A Blossoming and Welcoming Community

As a second year transfer and a senior, I could not be happier that I am closing out my year with Belles as the Community Outreach Co-Director. Transferring from a community college in the Bay Area, I lacked a sense of community in the Los Angeles area that held similar interests to mine. I had engaged in extensive community service while I was at community college, and I knew I wanted to continue serving but I did not want to be limited to one cause. BBSA explores service in a multitude of communities, and we have worked with organizations like Dress for Success, Share a Meal, Baby2Baby, Harvest Home, and more. In an institution as large as UCLA, it is easy to feel consumed and overwhelmed, feel alienated from the rest of your peers, and experience “FOMO” as many may say. While I did not have the typical college experience, as many of us did not due to the pandemic, I was able to join a community of like-minded women that represented what I was seeking.

While we are focused on community outreach and women’s leadership, we also have other offices that make Belles so amazing! Our social office plans amazing events which keep Belles connected and allow us to create deeper bonds - some of my personal favorites have been the Salt & Straw social and the study sessions at YRL. There are so many wonderful things about each office in BBSA, you would have to join it to experience it yourself!

If you’re searching for a new organization to join that fosters personal growth and amazing friendships, don’t hesitate to apply to BBSA. We can’t wait to add new Belles to our bunch!

Belle Love,

Jasmine

Community Outreach Co-Director

Comments

Imposter Syndrome and Finding Myself

The person I was when I stepped on campus 4 years ago is unrecognizable to me now. I came to college knowing that I wanted to be pre-med but having no friends or family following a similar path, I felt so lost in navigating my path on my own. I started college being terrified of failing. I was so naive and so desperate to succeed I was not taking care of myself. My second year was when I reached my lowest point. I was so depressed and lonely, I considered leaving UCLA. I did not feel smart enough to be there, I didn’t feel likable enough because I didn’t really have friends. Joining Belles in my junior year was a big part of completely transforming my UCLA experience. Belles was the first time I felt completely embraced by a group of people. It was the first space in which I felt like everyone truly wanted the best for each other. The people and the opportunity to help others were exactly what my heart needed at that time in my life. Service is something that is so incredibly importan

What I Didn't Know

What I didn't know The morning after I got the highly anticipated call that I got into Bruin Belles, I found this bell (figure 1) on my dorm door: a door belle…get it? I can still very clearly remember the few weeks surrounding this moment. I wanted it SO BADLY! When I saw the Belles tri-fold at the enormous activities fair, I knew immediately that I needed to be a part of that community. On paper, it sounded like everything I wanted: a group of likeminded passionate women who did community service together and other social events. I worked tirelessly on my application and was so nervous for my interview that I signed up for the very first slot (Monday at 8am… yikes). I got the long-awaited call late on a Friday night. Yashvi, the public relations director at the time, told me that I had gotten in, and while still on the phone I screamed “I GOT IN!” to my roommate. My heart was beating so fast. However, I think if I had known what was to come, my heart would have beat so fast it

Stepping Outside my Comfort Zone

Spring Retreat 2023 was by far one of the highlights of my BBSA experience, for reasons I never expected. Throughout my second year in Belles I served as a Social DB, and for this retreat, was tasked with the job of heading the Activities Committee. A couple months of planning and preparation later, I was wracked with anxiety about being so in charge– what if nobody had fun? What if we planned too much? Too little? What if someone gets hurt, what if I screw up as a host, what if quite literally anything negative happens? It was a very rigid, unforgiving feeling, and I was then left with the personal expectation that I was going to get there and not be able to enjoy myself because of this pressure. I was terrified of letting anyone down, especially so because this was the first weekend retreat Belles has hosted in years. If anything went awry, I felt fully unprepared to handle it, but at least I could say I had considered the worst. I tried to take solace in that semblance of control,

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