Renee's Love of Learning Journey...Part II

Welcome back!

We are continuing our exploration of what it looks like to do certain jobs and how people got to the point where they are.  We have been following Renee Moseley, LCSW, and Program Director at Bridge Meadows.  In Part I, we learned about the early part of Renee's journey and how she found her "tribe."  At an early age, she displayed much courage to follow her gut.  We continue with Part II and see if she follows her dream to open her own store and where that takes her.

Enjoy!

Part II, continued:

“I realized I was creative.”

Once again, Renee took a break and was intentional about her time and exploring what was going to be her next iteration of her learning journey.  In this process, she began doing contract work with a few HIV/Aids clinics in LA mostly focused on women and teens.

This was the time when the idea of owning her own store, which had been lurking on the back burners of her mind for several years, started to move to the front burners.  She thought if she was going to pursue this dream, she needed to do it at this point in her life or “take it off the map, “ as she said.

Still working with HIV/Aids patients and their families, she began researching what opening her own store would look like.  Her business plan was more conceptual in nature with concrete numbers.  (The accounting did actually pay off!)  As luck would have it, Culver City, in LA was going through a revitalization period and the economic development office was incredibly helpful.  Within two years of leaving Drew, she had found a spot to open her gift store, Freesia.

Merchandising her store was new to Renee.  She sought the help of a friend when she first opened, but this quickly became one of her favorite parts of having her own store.  It is how she tapped into her creativity, and it was when she realized that she was, indeed, creative.

It was an exhilarating but crazy time for Renee.  She had her own store AND was still keeping up her work with the HIV/Aids clinic, Women Alive.  When she met with her coach/mentor to try to sort through everything going on in her life, her coach gave her a valuable piece of advice.  She said, “Just pick one and be good enough in the other.”  A lesson we all should probably heed.

After a few years and having gotten the hang of owning her own store, Renee began to look at options to move Freesia to a better location.  She spent a couple of years looking at other places.  She knew she needed to do something and closing just sounded sad.  During this time, she also realized that there was a downside to owning your own store, too.  She didn’t have a team.  She went solo to the gift and trade shows.  It was a very lonely journey. 

Little signs began to show up that she was done with this chapter of her journey.  Customers kept saying things about how they were moving on.  One customer talked about how he quit his job because he wasn’t “having fun anymore.”  Renee also saw another woman’s store which was similar to her own, and the woman was struggling to stay afloat and had even moved into her store because she could no longer afford the rent of her apartment.  Renee certainly wasn’t ever going to get to that point. It dawned on her that closing the store because she wasn’t having fun anymore was as valid a reason as any other.   It could be that easy, and the reason didn’t have to be complicated. 

“Time to dream another dream.”

A few years prior, Renee’s brother had moved to Portland.  When she had visited him, she found Portland to be easy, and it was where she started to explore when she started entertaining a new chapter.

She had investigated possibly moving her store to Portland but realized she was fighting for something she didn’t want to fight for any longer.  That realization prompted her to immediately return to LA, close her store, and move to Portland.  It was ’08 and Obama had just been elected.  His campaign was about hope and change, and Renee took this to heart for her own life.  It was time to let go and dream another dream.

Moving to Portland was hard.  Renee realized what an extensive network she had in LA and had to start fresh in Portland.  Looking for a job in Portland was very different than in LA, and she also had to live with her brother and his girlfriend, but the thought never entered her mind to return to LA.  She knew she was on the right path.

Renee knew that she really liked exploring personality development.  She discovered this when she was working with HIV patients because they were living as opposed to dealing with coming to terms with a horrible, terminal disease.  They were dealing with relationships and discovering where to go with the added years of their lives.  Social work had evolved from merely coping to fully living.  This is what resonated most with Renee.    

In Portland, she didn’t want to return to the traditional social work model but wanted to find something that was more inline with some of the work she did with HIV/Aids patients and their families.  Unfortunately, of the very few roles available in the depressed economy, they were traditional social work jobs.  As hard as it was, Renee turned down one job, took herself out of the running for another, and was thankful an offer went to another person for a third job.  She just knew she couldn’t return to that traditional model.

