After at hectic hour-long commute I arrived back at FPG for my second day.
The morning began by going through emails and making a plan for the remainder of the day. At 9 AM we headed across the street to a meeting entitled Research, Responsiveness and Reflection: Lessons from Rural Partnerships. The meeting was led by Mary Bratsch- Hines and Laura Louison, both researchers at FPG. The meeting began by everyone going around the room to share their name and their background. This was a unique experience in that I not only saw the very diverse backgrounds different researchers came from but I was invited to share with the group as well. During that meeting, I felt like another member of the group rather than an observer and everyone was so supportive. The content itself was eyeopening for me – while everyone wants to help people in impoverished areas, and even though we have programs designed to help, it proves very difficult to actually implement these programs.
After this meeting, Mr. Holland explained that he has been working on his own book. First, I helped him edit his proposal and then I began editing the chapters for clarity, which I will continue to do tomorrow. Getting to work on a real book is an experience I could have never have anticipated getting to be a part of.
Around 11:30 we took a lunch break in downtown Carrboro where we got pizza- it was delicious! Then we headed to the Ronald McDonald House of Chapel Hill. We spent the afternoon baking cookies and rice crispy treats for the families that were staying there during treatments. If I am being honest I was a little confused as to how this was part of his job. He explained that FPG has a quality of life committee and they believe that volunteering is one of the keys to being happy. Every month, they set up different volunteer activities for their employees to participate in. I am very hopeful that I will get to continue volunteering even when I join the workforce and that companies still see the importance of giving back.
