Category: 2021 - AMERICORPS VISTA OF FAIRBANKS

Speakers' Series Takes Shape

12/6/2021

As part of the VISTA cohort's greater professional development, we have started scheduling a Speakers' Series touching on topics in which the cohort member themselves have indicated an interest. All guest speaker events are open to the community, either in person at Fairbanks City Hall or via Zoom. The VISTA office looks forward to hosting this series, which will continue beyond Quarter 1 of 2022.
Denise

Fundraise for early childhood education - BECOME AN AMERICORPS VISTA Member in our Next Cohort!

11/8/2021

ThrivAlaska
ThrivAlaska works to eliminate poverty by serving as an early childhood services hub to over 2,000 children, families, and child care providers in order to build a stronger community, starting with the youngest citizens. The VISTA will leverage resources to increase the financial sustainability of ThrivAlaska.
Activities of the VISTA include:

Developing an annual fundraising and marketing strategy
Creating website and social media content and engaging local media for community outreach
Maintaining and expanding donor relationships

Learn more about Thrivalaska here!
APPLY here!

CHILD TAX CREDIT PUSH IS ON

10/21/2021

This tax credit, part of the American Rescue Plan, has provided economic relief in the form of monthly checks to working families since mid-July, 2021. Families have used this money each month to meet expenses, purchase more and better food for their families, and invest in their children's future.

If you have not yet signed up to receive these monthly checks, now is your chance! Members of the City of Fairbanks VISTA cohort have received training and will be out in the community answering questions and helping families sign up. We have three future tabling events here in Fairbanks (with kind hosting assistance from the FNSB Noel Wien Library); we will update the times and dates below if and/or when more in-person tabling events are scheduled. November 15th is the deadline to sign up to receive this truly important cash benefit, so don't miss your opportunity!
Denise

What's New - September, 2021 Newsletter

10/7/2021

CLARIFICATION NOTE: In the Fairbanks Children's Museum update, we note there is a reduced entry fee for non-museum members to attend Sensory Friendly Sundays; it is free to museum members.
Denise

WHAT's NEW? AUGUST 2021 NEWSLETTER

9/14/2021

Meet Your 2021-22 Leadership Team!

9/7/2021

Denise Lavoie, VISTA Team Leader

Denise moved to Fairbanks from Seattle, where she has had a previous year of VISTA experience, as well as one year of AmeriCorps direct service which ended during the initial 2020 COVID lockdown. Having earned an undergraduate degree in liberal arts from Harvard University's nighttime program, as well as a JD from the City University of New York School of Law, she is now eager to pass on the knowledge she has gained (both from her formal education as well as her service years) to a new cohort of service members. Fairbanks lured her not only on the strength of its program, but the prospect of winter ice skating and experiencing a white holiday season for the first time in many, many years!

Mike Sanders is the Crisis Now Coordinator for the City of Fairbanks and has overseen the local AmeriCorps VISTA program since January 2019. Mike is a certified Project Management Professional with a PhD in Public Policy Administration. Mike is married and the father of two sons.

Welcome Your INCOMING Full-Year VISTAs!

9/3/2021

Daniela, Julia, Julia (!), and Nathanael will serve Fairbanks from August 16, 2021 - August 15, 2022. As full year VISTAs, they will build the capacity of their individual organizations through indirect service, and in Daniela's case, for the very first time at her site (trailblazer, she). We're excited to welcome them to the team and see the impact they have in the coming year!

Dani Ramos
Fairbanks Senior Center

Daniela is a recent high-school graduate from TERRA Environmental Research Institute and a passionate learner. Her curiosity led her to take multiple advanced humanities courses which fueled her current dedication to serving communities. In her hometown of Miami, Florida, she worked with multiple non-profits, most notably Vote to Push Play, an initiative to engage artists in local politics and community leadership. Daniela will be serving as a Community Outreach Steward at the Fairbanks Senior Center and hopes to expand the organization’s reach as well as her knowledge and skills. She enjoys exercising, reading classical literature, and playing chess.

Julia Rutherford
FNSB Noel Wien Library

Julia is a southern Mainer who just graduated from St. Lawrence University in New York where she studied creative writing and film studies. During her 2021-2022 term she’ll be working with the Noel Wien Library to expand their resources. She hopes to incorporate her prior experience with children, incarcerated students, and other vulnerable communities to expand the library’s reach and make books and literacy more accessible for the masses. Julia is the biggest dog lover you’ll ever meet (so if you ever need a dogsitter…) and also likes to check out the craft brewery scene and hibernate under her weighted blanket with some short story collections.

Julia Salt
Fairbanks Soil & Water Conservation District

Hi Y’all, I'm Julia!

I am just finishing up my master’s degree in urban and regional planning from the University of Florida. During my time in undergrad and grad school I brought the lens of food systems and equity into my work. I have worked on an experimental farm and studied community gardens in Gainesville, Florida. When I saw a position at the Soil and Water Conservation District as a food systems developer, it sounded like a perfect job doing what I have already done but with the additional challenge of a harsh winter, a lens of indigenous practices and a component of health equity. So excited for the next year and for the opportunity to live in Alaska.

