When I hopped on a plane departing from Reagan National Airport in December 2013, I knew I wasn’t leaving D.C. for the final time. After spending a semester studying and interning in the District through the Lutheran College Washington Semester, I was confident that I wanted to return to Washington at some point, but I knew figuring out my return would be a long row to hoe. It’s funny how things work out. By the grace of God, the opportunity to take part in the inaugural CAPS Fellows Program presented itself to me, and here I am – back in the District of Columbia.

Okay, enough with the nostalgic romanticizing. Let’s talk about how I am actually spending my summer. My CAPS Fellows placement has slotted me as the Public Policy and Advocacy Intern at a health and human services network organization called Lutheran Services in America. LSA is a network with over 300 service providers all across the United States and even in the Caribbean. My position supports Bob Francis, LSA’s director of public policy and advocacy.

Let me interject by saying my experience to the world of public policy was very limited prior to this summer. My fields of study at Valpo are primarily communication and theology, so I was nervous at the prospects of navigating uncharted waters this summer. Regardless, I recognized an amazing opportunity to “expand my portfolio” and get great experience in a new area – advocacy and policy, specifically relating to health and human service provision.

CAPS Fellow Caleb Rollins enjoys an apple for lunch near the Capitol, across the street from LSA’s offices.

Our daily commute involves a trip on the Metro.

Even with a lack of experience in the policy world, the opportunity to take part in the work of a social ministry organization liked LSA was something I jumped at. My experiences at Valpo have cultivated in me a passion for seeing God’s work done in the world – a passion for caring for the least of these (Matthew 25:40), speaking up for the voiceless (Proverbs 31:8-9), giving generously (Deuteronomy 15:10) and in everything, being involved in work which reflected the character of God (Psalm 68:4-5). LSA appeared, and has proven to be, an organization involved in such work.

In my first several weeks as the policy intern, I have been able to take advantage of LSA’s unique position by “sitting at multiple tables” in the D.C. world. In fact, on my very first day, I attended meetings at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) with LSA’s Disability Network (LSA-DN) members, where I quickly learned that learning to speak the language of acronyms would be helpful for this internship. My first week also included a quarterly LSA staff meeting and a visit to one of LSA’s local members, Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area (LSS-NCA), to learn more about their programs and services.

The main project I have worked on thus far involves an analysis of LSA’s social media advocacy efforts, evaluating the current presence and researching best practices from similar organizations in their use of social media for advocacy purposes. Another part of my internship responsibilities includes attending legislative briefings, Congressional hearings, and other meetings on behalf of LSA.

Sitting between the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, the National World War II Memorial is one of D.C.’s newest monuments.

A few of these meetings from the first few weeks particularly stand out. This past Monday, fellow CAPS fellow Caleb Rollins (how about that phrasing?), and I attended a White House briefing on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for Faith and Other-Community Based Organizations, where White House and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials thanked leaders for their work in educating and enrolling people in Health Insurance Marketplaces across the country. I recently attended a House Budget Committee (chaired by Rep. Paul Ryan) hearing on the “War on Poverty” several weeks ago. And just this past Wednesday, I attended a briefing hosted by a coalition called Advocates For Families First, who recently released their first public policy agenda with legislative recommendations for adoptive, kinship, and foster care policies.

Needless to say, the first part of the internship has been a whirlwind and each day is a learning experience in itself. I can also say that my internship experience the second time around has been quite different from the first. Making the switch from the government side to the non-profit world has given me a different perspective on the D.C. arena and the challenges that come with non-profit work. I am thankful to be working in support of Bob Francis, LSA’s policy director. Bob is a wellspring of knowledge in the policy arena and many other areas, and just getting to meet with him is a promise of boatload of information and thoughtful perspective for me to consider.

Nearly to the halfway point of the summer, looking back at all I have experienced thus far almost makes me giddy – D.C. is an incredible city to live in! Beyond all of the opportunities at work, summer adventures have included exploration of Georgetown, taking in the monuments at night, wandering through the United States Botanic Gardens, a trip to Nationals Park, watching the U.S. play Germany at a viewing party in Dupont Circle and of course, checking out a couple of museums.

Can’t wait to see what the rest of the summer holds – to God be the glory!

US Marine Corps War Memorial, better known as the Iwo Jima Memorial, at sundown.

