How One Small Team Helps 2,000 Students Navigate What Nobody Teaches

[0:16]  Back on the Hard and Hustle Podcast, this time with Miss Ashley virtually. Where are you, Ashley?

[0:19]  I'm in Bellingham, Washington.

[0:22]  All right now, full of plants and books. We were just kind of talking about the books behind it. What probably one of the better backgrounds that I've seen. Normally someone would put a fake background or blur background, but how did this idea all come together?

[0:36]  Well, it was early on in the pandemic and everyone had cool backgrounds and I didn't have a good enough computer to really do any of those features. So I made

[0:47]  Uh-huh.

[0:47]  my background out of books and plants and I love it.

[0:51]  Now are these books that you just had laying around or are you going to like a goodwill with just picking up some old books?

[0:58]  So there is a free section in my library and I picked up books that I hoped no one would ever read. So it was a little

[1:05]  Yeah.

[1:05]  bit of a strategy. I was like, this book seems terrible. I'm gonna make it into art.

[1:12]  Yeah. I love it. That is so cool. And yeah, it it the plants. We talked about plants, just there's something about plants that just give us that that happiness, that peace. And when I really think about plant, I always go back to this one plant I had in my house so many years ago where it was dying, actually. And I felt like, man, maybe if I put it into a new pot, and sure enough, I put it into a new pot, and I still have that plant four or five years later. And it allowed me to just go back to the the analogy of life. When we take ourselves out of a bad environment and put us into a space that we can grow the things that come out of it. And that at that moment I'm like, I love plants because I can always go back to the analogy of life. But what gets you into plants, Ashley?

[1:54]  it was funnily enough, during the pandemic, I had previously been not good with plants, like called myself a plant killer. And then I just had one plant. It's a prayer plant, and I was really successful with it, and that got me hooked. And I just started finding all sorts of plants and cuttings, and now I propagate and make

[2:14]  Yes.

[2:14]  plants all over my house. I have over fifty and my husband thinks it's a problem, but I disagree. Yeah.

[2:21]  That is good. Yeah. I I'm the guy that goes my my daughter, five years old, she knows the the routine when we go to Walmart. We're going to go to the plant section to see what's at the clearance. We're going

[2:32]  Yes.

[2:32]  to go to the clearance section inside the Walmart. And then we're going to go to the toy section because I gotta, you know, please her as well. Yes.

[2:38]  Yes. Priorities. No, I like it.

[2:40]  and and even the plants behind me, like as I mentioned prior, is like I went to a Lowe's and it said $25. And I was like, Yeah, it's in my budget. We know how much that plant right there cost

[2:51]  Yeah, this.

[2:52]  and same thing, propagating plants. I just love

[2:56]  Mm.

[2:56]  it. You know, the easiest plant that I've actually realized to propagate is a snake, not a snake plant, a spider plant. And snake plants too. Snake plants both easy. But I've been able to propagate those. Easy, right? Like it is crazy.

[3:07]  yes. Yes. I have propagated three. Three spider plants in here. Yeah. Yeah. So easy. Yeah.

[3:11]  And I I love that when they look so dry and dead, literally you give them water and the way they just spike up. It's like, my God,

[3:19]  Yeah.

[3:19]  you were really thirsty.

[3:21]  Yeah. Someone asked me the other day, they're like, How do you maintain all of these plants? And I go, They let me know when they need water. They're like, What?

[3:28]  Yeah.

[3:28]  I'm like, Yeah, they start dripping or they look

[3:31]  yeah.

[3:31]  a little sad and I'm like, you need water. So

[3:33]  Are you singing and talking to them? Are you at that level?

[3:37]  Well, I d I mean, I talk, you know, around them all day 'cause I work from home. So, you know, unintentionally they hear a lot of conversation. Yeah. They know a lot

[5:06]  They hear it. I love it.

[5:21]  about financial aid, my plants. Yeah. Right.

[5:50]  If if plans can talk, yeah, they'll definitely tell all the secrets. Ashley, you talked about financial aid. What's the organization and what is your role with them?

