Don Vu: A Different Perspective
Interning for the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley has been an amazing experience so far. The whole team is close here, fun and is always understanding of anything that might be going on in each of our lives. The weeks that have gone by, we have talked about what is going on with my boxing team, how I am doing in my classes and I have found that the entire team is caring and loyal.
My first project was working on Mission Statements for the Hispanic Ball, and it was great to be given the opportunity to work on my creative skills and put my content creation abilities to use. Around late October, I had the opportunity to help out with the Hispanic Ball, and it was eye-opening to see what a big fundraising event was like for the first time. I was given the opportunity to work as a bouncer, and it was fun to scope out the event to see if anyone would cause trouble. In addition, it was great to see life from a different perspective and culture. You really understand how others live life and it’s a pleasure to be more immersed in a culture that I am not originally from.
What surprises me about the organization is how laid-back everyone is, everyone gets all of their work done, on-time, efficiently and the entire team is hard-working, but even so, they know how to enjoy life and relax from time to time. It is also an honor to work under the former mayor of San Jose, Ron Gonzales, and hearing about his old stories or events that are going on in his life are interesting, since he is quite the figure around Silicon Valley. I appreciate my supervisor for being understanding of my other responsibilities and allowing me to always attend my boxing practices. The given flexibility of work hours is a huge help and I cannot thank her enough for making my school life go so much more smoothly.
My next few projects include utilizing Salesforce to audit matching gifts and donations, and working on a Giving Tuesday video for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. As a fellow, I hope I can contribute in any way to the organization and help them grow. All I want to do is improve myself and sharpen my skills, and this opportunity has already given me the chance to do that, so I will. My goal now is to move forward and do whatever needs to be done for the foundation to improve. The LSB Fellows Program is an amazing way for me to tackle more responsibilities in addition to being a part of SCU’s Boxing Team, and I look forward to becoming a stronger man!