I’ve been in Baltimore for nearly four weeks now and I will admit that the dreamlike state I’ve been drifting about in has started to vanish. Public transportation is not as exciting as it once was—especially considering the heatwave. Though I will admit there is still something magical about the way the Charm City Circulator (the free bus I ride to and from work every day) can accommodate a crush of people that nearly defy the laws of physics. I should also admit that living in the city isn’t all charm either. The view is great, but the noise is nonstop. And all the surrounding grocery stores criminally overcharge for cereal. And chocolate chips, surprisingly.
But I’m not complaining. I’m just acknowledging that my dreamlike state is vanishing into reality. Suddenly, I feel like I’m settling in. I sleep just fine at night in spite of the car alarms and noisy trucks. I don’t have to constantly watch for my bus stop; I am perfectly content to listen to music or watch something on Netflix until the circulator shudders to a stop on Biddle Street. Sometimes I’ll even enjoy a walk home from work on the days that aren’t too humid. It’s a little over a mile and a half, but seeing those buildings from the street—towering over you, pitching things into odd geometric shadows, it’s a strange kind of beautiful. Especially during the late afternoon.

I have grown to appreciate the smells of my neighborhood. The short walks I take when I’m going out to dinner or the bus stop. I appreciate the wind here, which unlike the wind in Valparaiso, actually does not continue forever. It’s also pretty great that I can now walk in to the coffee shop by my apartment and the baristas just know exactly what I’m going to order—Jamoca Almond Fudge Iced Coffee, small—with cream.

There are some things though that I do not think I will ever grow used to. Since my first day at Lutheran World Relief, I have been consistently overwhelmed with the kindness of my coworkers and colleagues and wholly inspired. When I look at these people every day, I cannot imagine better role models. I cannot imagine anything I would like to do more than to one day stand and work with them on the incredible projects they do, and share their incredible and unwavering passion. Yes, I am busy. But I want to be. I see people who have come in to work long before me when I arrive at 8:30 and stay long after I leave at 4:30. They don’t drink coffee or take long lunch breaks. They don’t find secret corners of the office to go waste time in when they are bored. And their dedication makes me want to work just as hard as they do. People don’t work like that because they want overtime hours. Money is not a big enough motivator for that kind of continual, rigorous effort. When I think specifically of the women I work with in the New Business Development unit, I know it is not money that drives them to do the work they do. These incredible women are driven by a contagious passion for what they do, and they do it very well.

My colleagues are gracious, hospitable, and warm—and I have the deepest admiration for them personally and professionally. The work itself is also something that inspires and energizes me. There have been days when I have been *nearly* moved to tears at work from reading some of the truly astounding projects LWR does around the world. Recently, I was reading about Niger and was struck by how imperative it is at Lutheran World Relief that they help communities to help themselves. LWR trains communities to be resilient to climate change and disasters so that they can make their community stronger. Relief work isn’t about giving money or food to people who don’t have it, not completely anyway, it’s really about empowering people to improve their own lives and communities. That’s something that I personally think is pretty awesome. Overall, I’m learning a lot and growing a lot and I can’t wait to see what happens in the next four weeks.

Until next time,

Caprice

The views expressed in this post are mine and do not necessarily reflect the views of Lutheran World Relief.

I got lost three times the morning of my first day and ended up asking for directions to my office while literally ten steps away from the front door. Of course, tears were accumulating in my eyes and I was sweating like I just finished playing an intense game of FIFA soccer, but I made it on time (two minutes early to be exact).

My day in the office started with a tour of our massive building along with learning all about its history (sorry, I was too focused on controlling my sweat to pay attention). However, the tour did include the discovery of free candy and coffee for the interns, which instantly made me gain five pounds. Next, my boss sat me down in her office to give me the incredibly detailed overview of what our project really was; I was excited, overwhelmed, nervous, and extremely inspired to take this job on.

The United Way, nation-wide, is asking all county agencies to re-evaluate and modify how they allocate their funding to smaller non-profits. For that reason, the United Way of LaPorte County is holding Community Conversations, intended to get the people involved in the development process and create an impact plan to affect outcomes in the key focus areas of education, financial stability, and education. Our job is to facilitate those conversations throughout the county, making sure we gather input from a demographically representative group of LaPorte County citizens. The second aspect of our job is to analyze the data we compile from those conversations to decipher the specific, countywide needs the LaPorte County community desires. As well as researching present resources and best practices regarding specific issues other United Way agencies around the country have found successful.

