Behind the Scenes with Civic Corps Volunteer Alyssa Jones: Jesse D. Veluya
Did you ever have a feeling that you were the polar opposite of somebody that you didn’t actually know? I have to admit that I would fall victim to this until my quite pleasant conversation with Jesse D. Veluya, accountant for the YWCA-NYC. In many ways we are fairly different. For instance, he is a devoted family man; I am a recent college graduate. Jesse is a finance man — and me? Well, I’m what you call a wordsmith. Jesse is from the Philippines and can speak Tagalog; I am from New Jersey and can fist pump with the best of them. However, the common ground we found made us realize that our differences don’t make us that different from each other after all.
One thing we have in common is how we relate to the YW mission: empowering women and eliminating racism. We both came to agreement that we serve the mission by trying to live it in our everyday lives. Jesse believes that having a general respect for everybody, whether male or female, Filipino or African American, is the best way to honor the mission.
He also instilled this belief in his three children whom he is very proud of. Jesse’s legacy is passed on through his two daughters (one a chemical engineer and the other a teacher) and his son, a graphic designer. None of them may be accountants, but he is full of pride of in their own journey and success. And just when he thought he couldn’t show anymore family joy, he told me he has two granddaughters.
But before he could brag about his precious granddaughters, he told me how his career in accounting started. He moved to the United States on November 17, 1973 and worked at the First National Bank of New Jersey. After that he moved to New York, where he received his Masters in Financial Management from Fordham University. He started at the YW in 2004 as a temp and eventually made his way up to full time staff. He says that he enjoys working here because even though he is not working in YW programming, he does serve an integral role in their functionality.
When he’s not crunching numbers for the organization, he follows baseball. The Yankees are his team. We happen to disagree on this one because, while I may not be as avid a fan, but I root for the Mets when the mood strikes me. Yet one of the more unique things we have in common is our knowledge of traditional Filipino folkdances. In high school I learned how to do a Filipino dance called tinikiling, a dance that requires two people to click two bamboo poles on the ground while two other people dance in between them. Sounds complicated, but it is quite fun and a great work out!
Jesse is just one example of how in a non-profit like the YW, every role is extraordinarily important to fulfill its mission. Without Jesse, the organization would not be able to provide programs like our Early Learning Centers, After School Programs at elementary and high schools, and the Women’s Empowerment Network. Even if he works with numbers, and I work with words, we have one important thing in common: we still work for the mission of YWCA of the City of New York.
July 15, 2010