[7:37]  Yeah, so the organization that I work for is called Futures Northwest, and we're based in Waukam and Skadget counties in Washington State, and we serve students from underrepresented populations in higher education, low income, first generation, students with disabilities who would like support in accessing a two year, four year technical apprenticeship program, any sort of training program after high school. And essentially our organization helps them with. career exploration and navigating those pathways after high school. So things like financial aid completion, scholarship, college applications, and then also hands-on opportunities with local employers so they can figure out what is available locally so that they can be, you know, for lack of a better way of saying it, roots to fruits. Like we're growing them where we, where they were planted. And we want to keep our students here as much as possible. We have so many opportunities locally to do that. And so our job is really to help students navigate all of the things that they might want to do.

[9:23]  Look at us bringing plants back, roots to fruits.

[11:46]  Right.

[12:03]  I love it. So is this a local organization? Are you guys in different areas? What does that look like?

[12:04]  Yeah, we serve about twenty-two high schools and five local colleges. So we're local between Watcombe and Skaggett counties in Washington. So just a two county region. Yeah.

[12:07]  And how long have you been doing this work?

[13:38]  a little over twelve years, I believe. that's how long the organization has been around, but I've been with it for eight years.

[18:07]  Okay. So what what gets you into something like this? It's a very purpose passion sector, as I always say, and I could imagine that you have the talents to go and make a lot of money, but you're in the space where you realize I'm really pouring into the next generation.

[22:40]  Yeah, and it's I mean it's a windy tale, and you know a little bit about it, but basically, I was a photographer and a visual storyteller for about eighteen years before I moved up to Bellingham, Washington. And our journey up to Bellingham is a funny one because I don't think anyone has moved to Bellingham because they needed a smaller germ pool. Which is what we needed because my daughter had an underdeveloped immune system. So we needed a smaller community, more rural, less germs, essentially. So we moved up to Bellingham and I realized I was for the first time in my life without social capital. I did not have people who knew me beyond, you know, an initial meeting. They didn't know my skills, they didn't know my abilities, they didn't know that I was reliable and hardworking. None of that came through right away. And as you can guess, in a more rural community, who you know is way more important than what you know. However, in Watcombe and Skagit Counties, we have so many education opportunities that truly advanced degrees and bachelor's and associate degrees in relevant pathways became incredibly important because so many opportunities means jobs require those credentials in our area. So I found myself in a little bit of a pickle. working 10 part-time jobs between my husband and I, being unknown and really feeling stretched beyond any capacity I had available to me. I was also, you know, mom to two, being the primary caregiver, making sure that I'm home when they're home and trying to just string together that many work opportunities was a recipe for burnout. So I decided to go back to school. And I thought initially that I was going to be a psychologist or a counselor and helping people in a therapeutic sense. And I quickly realized that I was a better fit for the helping profession. I truly just want to help people. and prior to moving up to Bellingham, I was also trained as a doula. And when I came up to Bellingham, the two most popular careers were photographers and doulas. I was like, well, clearly I've moved where my people are,

[26:48]  Yeah.

[26:49]  but there is a saturated market. And so I really had to find a different skill set. I had to stretch beyond what I already was trained in and what I already knew. So I graduated with my human services degree, but prior to that, I was in an internship program through the college at Western. And I was already working a couple part-time jobs, parenting full-time and in school full-time. And again, I was at one of those moments where I'm like, I'm gonna burn out if I add an internship

[27:47]  Mm-hmm.

[27:48]  on top of this. So I talked to my professor and he said that he was on the board of an organization that just got two grant-funded programs. And it would be the first time in the organization's history that they would have any paid opportunities. So he's like, we are putting together a job description and we'd invite you to interview for the position. Long story short, I got the job, I haven't left, I have developed so many new programs and added a lot of value along the way, and I have moved from administrative liaison to executive director of programs at Futures Northwest.

[29:39]  Look at that, Ashley. Sometimes we gotta get uncomfortable. You know, and I was just telling a a friend now, she is very similar to you, a photographer, and she knew that since she was a kid that she loved it. but she also has all these talents of graphic designer and storytelling

[30:33]  Yeah.

[30:34]  and all these things. And she she just said three weeks ago, I left my job E Fran. Like I felt like in order for me to really do that passion work and the things that I love, I I had to I had to get uncomfortable. You know,

[32:36]  Yeah.

[32:38]  and I've done it, she's I guess she's quit a couple of times, but always goes back to corporate. And it's like you when you have something, you're going to figure it out. And for you, you had something and you just had to figure it out. And I could imagine, are you still doing photography?

