Meet Valeria
Bay Area native, Valeria Aguirreche, attended a local job fair in Richmond when she made a connection with Fresh Approach and learned about our Richmond Nutrition Education Community Ambassador role. With an intention to move into a graduate study program centered on nutrition and public health, a recently completed certificate in personal training, and a desire to build a more positive relationship with food and invest in her community, she was a natural fit to apply.
“I knew I was interested in preventative healthcare, while working closely with my community and I saw Fresh Approach was offering that type of opportunity.”
Our Community Ambassador Program
Our Community Ambassador Program nourishes leadership and skill building opportunities by offering part-time, paid positions to local community members interested in the health and well-being of their community as they support our onsite programming.
In particular, our Richmond Nutrition Education Community Ambassadors, like Valeria, get to explore career building centered on community nutrition and public health as they lead the facilitation of our VeggieRx Nutrition Classes, film cook along education videos, support our in-person Richmond food access programming at the farmers’ markets, and earn food safety certifications.
The program’s flexibility allows participants to build skills and gain experience in ways that fit their own needs and career goals. For Valeria, this meant acquiring a Nutrition Certificate that provided her deeper knowledge in selecting foods that are more nourishing, and growing confidence in public speaking and professional translating while she taught our VeggieRx Nutrition Classes at the San Pablo Senior Center:
“I was very nervous about public speaking at first, but Yohana [Fresh Approach’s Nutrition Education Program Specialist] was so supportive and really encouraged me to believe in myself. I also loved being trusted with translating materials and resources for Spanish-speaking participants. That work felt both meaningful and a learning experience.”
She’s also working on completing the Systems Approaches for Healthy Communities Training to help her learn more about the policy and programming side to community nutrition as she focuses her interests both for graduate study and future career paths.
A Human-Centered Approach
The connecting thread between all of Fresh Approach’s programs is how we center community and honor the lived experiences of our participants. For us, we want our programming to meet the needs of the participants, while creating spaces and opportunities that are tangible and realistic. Our Community Ambassador Program is no different.
Some of Valeria’s most memorable moments reflected this ethos: Being able to film a cook-along video with her grandma that highlighted their relationship, created a beautifully relatable project for our community members and program participants to see themselves and their own family. That human element. She even shares that during her time as an ambassador, it was affirming that this ethos was intrinsic to our work:
“Connecting with Darolyn and Towana at the Mobile Farmers’ Market and Richmond Farmers’ Market has definitely been one of my greatest highlights. It has been so meaningful to be in such a warm and community-filled environment that makes me feel at home. Just seeing how Towana and Darolyn connect with everyone who comes in such a genuine way, has inspired me and has warmed my heart.”
Next Steps for Valeria
As her ambassadorship is slowly coming to an end and she eagerly awaits learning about her graduate program applications, Valeria is beginning to think more on what her next steps are for building a career in community nutrition and wellness. From program development to nonprofit management, the Community Ambassador Program offered her various avenues to explore during her time with Fresh Approach. After engaging with our first virtual career panel last year, she connected with the City of Richmond’s Recreation Program Coordinator, Tania Pulido, who was a guest speaker and saw an opportunity for Valeria to apply her passion, interests, and experience to larger projects for the Richmond community.
“I’m especially excited about her work connecting community needs with policy, and she has shared ideas for projects that would align well with my interests in health and fitness.”
If Valeria’s story resonates with you, we have started recruitment for our next cohort of Richmond Nutrition Education Community Ambassadors!
