Earlier this year, Carly Gasparini, MPS Class of 2012, transitioned into the role of General Manager with the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation (BNRC). In her Q&A with Lanny Stewart, Carly discusses the important work of the BNRC and her current role in the organization.
Below is an excerpt of her interview featured in the Westman Journal:
What
do
you
enjoy
most
about
your
job?
I
go
to
work
everyday
and
know
that
I’m
doing
good
work
that
matters
to
people
in
this
community.
I
get
to
work
with
good
people
who
care
about
this
community
and
fight
for
those
whose
voices
aren’t
being
heard.
The
BNRC
is
about
finding
innovative
community
solutions
that
will
work
for
the
issues
and
social
environment
in
Brandon.
I
like
that
we
do
a
little
bit
of
everything
and
while
one
day
I
can
be
focused
on
affordable
housing,
the
next
I
can
be
working
with
our
construction
training
program.
I
love
the
diversity
of
the
work.
And
the
‘feel
good’
feeling
I
get
when
I
know
we’ve
helped
people
access
the
basic
human
needs
that
I
believe
everyone
is
entitled
to.
Take
readers
through
the
day-to-day
‘goings
on’
with
your
job.
What
do
you
focus
on
daily?
Does
it
differ
each
day?
We
have
four
main
areas
–
housing,
community
development,
the
Homelessness
Partnership
Strategy
and
BEEP,
which
is
our
construction
training
program.
Any
given
day
could
be
spent
working
on
projects
in
any
one
of
these
areas.
It’s
our
team
though
that
does
so
much
of
the
on-the-ground
work.
I
spend
most
of
my
time
speaking
with
funders
to
ensure
that
money
for
projects
keeps
coming
in
and
going
out
to
the
right
groups.
I
go
to
a
lot
of
meetings
with
the
other
agencies
in
Brandon
as
many
of
them
access
funding
through
the
BNRC
or
partner
with
us
to
get
affordable
housing
built.
The
BNRC
is
a
good
first
stop
for
ideas
looking
for
support,
financial
or
otherwise,
to
help
get
them
off
the
ground.
We
want
to
be
the
catalyst
to
make
sure
good
ideas
happen
here
in
Brandon
and
be
an
advocate
for
the
community.
You
mentioned
to
me
that
when
you
first
started
at
the
BNRC
that
it
felt
like
a
“perfect
fit.”
Why
do
you
think
that
is?
At
its
core,
the
BNRC
is
all
about
community
development
and
social
justice
work.
I
grew
up
in
a
house
where
the
values
of
inclusion,
social
equity
and
community
were
basically
mandatory
which
is
what
attracted
me
to
sociology
in
my
undergrad.
The
BNRC
is
so
flexible
in
that
we
can
do
community
development
work
in
whatever
way
makes
the
most
sense
to
the
Brandon
community.
And
to
me,
that’s
the
best
kind
of
community
development
work.
That,
mixed
with
the
fact
that
I
focused
on
downtown
revitalization
in
my
master’s
major
project,
made
this
the
combination
of
my
two
largest
interests.
Community
development
work
that
builds
communities
up,
brings
people
together
and
takes
care
of
all
its
members
is
exactly
the
kind
of
community
development
work
I
always
wanted
to
do.
For the complete article, visit Lanny Stewart's Journal Q & A with Carly Gasparini, as published in the Westman Journal.