After being pulled out of service in the Peace Corps Philippines with such short notice due to covid -19. I somehow, and somewhere between the months of quarantine decided it seemed right to finish another year of service. Initially I sought out to do two years with the Peace Corps. However, due to the pandemic it just was not an option anymore. Which lead me to looking up positions through AmeriCorps.

That’s where I found the application for MTCC. I applied and was assigned to work at the University of Montana at Rural Institute for Inclusive Communities (RIIC). I repacked my belongings, said goodbye to everyone, and set out for my first ever cross-country road trip. From CT to MT. I have been out west before by plane (WA, CA, and OR). However, driving through the west was just a very magical journey. The land out west is very different than what you will find back home for me. It took me about five days till I made it to beautiful Missoula. A small town (to me), surrounded by mountains. Sunsets and mountains here are just a magical mix. I started working at RIIC about one day after arriving and on my birthday. My supervisor was very kind, excited to meet me, and have me on as a new member, as was I.

So far due to the pandemic I have not been able to work face to face with a community. Zoom, phone calls, and emails keep us linked. The cool thing about RIIC is that there are always many different projects going on. Since coming on to the team, this has led me to build relationships with a few of the staff and keeping myself flexible to multiple different projects to assist them with. I have been able to learn about programs, organizations, and equipment that are useful/helpful to individuals with disabilities. I have also had the pleasure of being able to drive out to two different locations to do inventory of equipment which enabled me to see the process of how certain programs/projects work. I am hoping that by the spring I am able to go out to more sites to do inventory and meet more of the staff. That is all Covid-19 depending of course.

Within this position I have been able to be a part of at least two conferences which have been very beneficial to myself and RIIC with brainstorming ideas and just becoming more knowledgeable about how to be beneficial to RIIC and our community. My time here has definitely been different from other positions I have been in. I am usually in positions where I am front row and center being a facilitator and it has been a challenge that I am overcoming, to work behind the scenes. Working behind the scenes have allowed me to have my hands in multiple projects without having to focus specifically on one. With each new project I am learning something new and therefore gaining different skills. Moving out west was hard but I find myself growing to appreciate my work and the land around me.