My Journey with OACFP
By Genevieve Balivet (She/Her/Hers)
I found OACFP in my senior year of college, November 2024. I was looking for ways to get involved in my community (and admittedly get a little more experience on my resume before I graduated in 2025). I hadn’t heard of OACFP before, at all, but just the idea of a pride center in Hudsonville was super exciting. I’d grown up in the area and attended high school at Hudsonville High, right across the street from OACFP’s premises. I’d had a lot of experiences with queer friends feeling unsafe and afraid, or else invisible and erased in school. It was easy to feel like the whole world inside the Hudsonville Bubble was against us. So when I found out about the pride center, I was excited. I had no idea what they might want me to do, so I just started gathering a portfolio of things I’d done for a previous internship at a nonprofit. And when I had the chance, I dropped them off at the office.
When Christina asked for a conversation, I was really nervous. I imagined a formal interview; I pulled out my faux leather padfolio and dressed as nicely as I could manage while also bracing myself for the heavy snow. We met at Roots Brew Coffee in Grand Rapids, and when I met Christina, I felt immediately at ease. She was so warm and friendly, and her enthusiasm was infectious. What I thought was a formal interview was much more of a friendly brainstorming session about what I could help the organization with. I came away from that meeting a lot less nervous and with my head buzzing with ideas. Christina invited me to join a board meeting (I wasn’t officially part of the board yet, just an intern), and it was very much the same. It was largely laid back and casual; there was a bucket of candy in teh center of the table (our standard brain food/emotional support sugar boost), and the board members chatted with each other about their days before we got started. It was clear to me that the board was a group of friends, not just colleagues or partners in leadership. And it didn’t take long for me to feel welcomed and part of the group.
The other thing I noticed was how collaborative the board was. Meetings were a time to bounce ideas off each other, to brainstorm and problem-solve and come up with new ideas. I’m not a loud person by any means, but whenever I spoke up, they listened. And they encouraged me and supported me and answered my many, many, many questions. I have always felt listened to and trusted to do my work and encouraged to speak up with new ideas for programming and content.
While on the board, I was able to start up the OACFP blog, to launch A-Space, an aromantic and asexual social group, and assist with both the first and second Hudsonville Area Prides. It really makes me excited to have been a part of OACFP because I love being able to show the queer people of Hudsonville that they do belong here, and that they don’t have to be afraid, because they have community, and they have a support system, and they have a place here.