[32:40]  I do it occasionally but not professionally. I just do it Yes, still storytelling differently. Yep. Exactly.

[32:56]  But your storytelling differently, right? There's still storytelling. Yeah, man. I always say I I cause I do so much content, I always tell my editors that I'm the storyteller verbally, but you visually tell a story. And there's different

[33:31]  Yeah.

[33:32]  ways that you tell a story. So I can imagine learning how to tell a story through a camera, it hands to you to be able to tell a story other ways. Would you say that?

[33:51]  Yeah, yes, absolutely. And you know, when I joined the organization, the website was bare minimum not good at telling our story. I I looked at the website and I said, it's hard to tell what we do. Like we're

[34:14]  Yeah.

[34:15]  not telling a good story here. We're not sharing the resources that we have in our heads. They need to be out of our heads and onto a website. So one of the first projects I did was essentially building a visual map. of what we do and how students and families can access those resources. So with one of the first grant funded programs, I created the resources platform on Futures Northwest website because I was like, it shouldn't depend on somebody meeting me personally to know this information. I want it to be accessible and available for everyone, regardless of whether or not they may be.

[34:17]  We always gotta find where can we plug ourselves in and be authentically us. And and I say authentically us and I know you authentically you because look at the color of your hair, Ashley. Like come on. Do you

[34:17]  I know

[34:17]  change the colors or is this what it's been for some time?

[34:17]  It's been this way, I wanna say just under a year, and I've experimented with different types of pink. And previous to that, I mean my hair had turned gray a number of years ago and I'd really embraced it. And then all of a sudden I was like, I am so tired of the gray. Like I've I've I embraced the hag life and then I was like, you know what? I think I'm I want something fun.

[34:18]  Change it up on us. Ashley, this is so cool. I I just I'm loving this conversation. And and how many kids are you guys serving or students are you guys serving now with the organization?

[34:19]  Yeah, it depends on the program. but in total, I would say just under two thousand a year combining all of our programs together.

[34:19]  What what do you find could be a challenge serving two thousand individuals?

[34:19]  Yeah, I mean capacity. we've a really small staff. So we always, you know, say we are small but mighty. So finding

[34:20]  Mm mm.

[34:20]  ways to stretch is a continual challenge and be in many places at once and how to maximize the expertise that we have in group settings as well as really specialized individual settings. So We block off a number of hours for one on one sessions for families with really complex situations who maybe need privacy to share their story and to get support away from other ears that may not deserve to hear what they have to say

[34:21]  Yeah, yeah.

[34:21]  or be safe people to hear what they have to say. So it's a mix, you know, and we're endlessly creative with how we provide services and our always trying to bend and flex and grow in a way that maximizes the fact that we have, you know, five employees in our organization. Yeah.

[34:22]  Wow, you're serv so five people serving two thousand a year.

[34:22]  Mm-hmm. Yep.

[34:22]  Are you guys leveraging like I I can only imagine leveraging technology, such things like AI or something that can kind of allow you to still be the people person.

[34:22]  Well, funnily enough, no. funnily enough, no, we don't really do anything fancy. We probably could be utilizing technology in a better way, which I'm sure will come about in the next year. but no, we just we really maximize the gifts that everyone brings to the table. So we're We're leveraging the gifts and strengths of the community that we've brought together. For example, one of our employees is a contracted employee and she works at Lummi Indian Business Council and is also on the school board for Lummi Nation School and works with us part-time. So she wears three different hats. She can touch multiple parts of the community with her one. One role with us, but she has other roles. So it's like

[34:22]  Yeah.

[34:22]  being creative like that in figuring out who are the key people in the community that are embedded in multiple places. Sage, who is another teammate of ours, runs our Learning with Leaders program. She has a lot of expertise in career and college exploration and really amplifies her gifts by bringing in local employers, bringing in our local colleges and the programs that are in demand high wage and highlighting them for the community. So we're always leveraging partnerships, which is a huge part of how we're able to succeed because we don't do it alone. Right? Like we partner with, you know, the 22 schools that we serve. We we're we're close with the high school counselors, the high school and beyond plan coordinators, the principals. So it's not just us operating in a silo. We are highly, highly integrated into all of these systems, including our statewide system with the Washington Student Achievement Council. So it's amplified because we're connected.