Dr. Derenda Schubert, Executive Director, and Renee
photo credit: Brooke Van Roekel

During this period, Renee was introduced to Dr. Derenda Schubert, who was working to break ground on a new, intergenerational housing community, Bridge Meadows.  Renee began volunteering for her while continuing to pursue finding a full-time job.  A potential opportunity with a very strong, reputable, and nationally recognized non-profit based in Portland came Renee’s way; however, it wasn’t well defined.  It was then that the universe revealed her hand as Derenda, at Bridge Meadows, got the budget to hire Renee.  It was an intriguing new model that was far from any traditional social work model and provided fertile ground for a new learning opportunity for Renee.

And this is where you’ll find Renee today, two years later, Bridge Meadows in full operation and no two days being the same as we learned earlier.

I have created a set of questions that I hope to ask everyone.  Below are Renee’s responses which again provides great insight from someone who has a deep capacity for self-reflection, a quality we can all foster and develop.

1.  What have been your most defining moments on your journey (both highlights and challenges)?

Realizing, I believe in my early 30’s, that I didn’t have to hate my job.  Changing careers from accounting to social work was a big shift; I had to learn to be more contemplative and comfortable with exploring ideas and theories, rather than facts & figures.  It was both exciting but extremely challenging.

2.  What kind of support have you had that was most valuable?

A little inspiration sitting on Renee's desk!
photo credit:  Brooke Van Roekel

My brother was always available to bounce ideas off of and it helped hearing how he navigated career changes.

3.  What about yourself are you most proud?

That most of my life, I’ve done work that I enjoy and have, to the best that I could, followed the trail of signs that lead me to the next place of expansion.  Sometimes it’s been graduate school, new relationships, starting & closing a business or moving to a new city.

4.  Where do you find inspiration?

I love reading about other people’s journey’s.  Reading and listening about the creative process reminds me to look at my life as a creative journey…what am I creating now?

5.  What is your sense for what is next for you?

I’m enjoying understanding and exploring how community, connection and purpose increases wellbeing especially as we age.  I imagine I’ll continue on this path.  I have to stay in work that I have a personal interest in, and am personally interested in this for myself.

The pay-it-forward question:

What is one piece of advice you'd give someone on their own journey?

I think most of us enjoy trying new paths/work but feel we’re supposed to choose one path and stick with it.  Be open to choosing a path that resonates with who you are and following the signs that allow you to follow different directions.

Next up, ‘Diamonds are a girl’s best friend.'  What does it take to be a jeweler?

What does a Program Director do all day?

My intention behind spending a day with people in their jobs is two-fold.  I hope to gain some perspective on the reality of various jobs and learn about people’s journeys that got them to their current place.  With any hope, you may get a glimpse into a world you may not have known, and/or you may discover an insight that may help you when looking down your own “yellow brick road.”  Let’s get our ruby slippers on!

Renee Moseley, LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker), is the Program Director at Bridge Meadows and a great friend of mine.  Last week, I wrote about an adoption ceremony that took place at Bridge Meadows, which is an extraordinary intergenerational housing community.  This week, we get to begin our exploration from jobs to journeys with Renee as my first "shadowee."  I am in Renee’s debt for how much of herself and her day she shared with me.   I had an amazing time and am now the biggest ambassador for Bridge Meadows because of her work.  Thank you, Renee.

Fluidity required

Renee Moseley and her infectious smile
c. Brooke Van Roekel

Some people smile from their head, some from their heart, and some people smile from their whole being.  Renee is one of those people who smiles from her whole being.  I swear, her smile comes from the inside-out, and she is quick to laugh which creates an ease for everyone around her.  It cannot be underestimated how crucial this is when intentionally building community, which is what Renee is doing every single day.

Being the Program Director at Bridge Meadows requires being a Tai Chi Master.  No, not really.  It does, however, require an ability to go with the flow, to channel people’s energies and move them in a positive direction which is not always an easy task when you’ve got 67 people who come from very different backgrounds and experiences and range in age from a few months to 89 years old.  There was one word that first popped into my mind when I observed Renee’s day – fluid.  It can also be used to describe how Renee handles her day – with fluidity and much grace and patience.

How does Renee describe her job? 

She sees herself as a liaison for the residents to help them get the services they need.  One resident deemed her the “Flow Facilitator.”  She runs 2 structured activities a week, which are ‘support’ circles.  The Wisdom Circle is for the elders and The Circle brings together the elders and adoptive and pre-adoptive parents.  A number of organizations like to volunteer their time and/or services, so Renee spends a lot of time coordinating those opportunities for the residents.  She keeps them engaged and working as a community, which takes intention and careful thought.  After two hours, I was wondering if it was break time!

