Alternative Breaks - New York 2017

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During Summer 2016, I decided to sign myself up to be a Site Leader for Alternative Breaks (aB). I knew this would be a fantastic experience, and that it would bring new challenges to my table.

Although the pictures only reflect the trip, my aB experience started back in July. As site leaders, the organization makes sure that we are prepared to handle big groups of participants, as well as the planning and fundraising that the trip has.

After a Saturday of training, we immerse ourselves in interviews. We had one week to meet 30 candidates and pick 15 participants. Being tech savvy and OCD when it comes to organization, helped me to go through this process very easily. Picking the participants and trying to bring a homogenous but diverse group was a challenge, and it brought up a deep interest in the hiring process for companies.

Our group met weekly, and sometimes twice a week, to plan the trip, fundraisers, meals, sleeping arrangements, etc, etc. From September to March, we had a great time getting to know each other and learning about the service we were going to be doing in New York: teaching financial literacy and entrepreneurship.

When Spring Break came around and everyone grabbed their swimsuits heading Miami Beach, we took an Uber to FLL airport and embrace the cold concrete jungle. We experienced an amazing week, where it wasn’t only about teaching, but understanding how us as leaders define our groups.