Activity Summary (First 100 Hours)

My internship with Buffalow Family & Friends Community Days (BFFCD), a nonprofit food pantry in Chesapeake, VA, has provided me with hands-on exposure to public health work in a community I care about. Founded by Nischelle Buffalow, BFFCD serves food-insecure families and seniors through mobile food pantry days, community meals, and outreach events. My interactions with the organization have ranged from direct service at events to background research supporting a longer-term deliverable. My duties so far have been varied. I helped prepare and serve meals and supported a bike raffle for National Bike Night, which awarded bikes to eight children and adults in the community. I assembled snack and candy bags ahead of Chesapeake's South Norfolk 4th of July parade, then walked the parade route alongside Nischelle and other volunteers, handing out treats and healthy snacks to families. On two separate mobile food pantry days, I packaged meals for distribution and used the time to talk with Nischelle about materials I had gathered from city health agencies and about early plans for an upcoming September volunteer social. Alongside these in-person activities, I have spent time remotely researching regional mental health statistics and reaching out to local health agencies to collect literacy materials, work that is building toward a mental health resource brochure for the organization. These first 100 hours have sharpened several skills. Coordinating logistics for events like the bike raffle and the parade has strengthened my organizational and time-management abilities. Reaching out to city health agencies for information and materials has built my networking and professional communication skills, as I've had to introduce myself, explain BFFCD's mission and my internship goals, and follow up without an existing relationship to rely on. I've also gained a clearer, more practical understanding of food insecurity: seeing firsthand how it intersects with mental health, housing, and chronic illness has reinforced what I've learned in coursework, namely that food distribution alone doesn't address the full picture of community health needs. Finally, working directly alongside Nischelle and other longtime volunteers has shown me how much community-based work depends on trust and familiar faces, a lesson I expect to carry into whatever public health role I pursue after graduation.