Community Fellows Blog Posts

The Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley’s (HFSV) mission to empower Latinos through community and philanthropy has been a mission that I have felt a part of from the beginning, yet only slightly from a distance. Most of the work I did for my first two months or so was in the office with a heavy emphasis on collaboration among coworkers. But back in November, I spoke with my supervisor and asked her if I could be added to event invites planned by the Programs team. A lot of the events occur in the evening when I have other club meetings or commitments, but I told myself I would make an effort to attend a few because I wanted to see this idea of community and philanthropy in action, while also being able to grow my network. 

HFSV encourages their employees to attend these events and activities to interact with community members. My first community event was attending a Thank You Dinner for the volunteers that were present at the Hispanic Foundation Ball. I got the chance to meet high school and college students that have benefited from HFSV’s scholarship programs and who paid it forward by volunteering for the Ball. Hearing them tell their stories and thank HFSV for their work was inspiring and it was my first inside look at the impact that the organization has on the Silicon Valley Latino community. The next event I attended was a food distribution, in collaboration with Second Harvest Food Distribution. I personally met community members who were in need of food during the holiday season and who thanked me for the work I was doing. This is when I realized that I was a part of the mission. I was a part of the community and philanthropy we all strive to achieve at HFSV. 

Being able to work outside of the office and more with the community has allowed me to expand my skill set. By meeting scholarship recipients, partners, board members, and community members, I have been able to different perspectives. This has proven to be valuable because I understand that it takes more than just one person to make a difference; it’s a community effort. I have greatly improved my communication skills, my collaboration skills, my networking approach, and my ability to account for everyone involved in a group. These are skills and strengths that I know are valuable when trying to support a non-profit organization, but they are also key to work in groups and teams inside of a corporation or for-profit business.