I know I say this all the time, but it really feels like I just started this Fellowship! I really cannot believe that in one short week, I’ll be giving and listening to presentations and going home to Cleveland. While it does feel short, I do feel as though I have accomplished a lot of the projects given to me this summer.

This past week was a crazy one; between moving out of my apartment (and sleeping on an air mattress for 4 nights!), moving into an Airbnb, and finally sending in my graduate school application, I have found myself extremely busy! While it is a little stressful, I appreciate getting some real world practice at a busy life while having a full-time job. Even with all of this, I have been able to prioritize fitting in my work responsibilities this week. I have been mostly tying up loose ends, contacting free clinics, researching other health departments to contact, and trying to contact Central Ohio school nurses, all while working on my presentation. I am trying to contact as many organizations/people as I can so that more children can benefit from the mission of KidSMILES.

As always, I am still participating in the Educational Outreach Program and absolutely loving it. I remember feeling a little discouraged in the beginning because I knew these kids were in bad situations, but I have really learned to focus on the good. I know the kid that tells me he doesn’t have his own toothbrush is going home with a new one, and I know I am giving these kids an hour of fun while also giving their parents some options to get their kids the healthcare they need. I only have three outreach visits left, which is a little sad; I am going to miss interacting with the kids so much when this Fellowship ends, but I definitely plan on coming back as a volunteer as much as I can!