Long-term commitments and one-off events share space in my volunteering life, and provide the balance I crave. The relationships I've nurtured with two nonprofit agencies that serve immigrants and refugees -- Jewish Vocational Services and International Institute of New England -- ensure that both types of opportunities, from both agencies, cross my desk frequently. Several months ago, during an in-person job interview practice session, I met a young woman who had come to Boston in early 2023. In Haiti, she had worked as an environmental scientist, but here she planned to become a Certified Nursing Assistant, for which there are many openings in the Boston area, so she could be self-supporting and also help her mother and other family back home. After we finished our 45-minute meeting, I gave her my contact information and offered to answer questions or provide any other help she needed as she continued her job search. A few days later, I got a message from her asking if I'd be willing to talk with her once a week, so she could practice her conversational English. And from that time, we've been Zooming for an hour every week, with no particular agenda, just talking and getting comfortable, with gentle corrections here and there. Lately we've been talking about the political situation in Haiti, the safety of her family there, and how we wish the violence would end. We're learning a lot from each other. Oh, by the way, she's found a great new job, too.
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