Support LEAP #GiveinMay Campaign

Let me tell you a story about a girl who needed help, and an organization that provided it. 

I had just turned 22 and was finishing up the second semester of my study abroad program in South Korea. Having seen a world outside of the US, I second-guessed the career path I'd neatly laid out and planned for myself. Did I want to be stuck in a job that I had absolutely no passion for but would pay the rent? In a world that was just beginning to recover from the pandemic, was there a way to realize my dreams while keeping myself afloat financially? 

I did my usual LinkedIn browse, and checked my emails that morning. Then, I saw it: an email with the subject line, "LEAP Emerge Summer Internship Applications: Now Open!" Intrigued, I read through the site, chatted with a few alumni, and applied. I was offered an interview, and soon after, received an offer letter.

What I thought would just be a summer job and an opportunity to serve the AANHPI community turned out to be so much more. LEAP changed the entire trajectory of my life. I can't begin to express the love, care, and kindness that I was offered by not just the LEAP Team, but their network of API professionals at large. In Emerge, I unlearned, relearned, and accepted myself for who I was. I was given tools and thoughtfully taught how to use them in order to show up as authentically and professionally as possible. LEAP taught me that I didn't have to compromise who I was, to "Whiten" myself in order to succeed in the workforce, nor did I have to compromise my aspirations. During those 9-weeks, something just clicked: I strengthened my voice, and the support I received gave me the courage to pursue my dreams. 

Shortly after the end of the internship, I'd abandoned my plans of going to law school and committed to working in the non-profit sector and using my skills in strategic communications and visual design to help organizations craft narratives that allow them to show up in their communities as authentically and intentionally as possible. Just like how LEAP and their faculty taught me. I continue to pay these lessons forward, mentoring the vast number of first-generation, low-income college students of color in my communities.

I've gone on to create spaces for artists of color to continue building and strengthening their voices to tell their stories. From forging partnerships with publishing companies to uplift the works of Southeast Asian writers, to hosting book crawls, fireside chats, and so much more. 

And to think, this never would have been possible without donors and community members, like YOU. Your donations fund experiences like mine. They change the lives of those, like me, who just needed a little push to fly. 

Now, as the Communications Coordinator at LEAP, I implore you to continue to change the lives of all the generations to come, across all sectors. With even just $5, you can create monumental change. Donate TODAY, and have your donation matched by our Board of Directors, up to $10,000!