyone from Mark (Our director) on down was in attendance. After some basic introductions, our fundraising coordinator showed a chilling presentation on poverty.
Some important facts to be taken from it.
--Poverty line for a family of four>$21,910
--Average income of a Wider Circle family of four>$6,000
--Washington DC has one of the largest poverty rates in the nation (16.4%)

Scary Stuff, but with your help we can all work on making this better.
I'm excited for work tomorrow, they are going to teach me how to drive the truck!!

Until next time,
J

Link of the day

Marc Fisher begs for some goodwill amongst each other
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/04/AR2009020403383.html

New guy on the block

The hardest part of any internship is getting used to the little intracities arond the office. So far, aside from a few minor mess-ups, I think I am becoming quickly accustomed to the quirks of the office.
The team here at A Wider Circle is great at making me feel a part of the team. Group meetings involve everyone, as do chores. Nobody, from the executive director down, is exempt from sweeping, washing, and cleaning.
I feel really fortunate to be in such a unique situation. Within a few hours of my first day, I was not the new guy, but another member of the team.

Until Next Time,

J

Welcome!

Hi all,

As an introduction, My name is Josh and I am a second semester senior interning at A Wider Circle. For those who don't know, A wider Circle is a non-profit organization whose goal is to fight poverty in Washington, D.C., and its surrounding areas. As an intern for the neighbor-to-neighbor program I move furniture out of wealthy donor's homes and help clients when they come to our warehouse to pick up furniture for their homes. Over the next 12 weeks, I will write a blog covering my time as an intern. Check back daily as I will also try to link articles regarding important issues in Washington relating to poverty.
Until Next Time,

J