How I Learned to "Get Things Done"

During my senior year in college I was a team leader for a spring break Habitat for Humanity service trip. While in Anniston, Alabama, framing three houses, I worked alongside a team from the AmeriCorps National Civilian Conservation Corps, an intense 10 month residential volunteer program. I was intrigued and applied for the program almost immediately. 6 months later, I found myself in Sacramento, reciting the following pledge:

I will get things done for America - to make our people safer, smarter, and healthier.

I will bring Americans together to strengthen our communities.

Faced with apathy, I will take action.

Faced with conflict, I will seek common ground.

Faced with adversity, I will persevere.

I will carry this commitment with me this year and beyond.

I am an AmeriCorps member, and I will get things done.

My team participated in service projects all over the West Coast. We had the opportunity to open and run a homeless shelter in Salt Lake City, to protect an endangered species of cactus in the Sonoran desert in Southern Arizona, to build community playgrounds in Wasilla, Alaska, to carve a trail up the Bodenburg Butte in Palmer, Alaska, and provide disaster relief alongside the Red Cross when Guam experienced two typhoons within a week.

I’m grateful for my time in AmeriCorps. It helped me find my way, see other parts of the country, and make some lifelong friends. It was one moment in my life when I learned about how to build a better future.