Empowered to Serve: Grace’s Story of Growth and Community Impact
Episode 14 | 12 Minutes | January 9th , 2025
In this episode, Grace reflects on her summer as a community engagement intern in Santiago, Spain, where she worked with Apotheca on projects like assembling farmer's baskets, organizing events, and advertising artisanal products. She shares how the experience challenged her expectations, deepened her cross-cultural understanding, and revealed unexpected passions, including entrepreneurship. Grace's story highlights the value of stepping out of your comfort zone, cultivating enduring habits, and using your unique gifts to serve others.
In this Episode:
Overview of Grace's responsibilities, including assembling farmer's baskets, making handmade soap, and organizing community events.
Insights into her unexpected passion for business and community engagement.
Reflections on how the internship differed from her expectations and helped her grow personally and professionally.
The impact of mentorship and intentional relationships with her team and leaders.
How Grace plans to apply what she learned in her local community and future career.
Advice for students considering cross-cultural service opportunities.
Grace’s thoughts on cultivating enduring habits and following God’s guidance in life and career.
In this episode, Grace reflects on her summer as a community engagement intern in Santiago, Spain, where she worked with Apotheca on projects like assembling farmer's baskets, organizing events, and advertising artisanal products. She shares how the experience challenged her expectations, deepened her cross-cultural understanding, and revealed unexpected passions, including entrepreneurship. Grace's story highlights the value of stepping out of your comfort zone, cultivating enduring habits, and using your unique gifts to serve others.
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Grace Roth is a college student at Colorado Christian University majoring in psychology. She recently completed a transformative summer internship with One Collective in Santiago, Spain. During her time there, Grace worked as a community engagement intern with Apotheca, where she contributed to assembling farmer's baskets, creating handmade products, organizing community events, and advertising local artisanal goods.
The experience not only allowed her to explore a new culture and lifestyle but also helped her discover an unexpected passion for business and community engagement. Through intentional mentorship and practical experiences, Grace grew in confidence, adaptability, and a deeper understanding of serving others in both cross-cultural and local contexts. She envisions applying these insights to her future career, blending her interests in psychology and entrepreneurship to make a meaningful impact in her community and beyond.
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Brenna Carson
Hi, Grace. How are you?Grace Roth
Good. How are you?Brenna Carson
I'm good. Thanks for being here. I'm really excited to hear about your experience with us and all the things you did this summer. Could you start off by just giving us a brief recap of your serving experience?Grace Roth
Yeah, for sure. So I was in Santiago, Spain for about a month and a half as a community engagement intern. During this time, I was primarily working with Apotheca. Some of the things I did included assembling and delivering Apotheca's weekly farmer's baskets, making handmade soap, and participating in lectures and workshops. I was also working and living with two other girls, Kristen Becker and Kendra Tolley. Each of us interns had a variety of objectives to complete. My projects included coordinating a community event, designing a menu for the Apotheca store, redecorating the chalkboard outside, and helping with advertising Apotheca's artisanal products and partnerships. I also got to do some fun things like walking parts of the Camino, watching Spain win the Euro Cup, attending multiple festivals and concerts, and traveling within Spain to various beaches and markets. Our Airbnb was surrounded by lots of greenery, so one of my favorite things was exploring the area and the city.Brenna Carson
That's amazing, especially that you got to be there for the Euro final. That must have been such a cool cultural experience. Looking back on your summer, I know it was a few months ago. How do you think your time compared to your expectations of what service with One Collective would look like?Grace Roth
Yeah, definitely. I've had the privilege of doing some cross-cultural internships before, but this one felt very unique and different in a great way. I kind of expected to feel out of place, uncomfortable, and challenged, and I definitely felt that. We had a lot more free time and independence than I expected. I didn't expect to become such close friends with the leaders there. A lot of the time, we were doing behind-the-scenes work on the computer, which I really enjoyed because it felt very practical in the moment. Overall, it was very different from my expectations, but that's what made it such a wonderful time.Brenna Carson
Okay, I want to ask you about that. You said you expected to feel uncomfortable and challenged, and you did. Tell me a little bit more about that.Grace Roth
Well, I've never been to Spain before, so the culture was very different than what I expected. Just having more chill days and walking everywhere—I think we walked six to seven miles every day. The food and people were very different than what I expected, but it was such a privilege to be part of that lifestyle, which was very different from what I'm used to.Brenna Carson
Yeah, we don't often walk six to seven miles a day here, I think. So, that would be a challenge.
One of the things that you and I have talked about before is how you felt unsure going into the summer about how you would contribute and how your classroom skills would transfer to this experience. But you still felt very seen and invested in. Could you tell us a little bit more about how you went into this experience, how you left, and how you feel like you grew personally?Grace Roth
Yeah, definitely. Well, I was only there for five weeks, but I feel like this experience is a huge milestone in my life that will transform how I approach the future in terms of career and interactions with people. What I appreciated most was how close I became with the other two interns and the team, like Dusty, Megan, and Jordy. Dusty and Megan met with each of us interns twice during the internship for one-on-one discussions about how we were doing. I really appreciated how they invested in us personally and the friendship that grew from that. Dusty's words of encouragement were really impactful for me.Brenna Carson
Yeah, that's really cool. I love that they created space for that intentional mentorship relationship. It is much more than just a supervisory role.
What are some of the things you see yourself bringing into a future career from this summer's experience?Grace Roth
Yeah, well, I'm majoring in psychology and counseling right now. I thought the internship would be geared towards that, but it was more focused on business. I realized I'm really passionate about engaging the community in different ways. I saw the role of the church and Christians in a different light. That's something I want to bring into my current community, seeing the needs and doing what I can to help.Brenna Carson
I love that, the openness to adapting to what needs may be and how you can use skills you didn't realize you had to further God's kingdom. How do you see this experience impacting your life back in the States?Grace Roth
Coming back, I was really energized to use the training I had this past summer to impact my community in different ways. I've been living in Denver, Colorado, for four years now, and I have this history with the community. Serving in a different country gave me knowledge that I can now bring back and use productively to serve others.Brenna Carson
Now, almost a year ago, you and I met and started talking about the summer and what service with us might look like. What would you say to someone considering service with One Collective or cross-cultural work in general? What advice would you give, or how can they prepare for this experience?Grace Roth
First, I'd say to recognize where you're currently at. It doesn't matter your age or level of experience because God has been preparing and guiding you your entire life up to this point. You are uniquely made to serve Him. One Collective really showed me that, even as a college student, I can serve with the unique gifts God has given me. Be curious about the culture and what you'll be doing or where you're going, but don't stress about it because you'll be fine. You can't always prepare 100%. Continue nurturing your current habits because they will carry into the work you do in a different country or space.Brenna Carson
We intentionally recruit and want to serve with college students for a reason. That demographic makes up a large number of our short-term participants, and we care deeply about investing in you personally. Like in your case, it can affect how you view your future work locally once you return home. I'm so glad you felt encouraged and found your skills valuable. Even early in life, we love to support and encourage you. One final question: How do you see cross-cultural service playing a role in your life now?Grace Roth
Yeah, that's a great question. My plan is to go overseas, but we'll see what God's will is. I'm studying psychology, but I picked up a class in entrepreneurship, and it's been my favorite class in college this year. I'm really intrigued by it and think I would love to pursue it in the future. I don't know where that might be, but I'm open to what God has for me.Brenna Carson
Grace, thank you for sharing your story. It's been cool to see your journey over the last year, from post-graduation plans to your summer experience, your gifting, and now this new, exciting class. I'm sure God will use it in your future. Thank you for your time today. I can't wait to see how your story continues to unfold.