Maddy Gorrell is our Youth Development Program Assistant will work with Nicole Craine, our Youth Development Coordinator, by mentoring and providing support to the overall Youth Development Program.
Learn more about Maddy:
I am a local, and attended Camerado and Union Mine when I was growing up. For college I went to Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, where I majored in English and minored in Linguistics and TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language). I love being outdoors, and will do anything that involves hiking, backpacking, camping, or swimming. I also love taking road trips and traveling. I have traveled through Europe and Southeast Asia, and have been to Japan, Australia, Mexico, Morocco, and Tanzania. I love baking, spending time with friends and family, and writing.
I was a Peace Corps volunteer in Tanzania, and acted as an English teacher, but also taught Biology and Algebra on and off. I lived and worked at an all-girls secondary school in the Njombe region (fun fact: Njombe is 6,000 ft. up in elevation, and incredibly cold year round!) While I was at my school, I worked on projects that included improving English speaking skills, educating students on HIV/AIDS prevention, and empowering women. The teachers at my school could speak English well enough, but a majority of the time preferred to speak Swahili, so I had to hone my Swahili skills in order to communicate with them, and now can speak it fairly fluently.
The best experience I had during my service was just being in my classroom with the students. I tried to make the classroom feel as welcoming and fun as possible, so acted pretty dorky all the time to take the pressure off of learning the material. We played games and sang, and the students taught me how to Dougie (which I then had to do after almost every lesson while they chanted "Maddy dougie!"). On the other hand, the hardest experiences I had were just in seeing and hearing about how hard the students work to stay in school. Given the dedication they hold for performing well, and the external limitations that might keep them from school, I have so much respect and admiration for what those girls do in order to learn and succeed.
My goals with Hands4Hope are to help promote the organization's mission through the work I do, and assist in expanding the programs and groups available to Hands4Hope's members and other youth in the area. I also hope to learn about how a nonprofit organization operates, and develop my skills in business communications and grant writing, because I hope to continue working with nonprofit organizations in the future.
I am happy to be a part of Hands4Hope, and excited to start working with the clubs and committees as they develop their ideas and projects!
Claudia Lytle is joining Hands4Hope as part of Intel’s Encore Fellowship and will assist us with many administrative duties and training materials.
Learn more about Claudia:
I recently retired from Intel after working there for 23 years. During that time, I worked in three different training organizations: Intel University, IT Training and SMG University working as a training coordinator/project manager. Some of my responsibilities included coordination of class arrangements and deployment of skills training, working with vendors and instructors around content development as well as managing and tracking the training budget.
I have a beautiful 1 1/2-year-old Springer Doodle pup (Sophie) that I adore. She keeps me on my toes and so full of energy that she literally runs circles around me. I enjoy outdoor activities such as camping/hiking/kayaking in the summer; skiing and snowshoeing in the winter. Also enjoy playing board games and hanging out with friends. I lead a Small Group/Bible study (primarily for Singles) in conjunction with my church. I enjoy working with children as well as participating in service projects including helping to feed and clothe the homeless and less fortunate in my community.
My goals are to 1) get a better understanding of the H4H organization and how it works, 2) to assist and support where needed using the skills and experience acquired throughout my career, and 3) have the opportunity to work with youth in helping them to make a difference in our communities.
The Encore Fellowship is a program offered to Intel retirees providing an opportunity to take a temporary position with a nonprofit organization upon retirement from Intel, thus helping employees transition into retirement. The application process includes matching skills and interests against the needs of nonprofit organizations. When meeting with the Encore program manager, we discussed my skills and interests against the needs of many nonprofit organizations. As soon as she mentioned Hands4Hope and their mission to help youth make a positive difference in their world, I knew this was where I wanted to be involved.
I’m excited to be a part of Hands 4 Hope and look forward to working with the team during the year ahead.
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