Bridge Meadows is a very unique model and differs from the traditional social work model because Renee is in the community members’ homes.  She is a much bigger part of their lives than just having a private client relationship where she would see a client for an hour a week.  In fact, when a photographer volunteered himself to take family photos for the residents, a few kids asked Renee to be in their family portrait.  That is how important she has become to many of the residents.  She is a part of the family at Bridge Meadows.

What does her day look like?

9.30am

Renee shares an office with Derenda, the Executive Director
c. Brooke Van Roekel

Renee typically starts her day around 9.30am because she often times stays late to spend time with the residents in the evening.  For the first couple of hours, she focuses on her emails and phone calls needing action.  These are with the residents, various agency partners, other non-profits, case workers, therapists, and even the property manager.  Truth be told, she isn’t terribly fond of sitting at a desk doing emails.  She much prefers being up and engaging with people, which is good since that is what the majority of her day is spent doing.

10.30am

Renee met with the volunteers who were decorating the community room for the adoption ceremony.  Her role in this was to help them organize, provide a bit of direction and understanding of the flow of the ceremony and how that might impact their decorating.  As mentioned last week, it was a flurry of activity – much like one would find before a wedding.  So much to do and so little time!

12noon

She ran a few errands before the party in the afternoon.  (Ok, truthfully, she took her brother and sister-in-law’s dog to the doggie day care because it was going to be too long for little Ruby to go without being taken outside.)

1pm

Lunch with me and my 20 questions.  (That’s an understatement.)  During our lunch, the property manager popped her head in the door and asked about food quantities for the adoption ceremony.   She had some concern that there wasn’t going to be enough which led to the decision that she would go get a few more pans of lasagna.  Problem solved.  (These are the problems and issues that crop up throughout the entire day and where Renee exhibits that extraordinary grace and patience with each and every one.)

2pm

Renee took me on a tour.  We got 5 feet when we were stopped by one of the residents asking a question about the party.  We made it another 20 feet when another resident approached Renee about yet another question relating to the party.  Renee did try to run to the restroom, but was stopped by yet a third resident asking about an incident the previous night.  Did I mention the need to be fluid in this role?

2.30pm

Meeting with Dr. Derenda Schubert, the Executive Director, and a few MBA students conducting interviews for an award in Oregon that Bridge Meadows had been nominated.

3.30pm

Final prep for the party was under way, and Renee met the photographer and videographer who were going to be capturing the event.  She directed them where to set up all the while little kids were running around, she was checking one little boy’s homework, and an elder was bending her ear about an issue with another member of the community.   (Patience is a virtue, and Renee has it in spades particularly at moments like these.)

4.00pm

Special guests (board members, account directors of other non-profits, case workers, etc.) started to arrive and Renee and Derenda took turns greeting them while answering the periodic question from a youngster usually asking when they could get a piece of the cake. 

From 2 years old to the elders,
Renee engages all
c. Brooke Van Roekel

4.20pm

After a bit of a delay because the judge got stuck in traffic, the ceremony began and Renee could sit back and enjoy it. 

5.15pm

The ceremony concluded, and there was much interaction with all of the residents, the special guests, and the judge.  Renee was grabbed in a few different directions – even being asked to take a few family photos.

All in a day's work!
c. Brooke Van Roekel

5.30pm

Renee took a few of the guests on a tour of Bridge Meadows 

6.15pm

Helped to tidy up, checked-in with a few of the residents, and sent a few necessary emails.

7.45pm

Was able to get in her car and head home.  Whew!

I have highlighted the phenomenal amount of patience that appears to be needed for a role like this.  What I saw in Renee was more than patience; it was presence.  What struck me the most was how she brought that to every interaction – regardless of how impromptu they were. 

It is very common to hear people describe their jobs that no two days are the same.  For Renee, I can attest to the fact that this is indeed the case.  She is dealing with 29 elders, 27 kids and 11 parents.  There are a whole lot of dynamics in that mix and when you add the support agencies and other resources involved, she is indeed a “Flow Facilitator.”

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Next up, we’ll start to learn about Renee’s journey and how she came to be a LCSW and came to be at Bridge Meadows…It’s filled with all kinds of fun twists and turns!