Lunchables- Laura T!

It would be so easy for me to just interview members of Big Brothers Big Sisters or the Big Alliance. There are some great people there, and I expect that I will introduce you all to many of them! This week I'm bringing you the crowning jewel of our wonderful organization!

Laura T!

Occupation: Awesome staff member at Big Brothers
How I met her: Like I said, she's an awesome staff member for BBBSU. She invited me to my first Big A event. I think we've talked at least once a week every week since then!
Lunchables location: Cheesecake Factory


Since Laura is also a Big Sister, and completely dedicated to the program, I thought it would be fun to bring along Little for the interview. My questions are in black, Little's in purple.



What is your favorite past-time?
She loves to go camping with her boyfriend, Matt. And there's nothing better than reading a book and sitting in the sun, just enjoying the quiet. When not camping, she likes to spend time in the garden (and now I know who to have come help me next spring).

Shoes or heels? 
Neither! Flats or flip flops. (Sidenote: I was with her yesterday in a mountain town, where the temperatures were far below 50 degrees. I was wearing thick socks and boots. She was in flip flops.)

What are you passionate about?
Prepare yourselves folks for absolutely the best answer ever given.
"Nothing really."
And then with a little prying she very passionately spoke for twenty minutes about the things she cares about. I learned so much about her during this time. It was fantastic!
Laura, like so many of us, thought she would go into politics. Her studies in college had her heading that direction. She wanted to be involved in something influential- or even be influential herself someday. But then during 2006 as the events at Guantanamo Bay unfolded she found herself becoming very disappointed and upset with politicians, and even in her friends who didn't care more. To put it mildly, she was very upset that more people didn't care about the lies that were told and the tortures that took place. Her exact quote, "People are mean, and that's not right."
She realized that you can't change the world, because you can't change ideas. So she herself made some changes. It wasn't a change of heart- she still believed strongly in wanting to be a part of something important and something influential. Instead she made a change of plans and got involved with non-profit work.
And that is how she found herself working for Big Brothers Big Sisters!

What's your favorite thing to do with your Little?

Cooking!
Really? Erin and I don't cook together anymore since we almost caught the apartment on fire one time.

What is your favorite memory?
No one memory stands out, but every camping trip is amazing. "I hope to someday make a favorite memory."

How long have you been with Matt?

2 years

What defines you?
Ambition- wanting to help people. The drive to do good things.
Being kind to people is important!

What's your favorite color?

White

Define your relationship style?
"I'm a career girlfriend." Every relationship is long term and serious. When she's in it, she's in it!

Why aren't you married yet?
Laura is not your traditional Utah, let's get married at 20 years old, type of girl. In fact, she's almost as far from that as you can get. In her view, marriage is an outdated tradition, and she's not a fan. Anyone can perform a marriage, and it only takes an hour online to get a divorce. 
"You can spend twenty years with anybody if you try hard enough. Try sixty years! Its a lot harder!" Life spans used to be a lot shorter, therefore, marriages used to be a lot shorter. Marriages served a very different purpose then.
She's very happy with Matt. She also notes that between the two of them, their parents have been divorced 8 times.

How many types of bread can you name?

Russian, rye, jewish, wheat, white, sourdough, potato, glucose free, corn, pumpkin, cinnamon, "everything at great harvest," the tasty savory loaf, sesame, bagels, banana, zucchini, french, and homemade.


What I want to tell you about Laura
First, she's fantastic. She's fun, patient, smart, understanding, passionate, and puts her money where her mouth is. She knows how to have fun and how to be professional. She's pulled together a very talented group of people from nothing to create a very effective and influential organization in under a year. She doesn't just talk about wanting to make a difference. She doesn't just donate a few dollars here and there. She chooses to work and devote her life to being involved in what she believes in. You wouldn't expect that after spending all day working for Big Brothers Big Sisters that she would also want to volunteer her time for them as well. But no! She's also a Big Sister. This is a girl that really does "walk the walk and talk the talk."




And now I need to ask all my darling readers for help! Do you have a single friend in the SLC area that you think I should meet and interview? If so, let me know! I need more people!