[34:22]  Do you guys, I guess, also pull on volunteers to help out as well?

[34:23]  Yes, yes. We train volunteers at the beginning of the school year, which is September and October, on financial aid completion. And we also invite our local college financial aid teams as well as, you know, volunteers that we train up, as well as students on how to complete financial aid so that we can leverage different layers. You know, we've got the college financial aid experts that come to an event. We have students who are maybe sitting at a lunchroom cafeteria table and talking with a friend about financial aid and can then guide them through the process. So we're trying to position, you know, trusted adults, but also peers and also experts in all of the spaces and places where students and families are so that they can know someone who knows how to help them navigate.

[34:23]  Did you hear my dog?

[34:23]  No.

[34:23]  just barking. I'm like the Amazon guy or the post office guy is here. Small

[34:23]  totally so in here.

[34:23]  Pope Mighty is that dog. When you talk about small mighty is that little dog, my mother-in-law's dog just bark going crazy. I had to mute the mic.

[34:23]  I love it.

[34:23]  now that's a cool you know it I always feel like volunteers sometimes don't get the the kudos they deserve. You know,

[34:23]  Hmm. Yeah.

[34:23]  when I speak to so many organizations, I was talking to someone earlier, she says. Yeah, we have a we have a volunteer that works for us four days a week. And you you would think that she's a employee or, you know, two days a week and just picking up calls every Monday and Friday to just talk to donors. And sometimes

[34:23]  Yeah.

[34:23]  they do this to work and they don't get recognized and they just truly do it out of purpose. So I had to make sure we plug in the volunteers. The work that they do

[34:23]  Absolutely.

[34:23]  is truly tremendous for organizations, like you said, that are small and mighty because they also

[34:23]  my god.

[34:23]  keep us going, right? we can call on them and they're ready to spread the word.

[34:23]  Absolutely. Yep. And before I was hired as the first employee, it was one hundred percent volunteer run. So our roots are like centered and deeply celebrating volunteers because it's how we got started.

[34:23]  Yeah. Do do you have stories? I always love a story that reminds us of the why. Because sometimes we could definitely, as you mentioned, get burnt out. But when we remember the why we do it, we can go back

[34:23]  Yeah.

[34:23]  and say, you know what, it is okay. This is why I it. Do you have a good story for us?

[34:23]  Yes, I mean I have so many stories, but one of my favorites happened at a Learning with Leaders event. And it actually involves a number of those events. And again, this is those hands-on learning opportunity events where students are partnered with a local professional in the community. So for example, a nurse, and then we pair them with a nursing program. And then the student gets to do a hands-on activity that connects them to the pathway of education to that career and who that person is. So helping them build social capital. So it was at one of these events, and a student from a high school who had been pretty disengaged and really just kind of going through the motions, but not excited about her future and was really just kind of sad and not quite there. Her high school and beyond plan coordinator came up to me afterwards and she said, You'll never believe what just happened. I had a student come to me with three vials of fake blood because she had done a phlebotomy simulation in one of the in one of the workshops and said, I know what I want to do. I know what my purpose is. I'm gonna become a medical assistant. I am so good at this. And she's like, for the first time ever, I saw the lights go on in this student's eyes. Flash forward two years later, the same high school and beyond plan coordinator is crossing the street at a Learning with Leaders event. She sees her student in Scrubs in the program and said, I'm doing it. I am so excited and happy. Like this is exactly what I'm supposed to be doing. So it's those moments where you watch a student's light bulb turn on, they get exposure to something they would have never been able to experience. When do you get to practice drawing blood?

[34:24]  Yeah.

[34:24]  Never. None of us should be doing that solo, right? Do not try this at home, sort of an activity. And so to give students opportunities to play in spaces where they're they're seeing physics in action by blowing, you know, a water bottle out of a cannon and watching it explode, or, you know, like the phlebotomy example, or listening to fetal heart sounds on a dummy, you know, in a lab. We've got a A really cool opportunity happening in a couple years. We just met with somebody the other day who's gonna bring in a pregnant woman and show ultrasound technique in it and allow the students to practice. And I'm just like, it's incredible. Right?

[34:24]  Whoa, yeah. It's all about to me it's all about an experience, man. Like I think life is about an experience. And when you can really showcase that at an early age, it does get someone excited. It does give someone purpose. Because a lot of the times, and I can imagine possibly you actually, but for me, as I'm putting on this event that I was telling you about is I didn't see in myself what everybody else seen in me. And

[34:24]  Mm.

