Richard Crouse
Team Leader
Science Haven
This certainly didn't happen overnight. So I've been working with Dwight for the last couple of years and I've actually seen specifically my relationship with Dottie become stronger and stronger as I've been more and more consistent. As like, she's seen me around these events, she actually knows that I actually care about the community because I live here and because I have an interest as well with science, and I think that's right. If I came in wanting to be an insider trying to be buddy, buddy, always trying to bring science activities to every single thing that Dwight was doing, then it would have felt a little forced, it would have been very clear to someone as sharp as Dottie that it's more some sort of ulterior motives as opposed to me being willing to just come and pick up trash and come to the meetings regularly and listen to the neighborhood's upcoming events and issues and initiatives to where Dottie was actually, the woman who asked me during the summer, she said, "Hey, I've got a bunch of kids that are run around the neighborhood, and I think it'd be really cool to invite you guys over for a barbecue and just have some science activities have some hot dogs and stuff like that." She was the one that pitched that to me out of nowhere, and so this sort of relationship building, seeing me as an insider in at least some way, but not because I asked for it, or invited or told my neighbors like, "Hey, what if I came to your backyard with some science, what you think about that?" I think that that's something that I hadn't actually consciously thought through, but just tried to be intentional about not being overbearing, or having some sort of savior mindset and just showing up to meetings and saying, "Hey, we're here if you guys want us to come bring some events, and if not, I also just happen to live here, and I want to be involved in some way."