Prompt: What has surprised you this first week? What are you most excited about and what do you foresee as the biggest challenges?
Arriving home from my trip to Israel just two days before I moved into Canisius, I did not have much time to process my upcoming summer experience. So, after growing up in Rochester for most of my life, I wasn’t expecting Buffalo to be much different from Rochester. Throughout the past week, however, I have come to learn that my previous view couldn’t be farther from the truth. Of course, Buffalo and Rochester have their similarities as mid-sized western New York cities, but I have been amazed by the sheer number of things to do and the accessibility of the city. This weekend alone there are five different activities we can attend, all within the city limits. And although I am quite confused as to why many of the highways have a speed limit of 30 mph, my drives to and from work have been under fifteen minutes each day, so I have no complaints.
My first three days of work at WEDI have been both exciting and overwhelming. I quickly learned that non-profit work is much different from what I expected it to be. Everyone in the office is exceptionally relaxed, which can often mask the large amount of work they are doing. The employees at WEDI are doing so many different tasks each day, from meeting with the refugee vendors at the West Side Bazaar, to filing paperwork in their Delaware Ave office. On my first day, I overwhelmingly went back and forth from the West Side Bazaar to the Grant Street Office to the Delaware Ave office and back to the Grant Street office. On my second day, I spent the morning at the Broadway Market and then spent the day in the Delaware Office. I was astonished by how often the WEDI employees are moving around to each location, yet they still can complete their work throughout the day.
In the next few weeks, my primary role will be to create workshops for the vendors to help improve various aspects of their businesses, including inventory, social media marketing, and accounting. I am very excited to have the opportunity to develop learning materials that will directly impact the success of the vendor’s businesses. Continuously finding new tasks will take some getting used to since we are handed our assignments at school, but I am excited to have some freedom in figuring out what I will be working on this summer. Additionally, after developing some of the workshops, I learned that I would have to simplify the materials to make the translations easier. Since the vendors come from all over the world, there is a strong language barrier between us. I am hoping to find ways to develop positive relationships with the vendors despite this barrier.
One of my biggest personal challenges this summer will be adjusting to the 9-5 workday and becoming okay with being alone. Coming home after work with no obligations is much different from working at sleepaway camp or having homework throughout the school year. I’ve never had a job with the typical 9 am - 5 pm hours before, acclimating to this lifestyle will take some time. And after living in a house with forty of my closest friends this past year at a school, spending the workday on my computer and coming home to a room by myself will also take time. Despite these so-called challenges, I am excited for what the summer in Buffalo will bring, both in terms of my personal and professional development.