Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexx Goeller.
Hi Alexx, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I grew up in Cottonwood Heights, Utah and from about the age of 12, I knew that I wanted to join the United States Peace Corps. Many of my life decisions were made with that ultimate goal in mind. Throughout middle school, high school, and college – I continuously sought out leadership opportunities and ways to engage/help my community. I signed up to be a Big Sister with Big Brothers Big Sisters the day I turned 18. I led the Westminster University Habitat for Humanity chapter, the French Club, and I was a service learning scholar. I participated in a service expedition to Tanzania when I was 19. For one week, we climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro (climbing one of the world’s tallest mountains was another lifelong goal for me) and for the other couple of weeks, we volunteered at a local orphanage. Climbing Kilimanjaro was truly one of the most incredible and humbling experiences of my life. At the time, so was volunteering at the orphanage. However, I now believe that the short-time I spent with those children in Tanzania was perhaps beneficial for me but did very little for those kids. Short-term experiences abroad can be very rewarding but it takes a lot longer than a few weeks to appropriately learn the culture and truly give something back to that community.
Shortly after I graduated college with a bachelors degree in International Business and French, I was accepted to serve in Senegal with the Peace Corps. I was ecstatic! The application process at the time was very arduous and I was relieved and nervous for this lifelong dream to finally come to fruition. Maybe it was partly all of the years of anticipation but my experience in Senegal was incredibly challenging. The initial placement had very little work for me and I didn’t speak the local language as I had trained in French. I spent my first year being very lonely and miserable. I couldn’t believe that I had wanted this for so long and was considering quitting early. I was able to move to a larger town for my second year and things got a lot better. However, I still know that I ultimately got much more out of my time in Senegal than the Senegalese people I was helping. I do firmly believe though that we need to get out of our comfort zones and learn to relate to how other people are experiencing their life. To this day I will never take a washing machine, shower, or a dishwasher (running water in general) for granted. Amongst a lot of other things.
Eventually I made it through my 2 years and came back to Utah. I was very lost at that time. My re-entry into the United States was harder than my first few months in Senegal. I didn’t know who I was or what I wanted and so much had changed. Over time, I found my way to working with the vibrant refugee community here in Utah. I found a home there. I spent five years advocating for and learning from many amazing people from a refugee background. While working full-time with the wonderful refugee community in Utah, I was also getting my masters degree in Global Community Leadership/Nonprofit Management from Westminster. I wrote and published my thesis about the importance of preserving heritage language literacy for youth from refugee populations. Shortly after completing my masters degree, I lost my father to a brutal battle with pancreatic cancer. I decided to make a professional change and worked at the American Cancer Society in fundraising for a couple of years. Eventually, I took a role at a for-profit company and was running their corporate philanthropy program. I made it a year there, had a very unpleasant time for a lot of reasons, and then made my way to the Children’s Museum of Utah. I loved my job for the most part but I felt ready to be at the helm of an organization I cared deeply about. Today I am proud to serve as the CEO of a non-profit called WasteLess Solutions. We divert edible food from going to the landfill and get it to people who are food insecure. Methane gas released from food rotting in the landfill is also 20 times more harmful than CO2 emissions from cars. A head of lettuce alone can take up to 25 years to fully decompose! But there are things we can all do and it is incredibly rewarding to have a job where we see the impact of what we do so immediately and to feel like I’m doing something towards the mitigation of climate change. Especially considering how much I love the outdoors and more importantly that I just had my first child in December of 2024. I am proud to do the work I do to make a better world for my son to grow up in.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I mean what is any life without challenges? I think back on my childhood and how it was mostly happy but also sometimes not. Adolescence was horrific including my departure from the LDS church and religion in general due to some intense bullying and identity shifting. The introduction of alcohol into my life at a young age also both helped with some of my insecurities and amplified many others. Through all of the challenges, I felt loved. I felt firmly supported by my parents and lived to make my dad especially proud. As mentioned, my time in the Peace Corps was an immense challenge. As was my time coming home. And there have been many difficult years with some intense family issues. And then the awful experience of losing my dad to pancreatic cancer within months. Of course there have also been many other difficult experiences professionally and personally. Yet, through it all, I’ve remained steadfast in my dedication to others and to doing what I believe is right. I feel really proud of that and the way I’ve lived my life.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I like to think that I’ve made a good name for myself in Utah and in the nonprofit space especially. I have always been a passionate and vocal advocate for every cause I’ve had the privilege to work in and learn more about. I think one thing in particular that I specialize in is trying to tackle tough subjects such as abortion, immigration, climate change, and even people’s opinions on pit bulls (if you haven’t seen it, watch the documentary, The Champions, it’ll change your life). I have given numerous public facing presentations and completed projects on those topics. I have often been met with hostility and complete dismissal of what I’m sharing. And yet, I have also been met with understanding and I like to think I’ve at least altered some opinions along the way. Specific achievements wise, I am particularly proud of winning the Human Rights award in October of 2016. This was a recognition from the Utah School Counselor Association for the work I did within the K-12 education system advocating for the rights and equitable support of English Language Learners – in particular students from a refugee background. I have also been recognized as a 40 under 40 National Peace Corps Association awardee for my continued work of “reimagining American leadership through service, spirit, and solutions.”
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
I don’t think my career or life has been very linear so it would depend on what they’re starting out in. If people are interested in working in the nonprofit space, I would encourage them to volunteer first, to serve on boards, to get internships, and to try to explore what really ignites something inside of them. But also, to be cautious. There is a reason I don’t work professionally in some areas of the nonprofit space that I still care vehemently about. For your career, it’s important to find a balance between something that you care about enough to work on day in and out but maybe not something that will potentially trigger you too much or that you can’t separate from your outside of work life.
If they want to join the Peace Corps or have a big abroad adventure, I wrote a whole blog about that (https://thedoublexfiles.blogspot.com/2013/04/so-you-want-to-be-peace-corps-volunteer.html). Namely, I wish had at least been away from home for a short period of time, that I had worked on getting more professional experience before joining, and that I had really thought about what would set me up for success (i.e. living in a larger town, near another volunteer, etc.).
Finally, I would recommend somehow figuring out as early as possible that it’s okay to have a work/life balance and will in fact make your work much more effective and sustainable. Pursuing a career of mission driven work can be extremely rewarding but also discouraging so it’s important to know yourself, your limits and what you need to be able to reset and recharge. For me, an epically themed party, volunteering, a long hike, a delicious meal, a hard workout, a trip away with my husband and son (bonus points if there is no cell coverage), coaching boxing, a good book, the mountains, and snuggling up with my dog/family are some of the things that keep me going when the going gets tough.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.wastelesssolutions.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ajg0603/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alexx.jennifer/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexx-goeller/
- Other: https://thedoublexfiles.blogspot.com/