[34:24]  I I didn't have those opportunities to really showcase the talent of or or someone to tell me my whole thing, I love to to speak, I love to entertain, but I didn't No one ever told me, well, you should do this or you could do this and put me in those places. But just imagine

[34:24]  Right? Mm-hmm.

[34:24]  if that experience happened at an early age, where would I be? And I'm not I'm grateful for where I'm at today, but a lot of the times

[34:24]  Words.

[34:24]  is providing someone with that experience early on to feel seen. You know, the other day I was talking to a leader and he says, Ephraim, at 40 years old, I I gave up drugs. I was a drug addict on cocaine and heroin. I was homeless. He says, But I want you to know, Ephraim, at 40 years old, it wasn't a second chance. It was a first chance because I felt seen for the first time. So sometimes it takes people so long because they just were not going back to the analogy of of the plants. They were just not surrounded by the right people. So you guys actually, what you're doing is tremendous because from the leaders to the people around them, you know, th those classmates are really show letting them know, that was so cool. And I can imagine when they seen her do that, they they

[34:25]  Right.

[34:25]  they sub they celebrated her. And how cool is

[34:25]  Yeah.

[34:25]  it to feel celebrated because that's what drives us and we feel like, wow, you you thought this was cool? And that makes us keep going. So that is so cool. Hell yeah. Hell to the yeah.

[34:25]  Okay. Thank you.

[34:25]  so what does it look like on a day to day for you, Ashley? I know you said it's small and mighty, so today what did that look like to you other than this podcast?

[34:25]  Well, I'm I'm actually on leave at the moment. I go back to work on Monday. So today it's just you and I and we're having a good time.

[34:25]  hanging out, hanging out, okay.

[34:25]  Yes. But on a regular day, it can look like a mix of talking to local high school counselors, problem solving some financial aid issues. It can be one-on-one sessions where I am working with a family via Zoom and we're working through a FAFSA or a WASPA application. It can be me going to the high school and handing out resources and talking to students. I could be at a Learning with Leaders event. We have three a year where we're doing those workshops and connecting with students. It can be a division of vocational rehabilitation workshop where we're helping students who have disabilities navigate those systems beyond high school and making sure that they have the support that they need to be successful. in systems and I am someone who benefited from disability support services in college and I love telling students they have support in higher education. Do you need extra time on tests? Do you need your textbook in an audio format? Do you need a scribe to come with you to class to hand handwrite the notes for you? There's so many different accessibility resources that students don't know about. So that's something that I feel really personally excited about because it impacted me so positively. I was able to get really amazing grades because I had the support that I needed for the for the diverse brain that I have. Right.

[34:25]  Yeah.

[34:25]  and then one other

[34:25]  And

[34:25]  quick story, because I'm thinking back on college, I did not know anything about these systems because I was in my 30s. You know, I was what they call a non-traditional student. I didn't have or I didn't think to access support. I just thought this should be intuitive because I'm an adult. I should know how to figure this out. And so, you know, I'm in the library, I've completed my financial aid application once, but I overhear two students saying, Have you reapplied for financial aid? And I turned to them and I was like, Excuse me. What do you mean reapply? They're like, Well, you have to reapply for financial aid every year around October. And I said, What? And they're like, Yeah. And I was like, Thank you for speaking out loud in the library about this because I didn't know. And so I hopped on the computer

[34:25]  Yeah.

[34:25]  right then and reapplied. but these systems are not intuitive, right? They are not common sense. It is not something you can just know about. You truly do need a guide. So When I think about the work that I do, it's deeply meaningful on a number of different levels. A, I I, you know, didn't know how to how to navigate these systems. I access support services. I needed a lot of help to get through these systems. And I'm very successful and I love what I do and I want that for all of the students that we get to serve, you know, to have those outcomes.

[34:26]  People don't know what they don't know, Ashley. I just I spoke to a friend. It's so

[34:26]  Yes. I say that all the time.

[34:26]  true. The answers sometimes are are in our own backyard. But as you mentioned, if we're not talking about it, which is why I love to have these conversations. Because if we're

[34:26]  Mm-hmm.

[34:26]  not talking about it, how would someone ever know? You know, and thank

[34:26]  Right.

