I’m originally from western Massachusetts, and I moved to Atlanta from there about 10 years. Then I landed in North Carolina.
What communities are you a part of?
In North Carolina, a lot of my community here is more, like, rural farm community. I’m coming into PSH and connecting more into the city and folks here, but where I’ve lived and worked primarily has been rurally in North Carolina.
I would love to hear more about this. What is the work you primarily do on farms?
Well, I’ve done almost every kind of farm work. Most of my learning on farms has been like plant medicine, herbal medicine. I’ve worked in a lot of apothecary gardens and apothecaries. I’ve also worked a lot with animals like horses and goats. I volunteer at a horse rehabilitation farm and it’s really lovely to be with the animals and support them in their healing. So much of my love for being on farms or in farming community is the literal practice of being in the dirt.
That’s so beautiful. Did you have any history with SVA or the People’s Solidarity Hub before you started as an employee?
Yes, so I am coming to the People’s Solidarity Hub from my work at Serenity Hill retreat center. I’ve been on the land at the retreat center hosting the retreats and getting to meet a lot of the folks who work for SVA, as well as the organizations who are fiscally sponsored by SVA. So just by way of people coming out and staying on the land or visiting the land, I have, I was able to, like, meet a lot of really lovely people doing amazing work, all through that interconnected web of SVA.
When the People’s Solidarity Hub Associate position came up, I was really excited, because I had already been working on campus for several months, cleaning and maintaining the office buildings as a contractor. Through that, I also was able to build connections and relationships with folks and all of these pieces have just slowly led me closer to SVA, and I’ve been really excited and grateful for that.
What are some of the things you hope to accomplish in your first year at PSH?
I want to really ground into the space here, so that I can be most supportive and most effective to the foundation of work that is like being built around. Jae has done so much work over the last few years, and I’m really excited to find the ways I can strengthen the already existing connections. I really want to be present here in a way that is both supportive to PSH and SVA, but also to the folks coming into this space and community and their needs.