Katharine Dixon is working under both the Volunteer team and the Strategy & Innovation team at CMMB. She is a senior at Fordham University, majoring in Biology and minoring in Sociology. She is extremely passionate about public health, specifically women’s health, and she hopes to pursue this passion after graduation. She has experience working with public health non-profits and NGOs such as Partners In Health Engage and Hands 4 Others. She also has a long history of working with others through volunteering and customer service-based jobs. She loves helping others and is very excited to work with CMMB. Here are some more facts about her!

Where is home? Home is Brookfield, Connecticut. For the past four years, however, I have made the Bronx my home while I go to school

Education: I am currently a senior at Fordham University, studying Biology and Sociology. From there, I hope to go to an accelerated nursing program, and get my BSN. Eventually, either right after nursing school or after working for a few years, I want to get my masters in Midwifery and become a Certified Nurse Midwife.

CMMB role and location: I am working with the Volunteer team and the Strategy & Innovation team, specifically working with fundraising efforts.

If you were asked to sum yourself up in two words, which two would you choose? Compassionate and Optimistic.

Why CMMB? I chose CMMB because as I have grown and completed college, I have discovered two passions of mine. I am extremely passionate about women’s health and global health. There is so much need in the world, and I want to use my privilege to do something about it. CMMB ties together both of my passions into one, and I think it is a perfect fit.

What are you most proud of? I am most proud of myself whenever I set a goal and work diligently to achieve it. One example of this is my internship this past summer with a non-profit called Hands 4 Others. My internship entailed putting on a fundraising event by myself in order to raise $1,000. I worked hard all summer to organize this fundraising event, and at the end of July, I hosted a benefit concert and almost doubled my goal, raising over $1,800.
Another, less academic example of my pride when achieving a goal is when I trained and ran for a half marathon last year. I never ran before in my life, but I decided to train every day and finally I ran the full 13.1 miles last October. It was such an amazing feeling, tangibly seeing how my hard work paid off.

Imagine you are stuck in an elevator. Who would you most like to be stuck with? And why? If I were to be stuck in an elevator with someone, I would like it to be Donald Glover, also known as Childish Gambino. While there are many musicians and actors that I love, I don’t know what I would talk to them about in an elevator for more than 10 minutes. But I know Donald Glover had a very interesting childhood and is extremely smart and talented. I would really like to get his life story and pick his brain about both music and television, since he is so successful at both.

Imagine if you were an animal or instrument – which would you be and why? Honestly,I would be a chicken. I have decided this about myself a few years ago, and have completely accepted the role. I am a chicken because many people refer to me as the “mother hen” of the group. I am mature and protective of things that are important to me. I bring important things to the table in both business and social settings. Plus, my family refers to my large nose as a “beak”, like a chicken…

What is your hope for your experience volunteering with CMMB? I hope to hone my professional skills and build important professional relationships while working here. I have never worked in an office setting, but I hope to continue this global health type of work in the future. So, I hope that CMMB gives me the tools to become successful working with non-profits. I hope to learn about the logistics of running a successful NGO and I hope to make a positive difference by working here. I want to help as much as I can and use my leadership skills to help CMMB run as smoothly as possible.

Favorite quote: “The world turns on our every action, and our every omission, whether we know it or not” – Character Marion Stone, in Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese. I’m not exactly sure why, but this quote really resonated with me. I think about it often, especially when making tough decisions.

What book should everyone read? Why? While there are so many fantastic books in the world, I would have to say that everyone should read “Animal Farm” by George Orwell. While it is not my favorite book, I still think it is important because the book is completely filled with metaphors about human society, many of which are true. It is disheartening at times, but everyone should be aware of these metaphors and understand how important and applicable they are.

Who would you like to play you in the movie of your life? Katherine Hahn. We look nothing alike, but I think she’s hilarious!

 What would be your theme song? “We belong”- Pat Benatar

What is your hope for the future? My hope for the future is that no one will have to live in fear. I hope that those who identify with minority communities, whatever they may be, do not have to live everyday with the fear that their rights will be taken away. No one will be scared that they may be torn away from their families. No one will be scared that they may not have access to proper medications or healthcare or food.

Favorite speech or Tedtalk: “This is Water” By David Foster Wallace – a commencement speech given to Kenyon College class of 2005

If you could solve one world problem, what would it be? Since I want to be a Certified Nurse Midwife, I want to use my passion to solve the world problem or maternal and infant mortality. I want to aid women everywhere in their pregnancies and childbirth, to assure that the health and well-being is good for both mother and child.

What are the three things you are most grateful for? 1. The love and support of my close-knit family. 2. The opportunities, which my parents have sacrificed so much for, so that I could have. 3. my upbringing, which was so blessed and my parents parental skills which taught me how to be a decent person.

Who is your biggest inspiration? Why? My parents are my biggest inspiration. My mother is the smartest and kindest person I know and I look up to her every day. My father has worked so hard to get where he is today, and his motivation and drive is truly admirable.

Interested in becoming a volunteer?