NWNY Volunteer Profiles: Sneha HS, 34, LEAD Workshop Facilitator
New Women New Yorkers is run by a staff of volunteers. Some work on outreach initiatives to spread the word about the organization’s mission, while others work on the blog team or facilitate events and workshops — among a variety of other jobs. We want to introduce you to each of our fantastic volunteers, one by one.
Sneha HS, a 34-year-old based in Edison, NJ, brings a background in engineering and human resources management to her role as a volunteer LEAD workshop facilitator. Originally from India, where she also worked with literacy and skills-training nonprofits, she has been volunteering with NWNY since mid-2015.
What inspired you to volunteer for NWNY?
NWNY is an exciting place to meet immigrant women from different countries. What first seemed like an opportunity to enable other women like me also turned out to be an opportunity for me to understand and appreciate the rich cultural diversity of NYC and learn from the participants. Moreover, volunteering as a facilitator allows me to do what I am most passionate about.
What were the biggest challenges you faced when you first moved to the US?
Setting up home in a new country was both exciting and challenging. While finding an apartment was relatively easy, furnishing it took us several months. As a family, we were adjusting to a new way of life – from being a working couple who had parents to help at home, along with a maid, babysitter and chauffeur, to doing it all by ourselves. The move gave us many new small victories! I finally learned to drive, both my husband and I are now better cooks, and we are thrilled that our son is more independent too.
What is one cultural habit that you picked up since you came to live here?
Stocking supplies in wholesale quantities! Often they last us several months to an entire year (I still have half a box of bin-liners left). I never did this back in India.
What is a dish that you like to cook from your home country?
I love to cook a stew using bitter gourd. With aromatic spices, and a concoction of jagerry (condensed cane juice), tamarind, hot chilies and cooked lentils, the bitter-tasting gourd becomes mouthwatering. All ingredients are available at most Indian stores.
What is your greatest survival skill in NYC?
I keep a small snack and water with me at all times. It keeps me going through all of the commutes to and within the city.
Do you have any advice you could offer someone else who is immigrating to NYC?
Embrace the city and its people — even if winters may take a while to get used to if you are from a warmer country!
What has your experience working with NWNY meant to you?
Regardless of our ethnicity and cultural backgrounds, we are in this together as women, and we grow stronger when we support each other. At NWNY, we are a supportive community of immigrant women making a difference for others and ourselves.
