First Day at Girls Inc.
Driving up to Girls Inc. headquarters in Orange County, CA was a bit of a shock. The modern, glass windowed office building of my imagination was nothing like the worn, off-white, barn-like buildings that greeted me. I quickly and mistakenly made a judgment about the organization based on the outside of this building, however, all of my assumptions went out the door as I stepped in. The warmth of the inside of the office astounded me. People were friendly, eager, dedicated to their mission. I felt welcome and excited as I was introduced to the staff that I would be working with throughout the summer and I was upset with myself for doubting the organization based on its cover.
Girls Inc. puts a real emphasis on people and it is really refreshing. The strong women and men who work at the organization really care about helping you help them. They volunteer eagerly to help you find things and provide a genuinely happy atmosphere even when lesson planning gets tough or people disagree. We spend a lot of time playing ice breakers and team building games that really improve the group dynamic in a way that makes creating camp even more effective. The excitement that I have seen around me in the past week and the genuine care that everyone feels towards one another is something that is hard to find and I am beyond excited to be in the middle of it for another seven weeks.