I came into work not really knowing what this project entailed, but after only an hour, I had enough information to make my head spin. Garrett, CAPS Fellow and my co-intern, gave me the grave news that a past intern had decided to quit the job without finishing a major project needed for the Community Conversations; a seventy-page binder analyzing and explaining all the different components of education problems in LaPorte County along with best practices research for those problems. Now, it was up to us to start and complete a project in one week that the past interns had four months to complete (still my first day). Thankfully, the past interns that did not quit and completed other binders for the impact areas came to our rescue by helping complete the education binder. After that minor stress-attack, it has been smooth sailing; along with my normal community conversation project work, I have also designed outreach flyers, conversation handouts, a poster, and had the privilege to sit in on development meetings for a potential shared service center for area non-profits.

Two years ago I applied to work at the United Way back in my hometown and did not get hired. Just over two months ago, I was the student that did not have anything planned for the summer and I was not handling it very well (my friends can testify). The United Way of LaPorte County, in the short time that I have worked for them, has proved to be the best blessing-in-disguise I have come to experience. My boss continuously inspires me to critically thinking about the inter-connectedness of aspirations, challenges, and resources within a community and reminds me that even as individuals, we create an impact. While at a community conversation, she said something that instantly made me dissect its core meaning; “No matter what you’re doing in your community, SHOW UP. Invest in your community.” As emerging leaders, which I believe we all are, it is vital that we remember to show up for our cause: to lead and serve.

Live United,

Grace

Work Swag

The Federation of State Humanities Councils was officially formed in 1977 to work as a liaison between each state humanities council and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Over time the Federation has been extremely busy, creating for themselves a full and interesting history. Luckily for me, they documented all of it. Well, sort of. What they did was keep everything that has come their way over the past 37 years. My job is to sort, record, and sometimes annotate documents of importance that give insight into the nuances of the Federation’s history. The task seemed daunting initially but there was little else to do but just dive in head first. My first day reminded me of an old show I watched as a child, The Magic School Bus. I felt like I was in Ms Frizzle’s class, and on a field trip that took me back to the late 1970s. I’ve been reading and organizing letters from people all over the country, reading, what were then, important announcements and then reading the reactions of the people those announcements affected.
What I find most interesting, however, are the past projects different state councils have presented. State councils are partly funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, therefore many proposals and advertisements for exhibits and activities have found their way into the Federation’s documents. My favorite set of items I’ve found so far are old photographs taken from the set of a film production that the National Endowment for the Humanities funded. They are photos from the 1977 production of Hard Times, a film series adaptation to the famous novel by Charles Dickens. Currently, I’ve been diving into programs that were created to celebrate the bicentennial of the United States Constitution, for instance, an exhibits entitled, “Women and the Constitution,” and “1787: the American Experiment.”

Selection of photos from 1977 Hard Times production

Additionally, I have been assisting the Federation’s communications manager in creating a briefing book for the potential chair for the National Endowment for the Humanities. A new chair will soon be appointed and they will likely interact with most of the different state councils. This briefing book will contain a two page spread for each state council and give information about their programs, target audiences, and their partner organizations. Working on this project is a refreshing break from reading through the archived materials. It allows me to see what the humanities councils were up to 35 years ago and what they are doing these days as well.
My first two weeks have flown by. Working in an engaging office, learning about things that interest me, and also being in and exploring a new city has left me looking at the clock and wondering where the first weeks have gone. With just over a month left, I’m excited to see what else I will encounter.

Today marks the end of my fifth week working with the Around the Table initiative through Empower Porter County, and as I say my goodbyes and get ready to close up the office for the weekend I’m reminded again of how lucky I am to be working with such amazing people. This organization does a remarkable job of building community both in and outside of the office, and though it’s been a little over a month since I started, I’m still constantly surprised by my supervisors’ attention and interest.

Empower Porter County is an anti-substance abuse campaign that focuses on preventative best practices through building community, increasing awareness and providing programming through other organizations. It’s a nonprofit organization that was founded a few years ago, and in that short time the organization has grown in both size and influence. Through the inspiration and dedication of Heather Harrigan Hitz and Kay Frattacia, Empower is expanding quickly to effect meaningful change in the region.

It’s interesting for me to be working with an organization focused on substance abuse prevention, as that particular issue has never played much of a role in my life.  I’m being introduced to completely new issues, practices and studies that I’ve never been aware of in anything but the most abstract of terms. And at first, the concept of substance abuse prevention itself seemed somewhat futile to me. In my mind, substance abuse was merely a symptom of a much larger societal illness- a means of escaping much larger problems, like poverty or education or unemployment. To spend so much time attempting to prevent the use of substances that are already illegal and also already widely known and distributed seemed somewhat ineffective.

