New HandsOn Network VISTA volunteers serving at NPower Northwest

Hey NPower Northwest blog readers! We're NPower's new VISTA volunteers. As the new faces around the office we wanted to take this time to introduce ourselves. A branch of the Corporation for National Community Service, VISTA volunteers serve communities all over the U.S. with the goal of helping to alleviate poverty through capacity building. We've been at our host site, the lovely NPower Nothwest office, for just about one week. So far, we've been excited to get to know the staff and learn more about our mission for the coming year. In addition to contributing to NPower's community education efforts via this blog and brown bag seminars on a range of technology-related topics, we'll also be involved in creating and implementing a Best Practices for Nonprofits project.  We're also very excited to spend the upcoming week at Google Headquarters (!!) in Mountain View, CA, receiving tech training and learning more about nonprofit needs.

VISTA Volunteers Stephen Eggers, Abby Nafziger, and Elissa Thomas

Allow us to briefly introduce ourselves:

I am Abby Nafziger and as a recent transplant from Chicago, I am enjoying learning all about my new home town of Seattle.  So far I've learned not to expect this lovely August weather to last, to eat lots of sushi, and to step my appreciation for coffee up a notch. I come to VISTA and NPower Northwest from a library background with a strong appreciation for the many ways technology can be a positive tool in individuals’ and organizations’ lives.  Much of my librarian training has been focused on connecting more technical aspects of cutting-edge technology with people who may not have the same level of technological proficiency, and I look forward to continuing to act as a translator for technology within the nonprofit world. In my spare time I enjoy baking, jam-making, walking, commuting by bus, and laughing with friends while watching nerdy TV shows and movies.

My name is Stephen Eggers and I am excited to be participating in HandsOn Tech in Seattle. After receiving a B.S. in Optics and working for various small technology companies in my hometown of Rochester, NY, I decided to return to the community and help bring technology to the nonprofit sector. Technology has the fundamental ability to create change and bring power to those who embrace it. I hope to see the many ways nonprofits can leverage the tools, software, and services that have recently come into existence to maximize their missions’ impact.

Hi, my name is Elissa Thomas, and I made my way to Seattle from Baltimore via about 20 cities, towns, and campgrounds across the country. My hobbies include poring over thousands of pictures of moose, mountain ranges, and national monuments.  Like Abby, I have a library science background. Most recently I was working as a public librarian in Baltimore, where I provided introductory computer training and helped to maintain an online presence for my branch through blogging, tweeting, and making use of social networking sites. After living and working for years in under-served urban neighborhoods, I am more committed than ever to supporting nonprofits serving low-income communities. I'm extremely excited about the growing impact of technologies to advance nonprofit objectives, and I am really looking forward to connecting more Seattle organizations to beneficial online communications resources during my year at NPower Northwest!

We look forward to sharing more of what we learn via the NPower blog!