I am a Peer Activity Leader that supports the interns at Life-Skills Empowerment Group. I recently graduated from Ygnacio Valley High School and am soon starting my college journey at DVC. My role in the organization was relatively small; I helped the intern at the site with whatever they needed and took on any extra tasks whenever I could. I learned that my support made an impact on the organization, intern, and intern host. I was kind of blindsided to the PAL internship as a whole but finding Life-Skills Empowerment Group drew me in. I was content and excited to be assigned to LEG and work with Shawn and the other team members.
At first, the word “empowerment” was what caught my eye. I wasn’t interested in the life skills portion. Though, I quickly learned skills that brought me happiness. Specifically, for me, I was like, “Oh, learning how sink pipes work or how to fix a garbage disposal isn’t much,” but it felt empowering. I can get jewelry out of the sink and fix the broken garbage disposal. Learning skills to fix up your house or take care of yourself brings a wave of pride and confidence in yourself. There were so many things I picked up from this internship that I can use later in life. Being able to navigate with new people skills, leadership skills, problem-solving skills, etc., makes me eager to put them to good use. I am so glad I was part of the LEG team this past summer, specifically working with Shawn and Stephanie; we communicated and had great conversations. We checked in with each other and grew a relationship that I cherish.
I, 100%, recommend taking an interest in life skills as a whole but specifically LEG. It was a wonderful experience. I hope everyone, at some point in their life, has an opportunity to learn different skills and feels empowered by them.
Nialani Thompson