We know it's been awhile since we last wrote, but to be honest, you haven't missed much that has happened around the organization. For the most part last week everyone was mostly in and out of the office-either visit family and/or attending graduations. So, not much time was really spent at Seeedville all of last week.
These last two weeks at Seeedville are seeming to be bitter-sweet. Summer and I (Kenisha) are entering our final week with us. May 22, 5:00pm will mark our final day here at SEEED. We are sad to be leaving, but we believe that we have done some much for SEEED, and we are positive that everyone is eternally grateful to us for the contribution that we have made over the last year. SEEED won't be the same without us, but that doesn't mean that the organization won't continue to prosper--if anything, we believe that SEEED is on the verge of becoming something bigger than what it was these past year, and Summer and I are extremely excited, and are remorseful that we won't be a part of if; although we'll be sure to stay informed on up to date on the organization's accomplishments. We will miss Seeedville dearly and we are positive that we'll also be missed by everyone who has ever interacted with the organization.
But on a more positive and sweeter note, SEEED is blessed to have two more VISTAs to join in the place of Summer and Kenisha. And no, these VISTAs are not the new Kenisha and Summer. They are John and Lee. These two young man come to us as graduates from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. SEEED was so lucky to have had these two young man who have been living and working in the local area; hence they seemed to be better equipped with knowledge about local community that Summer nor I had. Therefore, we believe that SEEED will be in great hands come May 29th when these two young men begin their journey as AmeriCorps VISTAs at Seeedville. I do not doubt that they will be equipped with the resource that Summer and I have left behind for them as well as their own knowledge and resources that they have gained while attending their undergraduate university and living in Knoxville.
If I have to be honest, I think that when me and Summer started our journey as VISTAs, we came with not much knowledge about Knoxville or the communities we intend on serving. While Summer attended Carson-Newman University in Jefferson City, TN and frequented Knoxville on the weekends, her interaction with the City was mainly based on shopping excursions, eating and enjoying the nightlife. Hence, she wasn't well-informed about the issues that plagues the inner-cities--low- to moderate-income communities. As for me, when I first learned about this VISTA opportunity, that was the first time I would have learned about the City of Knoxville. I had been the Nashville a while back and so Tennessee was not completely new to me. Quite frankly, Vanderbilt was in my top choices for schools to attend for my undergraduate degree, but decided to go elsewhere when I learned about how massive the institution is. Hence, when I decided to live and work in Knoxville for a year, I didn't really fully grasp what awaited me, nor did I fully understand the issues of poverty, race, class, homelessness, education and various other social in/justices that affect such a small City. I did do my research and so I was "well-informed" based on the statistics that were laid out on the internet. But if we are completely honest with ourselves, we'd really come to learn that not because it's on the internet, it doesn't make it true. Or we'll also acknowledge that a live-experience is worth much more than any book/research.
Therefore, when Summer and I came to Knoxville, we were taken aback by some of the issues we ran into: lack of familiarity with surrounding communities, lack of understanding regarding the cultural idioms of the City, and various other lack of knowledge when it comes to what Knoxville is really about and who the people are whom we serve.
Don't get me wrong. I do think we have made a positive impact and we have made an effort to really get out there and meet the people, learn about the City and gain a broader perspective of the work we do here. But I do think that when we have people coming in who are deeply rooted in Knoxville and have been a lot exposed to the issues that affect the City, it can get a lot more done for the organization and for those whom we choose to serve.
So, as we've mentioned earlier, we have two amazing young men who will be joining Seeedville this year and we are sincerely grateful to them for saying "yes" to accepting the challenge to make Seeedville more successful over the coming year. The services that VISTAs provide to the organization are tremendously crucial to the success of SEEED. Hence, we are very excited to know that when Summer and I leave, that SEEED will be in great hands and that organization will be moving a different and positive direction. So, here are our two new added members of the Seeedville family:
Meet Lee:
Hi all! I’m Lee Owen, and I will be serving as the program coordinator at SEEED this year. I am finishing up at UT (Knoxville) where I have been studying history and political philosophy. A lot of my involvement of campus has been coordinating informative lectures and public events at UT, so I’m looking forward to applying that experience in a whole new way. I was also on the quidditch team, which isn't much of a professional qualification, but it was very fun! I’m very involved with my church, Tyson House, where I’m very fortunate to be taking part in an intentional living program for the next year. I was thrilled to be accepted into the C-N Vista program because it seems like a great way to grow professionally while jumping right into serving the Knoxville community. To be honest, I don't have a set plan laid out for my career, but I know that programs targeted at building and supporting community have helped me so much, and I am thrilled to be part of that process. I’m impressed by the work I’ve seen at SEEED and the other sites, and I am especially looking forward to meeting my cohort and getting down to business!
Lee will be serving as the Program Coordinator for our Career Readiness Program, as well as working closely with Stan to merge Knoxville's Smarter Cities Campaign into what SEEED is doing. Lee will be entering the role that I (Kenisha) currently occupies, but will have his hands full with the Smarter Cities initiative. I hope that you'll give him the same (or even more) support that you have given me over the year ;)
Hello everyone, my name is John Gough and I'll be working with SEEED as the social media and events coordinator. Originally, I am from Michigan, but have lived in Knoxville for the past the five years. Prior to pursuing my undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee I served in the United States Army National Guard as a Combat Engineer with the 1431st SAPPER Battalion. With the 1431st I helped provide security for the Mackinac Bridge Walk, assisted in the Upper Peninsula Wildfires, and deployed Afghanistan in 2008 to conduct Route Clearance Patrols around the notorious Khost-Gardez pass. Upon returning home I spent some time traveling in Europe, South America, and Central America. During this time my parents had moved to Kingston, Tn to retire. With no immediate family left in Michigan I made the move to Knoxville, Tn in order to be closer to "home." Since my time here I have grown to love and call East Tennessee home, which has sparked my aspiration to serve the community in which I am apart of. I believe Americorps will give me the unique opportunity to make a real difference in our local community and lay the groundwork to eventually make a difference in the national and global community. As Martin Luther King once pronounced, "We must not be concerned merely with those who commit violence, but about the system, the way of life, and the philosophy which produced the violent." Moreover, I'm looking forward to meeting and working with everyone in the upcoming year. Until then, all the best, John!
John will be serving as the Coordinator of Communications, Event Planning, and Social Media. He will be continuing SEEED's capacity-building efforts in the same ways that Summer has been for this past year. Hence, we do ask that you continue to support, not just John and his efforts, but that you also continue to support SEEED in a way that shows how much you all care and love SEEED.
Summer and I sincerely thank you all for your kind support throughout our year of service. If we were to individually name each person who's made this year a success, we wouldn't have room left. So, we do hope that if you believe that you have touched our lives in any way past year, please know that we are grateful to you in more ways than one. And we cannot ask for anything more than for you to continue to give that same support to our incoming VISTAs, because they we are only as successful and effective to the organizations we serve when we know we have a lasting support system that won't give up on us and the work we set out to do.
Thanks again for a year well-spent. We sincerely hope that we have in turn touched your life in a positive way and we do hope that our incoming VISTAs will too.
That's all for this week, folks. I know that was a rather long post, but I do believe it was needed; at least for this time. We promise we won't do another post this long (maybe, LOL)!
FYI, next week is me and Summer's last week. So, if you haven't stopped by to bid your goodbyes (or see you laters), we encourage you to come by and do so. It's really suck if we don't get to see most, if not all, of you before we leave. So, please come by! We always love to you all around the building :)
Stay tuned for my very last blog post on 05/22/2015.
Until then,
+Seeed Knox
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