Mirella the Fantabulous
In December of 2014, a warm Oakland breeze brought Mirella Villalpando into our lives. Mirella, a Cali native, was working toward her Dual Degree in Social Work and Public Health University of Michigan. Her social work focus was on community organizing and nonprofit management, and it was quickly clear that 826michigan would be great orgnanization match for Mirella to complete her field work and gain the skills she hoped to develop.
Since then, Mirella has completed over 650 hours at 826michigan—yes, you read that right! Her work has been instrumental in getting long-needed, long-desired projects off
Mirella possesses an awe-inspiring ability to bring the abstract theories and tools of academia into on-the-ground, real world applications. In this way, she has helped us to be more organized, reflective, and evidenced-based in our approaches to data collection, training, and volunteer recruitment. Her commitment to social justice is at the core of who she is and underlies all of her work.
Beyond this, Mirella has filled in as a pinch-hitter, helping as a volunteer countless times in every program that we offer. She also held down a steady Saturday store shift and picked up additional shifts on a regular basis.
As she heads back to Oakland with two master’s degrees in tow (and folks, she is only 24!), we are deeply sad to see her leave but cannot wait to see all the amazing work she takes on and positive change she creates. Watch out world, here comes a newly minted superhero of social justice, Mirella Villalpando!