But during my short time with Empower, I’ve met so many people who have been powerfully affected by substance abuse. And just like with any other kind of illness, be it mental or physical, the effort to reduce the influence of drugs or alcohol is one championed primarily by survivors. It’s simply impossible not to be moved by these people’s stories. For many, addiction is a terrifying reality, a part of themselves over which they have no control. It exists in their worlds the same way that disease exists in ours- a constant danger lurking in the unavoidable space between hiding and living. To fight against substance abuse is to assert one’s own power in a world where so much is out of our own control. It’s a fight of courage and of honor, the triumph of individual will over physical weakness. It’s impressive to hear about, and even more impressive to watch.

Around the Table is an initiative that focuses on preventing substance abuse by coming at the problem through a more personal channel; the family. Instead of dealing directly with substances, Around the Table seeks to strengthen family relationships and improve communication skills in order to prevent substance abuse in advance of the problem. It’s an idea that I fully and proudly support- one that acknowledges the deeper roots of the issues surrounding substance abuse in the Porter County area.

Around the Table is a new program, less than a year old, and as such much of my role so far with Empower has been to shape its mission and vision. In fact, writing the new mission and vision statements for Around the Table was one of my first responsibilities at Empower, though my work has greatly expanded since then. I am currently working on much of the media and design work for the organization. I am responsible for Empower’s social media presence, for the design and content of our distribution materials, for the layout and content of our website, and for the content of our upcoming bi-weekly newspaper column. It’s been an incredible experience so far, to be thrown right into the formative stages of an operation and given so much influence in how it develops.

My favorite park of my work so far, though, has to be all the opportunities I have to meet and engage with different people. I’m discovering an entirely new dimension of the Valparaiso community, one that I had no knowledge of living on campus. This town is heavily influenced by the hard work and dedication of a large group of volunteers and community members. These people have known each other for a long time, and they take pride in strengthening their community and improving its opportunities. In the meetings I attend through Empower, both in and out of our own office, I am being exposed to all sorts of people- police officers, teachers, administrators, lawyers, social workers, etc. I work with people from all the district schools, from the local YMCAs and Boys and Girls clubs, from various counseling centers, and beyond. Each person brings their own unique experiences and opinions to the group, creating a rich communal environment that I’m surprised and pleased to see thriving in a relatively small town.

One of my favorite moments to date was our participation in the Youth and Family Services of Valparaiso’s “Chalk the Walk” fundraiser last weekend. This fundraiser allowed organizations to “purchase” sidewalk squares around the Valparaiso court house, which they then got to design and color with chalk pastels. All sorts of businesses and organizations came out last Saturday morning to participate in this great event, which lasted from 8:00am until well into the afternoon. I was lucky enough to recruit my younger sister, Becky, to come down and help out with our sidewalk square design- a major asset for all of us, since none of us in the office can truly call ourselves artists. I had an amazing time with my sister, who I then got to introduce to my supervisor, Heather, and who created an amazingly beautiful sidewalk design for Around the Table.

I’ve been incredibly lucky to be a part of both Empower Porter County and the CAPS fellows program this summer, and I can’t wait to see what the rest of the summer holds!

Love,

Abby

A little over 4 months ago, I remember going to bed especially frustrated with myself. My friends were all talking about internship prospects, and I hadn’t sent out a single internship application. The next morning I woke up to find an email from the coordinator of health care leadership program inviting me to apply to be a member of the first cohort of CAPS Fellows.

The road to my fellowship was not easy, but subjecting myself to the process has proved itself to be continuously rewarding. I wrote countless drafts for the personal reflection aspect of my application, trying to drill it down to fit the parameters of the requirements as well as trying to infuse as much of myself into it as possible. I mentioned in my essay that I had an interest in healthcare for seniors, but never could have imagined finding myself where I am right now. Right now I’m sitting on a couch, actually. But I’m not just sitting on any couch. I’m sitting on a couch in a cottage. An independent living cottage, as a matter of fact, as well as my home for the summer. The only reason I am where I am now (literally and figuratively) is because I was given the opportunity to serve at a cutting edge senior care organization this summer. I had a conversation this morning with a neighbor of mine who told me “This is the Rolls-Royce of retirement communities. My old place was Cadillac. But this is Rolls-Royce.” When I applied to be a CAPS Fellow, I was so desperate to find something to do for the summer that I never really stopped to consider that the CAPS program could have anything in store for me pertaining to my major, my long term goals, and my needs as a young adult in need of some guidance. With graduation less than a year away, my efforts this summer are all a part of my journey to finding my Calling And Purpose in Society (CAPS), both vocationally and spiritually.