[34:26]  God, as you mentioned, for that person to just talk out loud. I that's why I love storytelling. That's why I just share.

[34:26]  Yes.

[34:26]  So I just spoke to a friend and I haven't spoken to this person almost 20 years after I graduated, but invited her to this event. And I was just kind of catching up and she tells me that she has a son that's with autism and first grade and she's like it's so hard, like I feel like the county's not prepared and they haven't prepared me. And it's like we do not know until we're in it what's out there. And then, you know, I have my sister that has two autistic autistic kids a year apart, and she always says the same thing, like, I struggle finding resources. Because we don't talk about it and it it it it almost like they make it very hard. But if we've continued to have these conversations, now we know outlets and who to tap into or what organizations

[34:26]  Great.

[34:26]  care. Because there's a very small percentage, you know, Ashley, of of resources out there for those that are autistic

[34:27]  Mm-hmm.

[34:27]  and those that are have disabilities.

[34:27]  Yeah.

[34:27]  They're out there, but we got to continue to spread the word. So what you're saying here today is like I'm hoping that people are watching and taking from it because

[34:27]  Chino.

[34:27]  Some of the things you just mentioned, I didn't know. I didn't know there was a a a transcribe, you know, that would take notes. Some people need that.

[34:27]  Yes. Right? Like if a student has dysgraphia, for example, and you know, forming letters on a page or typing even for some students can be too distracting to be able to take in and soak up their learning. Like to have the support is literally freedom. They get to actually learn and and be on a journey where they are able to access information and the way that their brain processes it. It's it feels like a a human right to me to be able to do that. So yeah.

[34:27]  100% agree. what do you think this journey has taught you? I mean, you've kind of talked about leaving home and on this

[34:27]  Well.

[34:27]  journey of the unknown. And I always say the unknown, it's it's actually a good place, you know.

[34:27]  Yeah.

[34:27]  we always want to control everything, but it's like you can't control everything. You gotta go onto this journey and understand that it's a a learning journey that you know when you fail, understand what did I really learn? What was the lesson there? Right. And and I can imagine there's

[34:27]  Yeah.

[34:27]  a lot of things you picked up from that time when you had to make that move to today. What do you feel like that journey taught you?

[34:28]  I think it really taught me to trust my gut and to lean into my creativity. And one of the things that one of my professors told me in art school when I became a photographer is that photographers are problem solvers. And I was like, What? We're not artists first. And and he was like, No, you're a problem solver. And I was like, you know what? You're right. Photography is all about problem solving. So So many of the skills that I developed in my early career were directly transferable to this pathway that I'm on. And I would just encourage folks, like along the way, try to pull the threads from everything that you've experienced and connect it to what you're currently doing. You have more skills than you actually realize that apply to the work that you're doing currently. And You know, my career journey looks really funny because I've done so many things along the way, in addition to being photographer, because you always have to have a hide a side hustle if you are a photographer gen genuinely. Like it's

[34:28]  Yeah.

[34:28]  it's typical. So I had all these little side hustles going on. but along the way I just learned so much. And I fail all the time. And on our team, like failure is a celebration because we learned something, right? Like, that didn't work. Now we know.

[34:28]  Yeah, yeah,

[34:28]  Great, let's

[34:29]  yeah.

[34:29]  move on. We don't dwell on it. We don't sit in sadness about it. We go, we just learned something. That's cool. That didn't work. You know?

[34:29]  Yeah. I love it. You gotta have the heart and hustle, right? Yes.

[34:29]  Absolutely. Absolutely. Yep.

[34:29]  For sure. I I've always been that person to, as you mentioned, have that side hustle, but do things I love and and I'm just now at a place where I truly get to chase that passion and purpose and not the paychecks. And the passion to me is wrestling. Like I love wrestling and and how did I

[34:29]  Mm-hmm. Yep.

[34:29]  take wrestling something that I love and turn that into a job? I started to host my own communities every Monday and Friday night. I started to go out there and cover events. Sometimes I'm in disbelief. You know, someone asked me, Efraine, you want to do consulting work, but how about if wrestling kind of takes off? And I'm like, if it does, it does. And it did.

[34:29]  Right.

[34:29]  Like, I don't even really say that I'm a consultant anymore. You know, I say that I'm an entertainer, I'm a host. And remembering

[34:29]  Yeah.

