Amy Fox - Finally Serving at Motherly Intercession

Hello everyone, Amy Fox here, a first-year Pathways to Employment VISTA serving at Motherly Intercession in Flint. I came to AmeriCorps possibly a little different than others. I was job searching and came across an ad on the internet about a position with Motherly Intercession through the AmeriCorps VISTA program. Now I had heard of AmeriCorps through various research of JFK’s legacy, had always thought it a wonderful program for young people to start out, but never quite pictured myself a part of such a program (mainly because I thought there was an age limit). My thoughts were that I must be too old, even though I had recently graduated with my bachelor’s in social work. Which brings me back to my title “Finally Serving Motherly Intercession”.
 
During my years at both Mott College and UM-Flint, I had known of Motherly Intercession and had been on my radar for internships. The mission of Motherly Intercession is “to empower children and foster a stronger community by preventing the cycle of inter-generational incarceration.” Being a population often overlooked or dismissed by society because of issues completely out of their control, children of the incarcerated are often left carrying guilt on their shoulders that should not be there in the first place. At Mott, I had Motherly Intercession chosen, but there is a lotto system, and well, needless to say, I was near the bottom and someone else had already chosen that spot. Then comes the time to pick am an internship at UM-Flint. Motherly Intercession was not already chosen, but they felt I was too passionate about the mission and I need to reach outside of my comfort zone. This landed me at Metro Community Development, where I did more mezzo and macro work, gathering survey info, fundraising, and event planning. Little did I know then, though slightly disappointed that I did not get the placement I wanted, that internship was paving the path to my VISTA service I would fall into 2 years later, the summer of 2019.
 
May 2019, exactly 2 years to be exact, I saw an ad for VISTA service at Motherly Intercession! Yes, the place I have been hoping to help for so many years. I applied thinking that I would be disqualified because of age, but I thought what the heck. To my surprise, I was contacted back! It was then explained how VISTAs are not so micro in approach, but macro working behind the scenes to build community, raise funds, support/help create programs to enhance the organization and make it more sustainable. To make things even better, there is not an age limit like I had thought. Ding! That is just what I had done at Metro Community Development- rather than direct contact with clients, my main tasks were in the capacity-building form. Using that knowledge and the networking I had already done helping Catholic Charities put on their annual fundraiser dinner, I was able to hit the ground running for Motherly Intercession’s annual fundraiser- the “Unlock the Future” dinner on November 9, 2019. Since beginning in August, I have already secured over 15 in-kind donations to be used in the silent auction. I have also been active in selling tickets and sponsorship ads for the souvenir book, all of which the proceeds go directly to Motherly Intercession. I have also served alongside a Kettering intern to create a smaller fundraising event at Chipotle’s “Eat for Change” where 33% of the sales during a certain shift will go to Motherly Intercession. Since, I have also signed us up for “Tips Tuesday” at Flint Crepe Company, where the owners match the total amount of tips the servers earn that day to Motherly Intercession. This is set for October 22, 2019, if anyone is interested in coming out to support a great cause.
 
I don’t want to give the wrong impression here. To say that I have felt a bit overwhelmed would be an understatement. I never thought at 44 years old I would be going on field trips or even writing blogs for that matter. I even have jury duty coming up the last week in October, just in time for the big event. All the little things added to it have been a bit frustrating, but as time continues the more it is clicking together. For example, I went with my supervisor to a meeting about writing grants with the Ruth Mott Foundation in mind. Now she did not say “Human-Centered Design” by name, but the facilitator made sure to point out that they must be able to see that the programs that they fund are “for” and “with” the population we serve and not something being done “to” them. We must provide proof that the programs were designed around a need that the community to which we serve has designated as a priority and must be a part of the creation of the program. In other words, our design must be “human-centered”.
 
The more I get used to the multiple demands from different sides, the better I will be able to serve. The more I realize there is a method behind the madness, the more I am embracing it. To sum it up, I am definitely looking forward to what the rest of this first year of service will be like and hope to offer so much more to help such a wonderful organization.