The Brave House is a nonprofit that supports young immigrant women with free legal and holistic services, and my project focused on expanding and supporting organizational capacity and social presence. In order to do this, I researched, composed, and submitted a total of twelve grant proposals, superseding our beginning-of-the-summer goal of ten grants. During my grant writing, I worked alongside Mabel Smith, my supervisor and program manager, to revise and submit the applications together. The grants we worked on focused on securing funding for current programming, as well as funding to launch a new program that will fund an in-house bilingual therapist for the organization's members — this connected to the Brave House's mission to support and empower immigrant women by providing crucial mental health support that is culturally sensitive and accessible. Part of my role in grant writing included maintaining organized records of our grant endeavors in our Salesforce database. I consistently logged records of grant submissions and updates to ensure efficient tracking and accountability.

For the social presence aspect of my project, I worked with Erika Gama, the Brave House's outreach director, to support social media campaigns and website maintenance. My tasks included creating Instagram posts using Canva, composing newsletters in Mailchimp, creating and updating website content on Weebly, and collecting member testimonials with mindful care. My outreach work supported the Brave House's outward presence as a consistent and organized nonprofit, appealing to members, donors, volunteers, and partner organizations, and allowing us to expand our impact.

As an English major, my skills of thinking logically and writing effectively found a natural home in grant writing. With a foundation in persuasive writing, I was able to successfully construct compelling grant proposals that succinctly conveyed project aims and benefits. My research skills equipped me to delve into the finer details of each grant opportunity, tailoring proposals to meet specific criteria. Drawing on my storytelling skills from the English major, I wrote narratives encapsulating the immigrant woman experience in NYC and the Brave House's history, making the project's impact tangible for potential funders. Additionally, the practice of writing papers weekly for varying contexts strengthened my ability to write clearly with a quick turnaround, and also honed my editing skills, which allowed me to develop strong grant writing skills.

Furthermore, my race and ethnicity studies minor heightened my awareness of diverse perspectives, preparing me to approach grant writing for immigrant women with informed mindfulness. My ethnic studies minor supported my storytelling with grant writing by allowing me to write about the current climate of immigrant communities, which I learned from ethnic studies classes.

I commuted into Dumbo, Brooklyn three times a week from Peekskill, NY — the round trip commute was about three-to-four hours per day. As the summer progressed, my energy began to wane from the long travel and affected my work productivity. I began to complete just the prioritized tasks, and my initiative and drive to go beyond began to decline. I was unhappy with this, as my work wasn't reflecting my best self. Thankfully, the Brave House's work culture prioritizes self-care and self-advocacy, and I felt comfortable to ask my supervisor for a work-from-home week, which was revitalizing, as I was able to take a break from commuting and catch up on work, and return to the office energized and rested.

Another challenge that I faced was grant proposal rejections, which I learned are quite common in the grant writing process. It was difficult to receive more rejections than acceptances, since grant proposals are long, extensive, and require much time and effort to complete. My supervisor did a great job of preparing me for these, and I learned from her how to maintain positivity amidst rejection and how to accept rejection as an opportunity to grow. After receiving a rejection, we would chat about what we could improve on for the next grant application, celebrate what we did well, and oftentimes hop on a call with the grant provider to receive feedback.

My experience at the Brave House has been incredibly enriching on multiple fronts. One of my key takeaways revolves around my ability to provide administrative support to immigrant communities. Since high school, I've always volunteered to support immigrant communities. As a daughter of immigrants, supporting immigrants is a core passion of mine. However, my volunteer work was always on a one-on-one basis, and with the Brave House, I've discovered a newfound appreciation for the behind-the-scenes work that bolsters these initiatives.

Furthermore, the work culture within the Brave House was another revelation, as they consistently placed self-care at the forefront of productivity. These practices were instilled in the work culture. Some examples are the 15 minute breaks between meetings, all meetings being no longer than 45 minutes, opening team meetings with one-word vibe checks, and encouraging team appreciation. This approach resonated deeply with me, as I've come to realize my aspiration to work in environments that prioritize well-being. Contrary to common perceptions of nonprofits as overworking and underpaid, I found that a different reality exists — one where meaningful work coexists with a sense of balance and joy.

Exploring grant writing was both fulfilling and enlightening; even the numerical components, which initially seemed intimidating, turned out to be manageable with the right approach. My exposure to the NYC nonprofit landscape provided insights into the intricacies and dynamics specific to the sector. A standout highlight was the invaluable training on trauma-informed care, which further deepened my understanding of impactful service provision. Overall, with invaluable support from the Tamer Center, my experience has been transformative, equipping me with skills, perspectives, and aspirations that will undoubtedly shape my future endeavors.