Nathanael Harshman
Fairbanks Reentry Coalition

I’m Nathanael (he/him/guy/person/man/
creature/thing/human). I was born and raised in Anchorage/Fairbanks for most of my life. Between living rustically in the woods of Alaska at an early age with no running water or electricity, or living in the cozy (cough) confinements of the Federal Bureau of Prisons for growing marijuana, I have lived and had quite the colorful upbringing which has helped shape me into who I am today. While incarcerated, I absorbed any and all information that would help me once I was released. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy classes for an inside look at my own mind, College Courses centered around Business Ownership, Architecture and Computer Applications, I hosted poetry groups with my peers, taught GED-geared math to other inmates, and I counted the days just like so many of us Americans have to do today. Since release, I floated through many jobs, even participated with Dave’s Killer Bread for their Second Chance Act up in Seattle. Ultimately, I found that becoming a business owner furthered my family and my own dreams and also allowed me more time to start helping teach my friends and family that there are better ways to get by in this life. Whether you’re coming out of prison, you’re a single parent, or an addict of some kind, all of us face poverty or the potential of poverty on a daily basis. For all of this and so much more, I am excited to participate with the Fairbanks Reentry Coalition VISTA program, and to become a part of the change. Some interests and hobbies of mine include being a dad, reading, listening, swimming, traveling, technology, electronics, computers, gaming systems, drums, airplanes, poker, asset generation, crypto currencies, business ownership and being the change you wish to see in the world. One of my goals is to help those who are willing to help themselves. Let’s build a life that you don’t need a vacation from!

Thank you, Kenzley!

9/2/2021

Kenzley moved to Fairbanks with lots of excitement, both for the VISTA position and opportunities within the state and community. All of her expectations were exceeded! During her year as VISTA Leader, Kenzley recruited 19 new full year and summer associate VISTAs, supported them through any challenges they encountered (thank you COVID…), and celebrated their many accomplishments. Her favorite VISTA memories include planning and implementing the first annual Kids Literacy Farmers Market and being inspired by the motivation, energy, and kindness of the VISTA cohort. Kenzley has fallen in love with Fairbanks and is excited to stick around as the Energy Justice Organizer with the Fairbanks Climate Action Coalition.

Kenzley Defler is the ultimate professional! She excelled in every aspect of the VISTA Leader position. She built upon previous VISTA Leaders’ work and blazed a path for future VISTA Leaders. Kenzley successfully advocated for two expansions to the program resulting in the program growing to 16 full year VISTA positions, 14 Summer Associates, and the Team Leader position. I don’t think the VISTA program has ever been this large in Fairbanks and it’s due to Kenzley’s efforts. Growing the program was just a small part of what Kenzley did. Her main contribution was the impeccable leadership she gave to the VISTAs. She was a mentor, fierce advocate, active listener, and a role model to the VISTAs. Everybody respected and appreciated Kenzley for her leadership. Under her leadership the VISTA team became one of the most cohesive, drama free, and productive VISTA year groups I have ever seen. Kenzley is amazing and I am excited to see what her future holds!

Thank You, Stephen!

8/24/2021

I am very thankful for my experience at the Noel Wien library! It has given me more community outreach skills. This experience has given me more of an appreciation for the Fairbanks community and the work the library is doing to support the community. Special thank you to all the library staff who always were so friendly to me and offered ideas, especially to Melissa Harter. I am so proud to be part of the work that our library is doing, which is so vital to our community during the time of coivd. Thank you! Gracias!

The library is a challenge in the best of times. It is a feast or famine situation, and our VISTAS need to be self-sufficient and go-getters to make the most of this placement. Stephen is a shining example of the perfect fit for our mission. From the beginning he was very open minded and willing to adapt to our ways. His arrival during COVID added complicating factors to his year here, but still he persisted in moving projects forward. Always willing to help and do what is necessary, Stephen has been a truly positive force for our staff. With his friendly nature and can-do attitude, he immediately fit in and was accepted as one of our own. His contributions to our programs are many. He is very well liked, and he will sorely be missed, but we wish him all the best in his new adventures!"

--Melissa Harter, FNSB Noel Wien Library Director

Thank You, Tessa!

8/24/2021

Tessa served at the Fairbanks Soil and Water Conservation District from August 31, 2020, until August 30, 2021. Throughout the year, Tessa was able to immerse herself in FSWCD outreach events, food policy groups, and natural resources education. She recruited a community-led advisory council, pursued integral partnerships with the Fairbanks Community Food Bank, successfully wrote a grant to support Community Gardens in Fairbanks, and conducted soil samples and soil health workshops at multiple gardens throughout the summer. Tessa will continue to support food security in Fairbanks through her work on an urban agriculture conservation grant as a Fairbanks Soil and Water Conservation District employee.

Tessa was a complete dream of a VISTA. She started with a quarantined two weeks but worked and researched the whole time. When she started we just learned that we received the large USDA grant and she was raring to go with ideas and setting the tone for the grant process. She dove right into the project head first and was my right hand help throughout the whole process of getting everything set up and structured. I don't think I could have survived the process without her help. She was always flexible, working through the hills and valleys, sometimes deep valleys, of this enormous project with a smile on her face the whole time. Her professionalism and super attitude was noted by so many that we worked and connected with during her service. She was always willing to help and learn new skills at the office. She was an integral part of our FSWCD team all year. I'm so happy that she chose us and we are so happy to have been a part of her VISTA experience. She is truly amazing."

--Mel Sikes, Fairbanks Soil & Water Conservation District Natural Resource Education Specialist

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