As the
weeks leading up to my internship passed, I learned that I would be living in
an apartment on Capitol Hill. I was also told that I needed to identify my top
three choices for internship placement, as well as select an approved college
course from a list provided by TWC. For the placement, my top choice was N
Street Village, a community of empowerment and recovery for women. I was
matched with this placement and was told I would be working in their Bethany
Women’s Center, a drop-in program that offers women safe respite from the
streets. As for selecting a course, there were so many options that sounded
interesting to me. Ultimate, I enrolled in Peaceful Solutions taught by
renowned peace activist, Colman McCarthy.
In June of that year, I moved to Washington DC. Working at N Street Village was amazing. Bethany Women’s Center provided support for the women’s basic needs, and gave them access to resources and opportunities to help them move out of homelessness. While there, I met so many wonderful women who were pursuing better lives for themselves. I also met the social workers who were helping them achieve their goals. It was because of this experience-my time at N Street- that I knew I wanted to be a social worker. This was the first life-changing experience to come out of my summer in DC.
The second life-changing experience of the summer was a product of the Peaceful Solutions course, in which I had enrolled. I had never experienced an educational setting quite like Colman’s. His classes were discussion-based and encouraged students to “question the answers.” The topics covered each week were voted on by those of us in the class and we graded ourselves on assignments. One of the topics covered during this course was Animal Rights. Colman started off this particular class by asking us who cared about animals. Every hand went in the air. He then asked who was a vegetarian. No one. Colman matter-of-factly stated that you could not be an animal advocate and eat them too. I specifically remember this moment because I had never thought of it like that. Colman then proceeded to teach us about factory farms and the everyday abuses that are common practice within the animal agriculture business. Needless to say, by the time I returned home to Ohio at the end of that summer, I was vegetarian.
My mind was opened as a result of the experiences I had while in Washington DC. Because of this, I went on to complete my graduate studies in Social Work. Upon graduation in 2013, I returned to live permanently in Washington, DC. Since living in DC, I have made the transition from vegetarian to vegan, bringing things full-circle. I continue to learn about animal welfare issues and advocate to end the suffering and exploitation of all animals used for food, clothing, experimentation and entertainment.
In June of that year, I moved to Washington DC. Working at N Street Village was amazing. Bethany Women’s Center provided support for the women’s basic needs, and gave them access to resources and opportunities to help them move out of homelessness. While there, I met so many wonderful women who were pursuing better lives for themselves. I also met the social workers who were helping them achieve their goals. It was because of this experience-my time at N Street- that I knew I wanted to be a social worker. This was the first life-changing experience to come out of my summer in DC.
The second life-changing experience of the summer was a product of the Peaceful Solutions course, in which I had enrolled. I had never experienced an educational setting quite like Colman’s. His classes were discussion-based and encouraged students to “question the answers.” The topics covered each week were voted on by those of us in the class and we graded ourselves on assignments. One of the topics covered during this course was Animal Rights. Colman started off this particular class by asking us who cared about animals. Every hand went in the air. He then asked who was a vegetarian. No one. Colman matter-of-factly stated that you could not be an animal advocate and eat them too. I specifically remember this moment because I had never thought of it like that. Colman then proceeded to teach us about factory farms and the everyday abuses that are common practice within the animal agriculture business. Needless to say, by the time I returned home to Ohio at the end of that summer, I was vegetarian.
My mind was opened as a result of the experiences I had while in Washington DC. Because of this, I went on to complete my graduate studies in Social Work. Upon graduation in 2013, I returned to live permanently in Washington, DC. Since living in DC, I have made the transition from vegetarian to vegan, bringing things full-circle. I continue to learn about animal welfare issues and advocate to end the suffering and exploitation of all animals used for food, clothing, experimentation and entertainment.
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