Chapter 6: If Your Story Touches One Person, You've Won
PLUS ME volunteers have been an important part of our work over the past 10 years and this year we continued to offer opportunities for adults to share their stories with youth. Though we haven’t fully transitioned back to in-person story sharing, our team continues to fine-tune the volunteer experience–knowing their dedication is a holistic benefit to the communities we serve across Los Angeles.
Marisa Vasquez and Trelas Dyson IV (both USC students) volunteered during this last year and found the full process–from building their story, to sharing with students, and celebrating with the team–profoundly impactful.
“Oh, this is not too much at all,” Marisa remembers thinking after seeing an example video of our Executive Director sharing his story. Initially worried the process would feel intimidating, she was inspired to dig deep and connect with students. She is a graduate student at USC studying to be a social worker so the work came naturally to her. “If it’s impacting the youth, sign me up.” The volunteer onboarding process was very straightforward and she felt supported by our PLUS ME team throughout. “Everyone made themselves very available and comforting, positive, and motivational” she shared. There were prompts if you needed guidance, but, according to Marisa, “the team reminded me this was not a school essay and to trust whatever came out–I loved that!” While she was disappointed the experience was virtual, Marisa still felt the students were highly engaged especially when they started asking detailed questions: “They asked about my school experience. I told them about my learning disability–my biggest insecurity in school–and asked how I worked through it to arrive at my dream school, USC. They were really inspired and it helped me reflect on how far I’ve actually come.”
Trelas Dyson IV had a similar experience. As a self-described “future-focused person”, the process of reflecting was not something he does in everyday life: “I have the attitude of moving forward and going on to the next thing. Having to reconsider and regard all that was a bit overwhelming but it was rewarding seeing all that I’ve been able to persevere.” Trelas’ story centers on his younger brother and building his story meant asking his parents about their shared past. “I asked them questions about good moments. My mom was saddened that so much had happened but I reminded her I’m happy where I am and where our family is now.” As we’ve been trained to do for nearly ten years, the PLUS ME staff was there to help him along. Trelas remembers that “from the start the people there were very kind and sweet. They taught us to tell our story with great examples, not to control it and I absolutely appreciated that.” While sharing his story (again, virtually), Trelas hit his stride as someone who always strives to encourage others to make it through without giving up: “It felt rewarding because the students were a great audience. They wanted to make the connection between how the pitfalls I experienced in middle school paved the way for troubles in high school. I appreciated that because they paid a lot of attention.”
Both Marisa and Trelas talked about how excited they were to share their stories again (hopefully, in person!). For Trelas, “PLUS ME inspired me to reach out even more…I can feel like I’m not doing enough. The experience allowed me to see who I impacted and how and it was really meaningful.” Marisa also felt inspired by the reflection on her life and recognizing how far she has come–as well as the post-event volunteer mixers. They made her feel “like PLUS ME cared about everyone holistically, not just the youth they’re impacting.”