NAME: LILY BICKERSTAFF-RICHARD
HOMETOWN: YORK, MAINE
It’s time to meet the first member of the Bronx team! Meet Lily, a recent graduate of Brandeis University with a double major in Anthropology and International and Global Studies.
During college, Lily earned her certification in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL), teaching English to Buddhist Monks in Northern India and serving as an English as a Second Language (ESL) tutor for her peers at Brandeis.
At America Works, she has already begun work on the ESL curriculum, bringing it into the digital age and crafting opportunities for clients to learn real-world vocational skills alongside their language skills. In her time at America Works, she has already become an important advocate for clients, designing innovative classes and beginning to plan her research project, with particular interests in ESL and workforce orientations.
LILY’S FAVORITE QUOTE:
“Be a nuisance when it counts. Do your part to inform and stimulate the public to join your action. Be depressed, discouraged, & disappointed at failure & the disheartening effects of ignorance, greed, corruption & bad politics — but never give up.”
Lily says, “I heard this quote by Marjory Stoneman Douglas for the first time a couple of years ago and it has really stuck with me. Growing up, I was often made to feel like my passions and desire to speak up for what I believed in was a nuisance and an inconvenience to others, and I know many others have experienced this. I now embrace being a ‘nuisance’ in the pursuit of social justice, and encourage others to do the same.”
LILY’S FAVORITE MOVIE:
LOVE ACTUALLY
Outside of any Disney movie, Lily’s favorite movie is Love Actually–her family watches it every Christmas!
SOMETHING MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW ABOUT LILY:
Lily was hit by a paraglider in India! Before going to college, she spent two months teaching English in a small town in northern India. The town she was living in was famous for paragliding, and one day when she was walking down the street, a paraglider came careening down from the sky and hit her. She fell and broke her elbow and had to go into surgery to fix it the next day. Though she was in the hospital for a week, this accident didn’t distract from the great time that she had in India - in fact, she extended her stay by a week to make up for the time she missed teaching and exploring while in the hospital!
Lily’s time at the fellowship has been great so far and she chalks it up to how welcoming, passionate, and dynamic the virtual training team is. From her first day as a fellow, everyone at America Works has been so welcoming and helpful in getting her and the other fellows acquainted with the company and this new virtual work world we are all navigating. In addition, due to the trainings being online, she has been able to interact and collaborate with trainers from all of the different sites across NYC. Every day she is inspired by the passion and hard work of everyone she works with at America Works!
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