This summer, part of my experience will be interning at corporate National Lutheran Communities and Services under the Chief Strategy Officer as well as the Chief Philanthropy Officer, working on developing a business plan for a community impact program as well as working to develop a grants tracking process. Another aspect of my experience will be interning at one of NLCS’s continuous care retirement communities, The Village at Rockville (TVAR), as a health care administration intern. At TVAR I will be learning as much as I can about what goes on in a CCRC (continuous care retirement community) as well as working to collect data to build an emergency contact system called EverBridge for employees and the family and friends of residents.

Lastly, one day a week I will be going on various field trips around the DMV (DC, Maryland, and Virginia).
A few of the field trips lined up so far include:
The Village at Orchard Ridge and The Legacy at North Augusta (NLCS communities in VA)
Two Fellowship Square communities (the HUD housing projects NLCS recently acquired management of)
The Pentagon
The Cato Institute
A home health agency
A for-profit skilled nursing facility

Needless to say, they’re going to be keeping us busy in Rockville and no possible experiences will be left out! I’m keeping a Word document list so that at the end of the summer I can recall everything I’ve been exposed to. It’s up to two full pages. Topics I have learned about have ranged from a corporate compliance meeting at NLCS to case management at morning stand-up at TVAR. My first day of work I sat next to the CEO at lunch. NLCS truly is a family and they have been very welcoming and open with me. Being the curious person that I am, I’ve picked the brains of quite a few of my co-workers in regards to what exactly it is that they do. It is clear through the conversations that I have had that everyone I have encountered has wanted nothing more than to teach me as much as possible. I’m really hoping that this internship can shine a light on where my place in this system will be so that someday it can be me helping a college student with finding a place in my industry.

My biggest struggle so far came this morning, and it was brought on by something that up until today I was actually enjoying. Anyone who knows me well knows that I’ve always been an avid reader. My media of choice growing up was my older brother’s textbooks. Needless to say, learning is something I enjoy. In the last 7 days, I’ve received somewhere above 500 pages in articles and reports to read through as background material for my Strategic Outreach internship project at corporate. To me, that kind of reading is exciting and interesting. However, until this internship my outlets for new information have been pretty cut and dry. I can take information and write a paper, take information and hold a conversation about it, and take information and respond with a few arguments against it without having to put significant thought into it. Before this morning, I had never been asked to put together a business plan. I will have plenty of time to work on this plan, as well as an abundance of resources. I won’t even be the sole author of this plan. But the idea of embarking on a the process of compiling information into a medium I’d never encountered before terrified me. After my morning meeting with Dan, the Chief Strategy Officer, I sat down and tried to map out exactly how writing it in the next three weeks would go. When I realized that I was drowning so deep in information that I no longer had sight of the project the business plan was supposed to be about, I felt useless.

Connecting the project an organization has in mind, along with its ministry, along with its mission, and along with its capacity to carry out a plan is impossible when you find yourself so deep in information that you no longer have sight of the end goal. I reached out to Dan, and our second conversation of the day finally helped me to nail down exactly what project my business plan is about. The information I had in my head could finally be compartmentalized, and I could finally start planning out my course of action. In our talk, Dan admitted that he had a tendency to give sips of water via fire hose. My summer as a Strategic Outreach intern will consist of composing a business plan just as much as it will consist of learned how to sip water from a fire hose the proper way. In retrospect, every day of the past two weeks the information I have acquired has been presented to me rapidly. It’s up to me to pick through the information I receive and to figure out when to stop listening and start asking questions, and how to organize the way I store my information more effectively.

In a few weeks I will be blogging again. I hope that in a few weeks I can talk about my business plan and list of a few more things I’ve accomplished. I also hope that in a few weeks I can look back on the struggles I had today in perfect confusion about my overreaction. Reflection is a beautiful thing.

“It is by no means an irrational fancy that, in a future existence, we shall look upon what we think our present existence, as a dream.”
-Edgar Allan Poe

-Kait

We are happy to have received photos of three CAPS Fellows out serving at their internship placements! Stories from their first few weeks will be coming soon..

Maria Wagenhofer with Jennifer Holmes of the Urban League and Prof. Heath Carter, History Professor at Valpo

Nate King and Caleb Rollins across the street from the Lutheran Services in America office

The inaugural 2014 CAPS Fellows Cohort will be blogging about their experience serving with regional and national service organizations this summer! Stay tuned for posts from the first weeks of their internships — coming soon!