Her Story
About Brittany
My career path has been driven by a passion for serving others that I discovered while volunteering in Tanzania, Africa after college, where I taught English and community health in a village in Arusha. That experience really helped me find my purpose in social work and serving underserved populations. When I returned to Buffalo, I volunteered with refugees at the International Institute, which reinforced how important it was to me to serve people who really needed extra tools and skills to help them get to the next levels in their own lives. I've been so grateful for the parents I had growing up and my situation, so I wanted to help others level up themselves too, because our next generation is going to be the ones leading our government and schools. I became a paralegal for two and a half years, and during that time I found Voices for Children and became a court-appointed special advocate (CASA) volunteer to help youth in foster care. I really found my passion serving foster youth and recognized that these kids are in situations of no fault of their own. I've been in the nonprofit sector for 6 years now, first working with kids in foster care, and now I work with young adults who have aged out of foster care. I've worked at my current organization for a little over 4 years, starting in youth services, and was recently promoted to Executive Projects Manager. In this role, I work alongside our CEO and COO to support our larger initiatives, our scaling efforts, and collaborative efforts in the community. My greatest professional achievement was this past month when I led our organization's public festival in San Diego at Liberty Station, where we hosted 40-plus nonprofit organizations, youth speakers, entertainment, resource booths from around the county, and food trucks. We had about 750 people attend, and I had to put it all together in just 3 months while also adapting to my new role.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Brittany
01What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best advice I've received is really about self-care and putting your mask on yourself before you can help others, because burnout is a real thing in nonprofit work. It's really hard work and can be exhausting, so it's important to find that balance where you're taking care of yourself while also feeling that satisfaction from helping others. Knowing the purpose and intention of why we do what we do is what gets us through those moments of burnout or feeling like we're going in circles wondering if we'll ever really make a difference. When you recognize that you're taking care of yourself and taking care of others, putting your self-care as a priority is essential. I've also learned the importance of getting involved in professional organizations and growing your network with people that align with the work you're doing. When I was in my 20s, networking was always about finding your next job, but now I understand you network to build relationships, not for the outcome it may lead you to. That's a potential benefit, but the real value is growing your network and becoming part of the larger community when it comes to the work we're doing, seeing how it connects beyond just our own organizations.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My greatest piece of advice is to recognize that it's really hard work working in the nonprofit field, and it can be exhausting. It's so important to take care of yourself while doing that, because you really have to put your mask on yourself before you can help others, or else burnout is a real thing. You need to find that balance where you're taking care of yourself but also feeling that satisfaction and the help that you're giving to others. Knowing the purpose and the intention of why we do what we do is what gets us through those moments of burnout or feeling like we're going in a circle wondering if we're ever going to be able to really make a difference. When you recognize that you're taking care of yourself and taking care of others, putting your self-care as a priority is essential. I would also say get involved in professional organizations and grow your network with people that align with the work that you're doing. Network to build relationships, not for the outcome that it may lead you. That's a potential benefit, but really grow your network and become part of the larger community when it comes to the work that we're doing and see how it connects with the larger community, not just within our own organizations. And remember, it's never too late. I work with young adults and they're always on this timeline, but once you get past a certain age, you realize you could do anything. You're not on that time clock you thought you were.
03What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
My values really align with the organization where I work. Our values are authenticity, collaboration, innovation, and inclusion. These are values that I really take with me when I am either providing services to others or in the way I show up in my job. I try to think outside the box when it comes to who should be in the room and who needs to be there. Something I've learned at my job is how important lived experience really is, and having people with lived experience in the room to be able to share their feedback. I really value that authenticity and innovation and inclusion when it comes to the social work that we do.
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