Meet Vice | Community Partner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Vice and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Vice, can you share a quote or affirmation with us?
One of my favorite quotes is, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” We can always do things alone, at our own pace, with no one to hold us back. Going this route, we also tend to miss out on the teaching moments and experiences that come along with working with a team. Working with others teaches us patience, value, inclusion, and how to work to reach goals with others.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I work in the nonprofit sector, supporting young adults who face homelessness or at risk of facing homelessness. What helps me connect with this population is my lived shared experience, being understanding, and being patient with others. The one thing that I am most proud of is being able to turn pain into passion, is what my cousin Roxanne would say. It was not easy, but I am humbled to go through the journey and grateful for life because of the life experience. Life is challenging in general; you learn as you grow through the process and being able to put one foot in front of the other gets you where you want to be, just must be patient. I’ve learned that I wouldn’t be where I am at today without the people that have influenced my life and the experiences I’ve gone through to get to this point. I just want the world to know that you don’t need to go through life alone, open up more to people, and find genuine meaningful relationships. The outcome may surprise you.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If my friend was visiting the city, I would take them to get coffee in the morning at one of my favorite local coffee spots, Jaunt Coffee Roasters in Mira Mesa. Depending on the day, head to Kobe’s Swap Meet for some vintage tees, go around San Diego to one of our Westfield Malls, and/or visit local sneaker shops like Rosewood. Then stop by for a late lunch at Caffe Calabria to order their oven fired pizza, the prosciutto arugula. After that, maybe hangout somewhere chill for some drinks at one of the breweries like Ballast Point or Harland. Lastly, meet up with friends for dinner and drinks at Yokohama Yakitori for Japanese skewers.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to give recognition to my Fiancé for being one of my biggest supports in life and pushing me to go after what I want in life if it means chasing happiness. I want to recognize everyone else in my life that has brought support, value, and opportunity in each relationship made.

Website: linktr.ee/brewpac.shakur

Instagram: brewpac.shakur

Other: contact.brewpac@gmail.com

Image Credits
Brian Figueroa