[34:29]  that these are things I told myself, one day I'm gonna be a host on a stage. And I thought Ryan Secret, but no, this is the host and this is the stage, right? So sometimes

[34:29]  Yeah.

[34:29]  life is so funny, you don't know. You wanted to be a storyteller. You thought it was gonna be behind the camera. But here you are

[34:29]  Mm. Mm-hmm.

[34:29]  telling stories in so many different other ways than just behind a camera. Taking those skills, those lessons that we learn in life, the failures. I was 22 when I opened up cafe, and I remember not wanting to fail. I felt people are going to judge me. And find and I had a mentor, luckily says, Efraine, there's people that are 10, 20 years older than you that are still asking themselves, what if you did it? Take those

[34:30]  I

[34:30]  L's, not the losses, but the lessons, and keep it moving.

[34:30]  Yes.

[34:30]  And just don't make the same mistake twice. Cause if you do, it's on you. And I said, All right, all right. bad, actually. This is so cool.

[34:30]  Right. Yeah, that's right. You gotta learn.

[34:30]  Good conversation. Where can people find more information as we start to wrap this up? on what you guys

[34:30]  Yeah.

[34:30]  are doing and I can also be just a part of it.

[34:30]  Absolutely. So they can go to futuresnorthwest.org and that's futuresnw.org. And they can access our resources platform. And even though it's really directed towards Whatcom and Skadget County students, the same lessons and information that's in that platform can be applied all over the country. So please access that platform. get those resources, especially with financial aid. We have so many gems in there to access. Like, for example, if your financial circumstance has changed, there's a link to Swift Forms to help you write your change of circumstance letter, for example.

[34:30]  Mm-hmm.

[34:30]  That's just one resource that's on there. So that is a national resource, and there's tons of them on there. I encourage everyone to check it out.

[34:31]  That is so good. I remember graduating high school having to do with a FAFSA. And of course my mom didn't graduate you know, high school, so

[34:31]  Yeah.

[34:31]  she couldn't help with FAFSA and sh and at that point I'd never filled it out. Like I tried, you know, by myself, but I just never

[34:31]  Right.

[34:31]  filled it out at this point. Didn't go to college. And thank God,

[34:31]  And it's

[34:31]  you know, I worked hard enough to I don't know about Tody this, but I worked hard enough. I said, Okay, I won't go to col I won't go to college right now. I'm gonna go work and bust my ass, and I did. And I was paying out of my own pocket at this point. And then a show by the un by the name of Undercover Boss comes around. And I get on this show and I'm telling them what I'm doing with my life. And they says, we're gonna give you $10,000 of scholarship to continue your education. So, you know, it worked out the way that it needed to, but there's

[34:31]  Yes.

[34:31]  the resources that were at my fingertips that I could have probably utilized, but I didn't have anyone helping me, you know. So something

[34:31]  Great.

[34:31]  like that is is crucial for individuals like myself. That do not have

[34:31]  No percent.

[34:31]  someone at home that could help them.

[34:31]  Right. And and just hearing a little bit about your story, I could guess that you would have been a maximum recipient for Pell Grant, which is the you know, the national gift aid that we have here in the US. You know? It does. But

[34:32]  Yeah. I always say life happens for reasons, you know, Ashley life happens for reasons.

[34:32]  now other people know. You gotta.

[34:32]  Yeah, yeah. Yeah, if if they want more information, they gotta check you guys out of the website and to bring that website back up. It is future snw dot org. I guess it's futuresnw.org. so

[34:32]  Yep, correct.

[34:32]  make sure you guys check that out. Ashley, it's been a pleasure. Thank you so much for being authentically you. I thank you for just bringing in this beautiful background of books and and

[34:32]  Yeah.

[34:32]  you know the the plants because that always makes me happy when I get to see real plants, not the fake plants that I've seen some people's stuff.

[34:32]  Yes. Agreed.

[34:32]  Ashley. Same,

[34:32]  It's been such a pleasure. Thank you.

[34:32]  same. Guys, if you guys are still watching, make sure that you guys like, subscribe, and comment. We have these conversations because it's happening in our own backyards. The resources are there. You just gotta tap in. I'm Efrain. This is Ashley. We'll catch you guys in the next one. Laters.

[34:33]  Thank you.