Meet our 2026 Spring Interns: Dawson, Narissa and Renee

Each semester, La Paz welcomes 2-3 interns who spend months learning about our organization, building relationships with our community, strengthening our agency partnerships, and gaining practical skills to support their education and civic life. We are so grateful for this semester's interns, who supported our new community garden, managed our food pantry and developed new initiatives to improve our resources.

Read below to get to know Dawson Narissa and Renee, our Spring 2026 food access interns!

Dawson Cicora

Food Access Intern

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Major: Business Management & Spanish

What are some of your roles and responsibilities as Food Access Intern?

My roles and responsibilities include managing the food pantry and ensuring that our community always has access to food. I pick up and organize all the food in the food pantry, handle client intake and new client applications, and assist clients with choosing their food in our client-choice food pantry. If someone comes to La Paz for food, I am the face they will see. It is my responsibility to ensure they always feel welcomed and comfortable during their visit here at La Paz, and I take pride and joy in meeting those expectations.

Why did you choose La Paz to fulfill your internship?

La Paz was a perfect match for me to fulfill my internship because of the combination of skills I would be able to use to serve the community and develop at La Paz. Managing the food pantry and serving the Spanish speaking community was a great opportunity to learn a lot relating to the business management and Spanish degrees I’m pursuing. And with the challenges this community is facing every day, it was a great opportunity to support my neighbors and make things a little better for them in any way I can.

What have you learned or gained through this experience?

I learned so much about my community, their hardships and fears in the current world we live in; however, I have also heard about the triumphs in their journeys. I learned what it’s like to serve your community and the impact it can make. The experience has taught me so much and made me a more well-rounded person. The kindness and support of the staff here at La Paz was always so supportive and helpful, and played a huge role in making my time at La Paz a good one.

Final Reflections

I am so happy that I got to partake in this opportunity, and I am so thankful for La Paz and all that they have done for me. It was an experience that I will always remember, and I’m so glad I could be a part of something that has helped so many people. La Paz makes such a big difference in the community, and it’s because of the amazing people who work alongside me. I know they will continue to grow and will keep changing the world, one day at a time.

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Narissa Mcever

Research Consultant

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Masters in Public Health

What are some of your roles and responsibilities as Research Consultant?

As an intern with La Paz, my role has been centered around conducting research to identify culturally appropriate strategies to improve food access and encourage healthier food choices among community members who frequent the La Paz food pantry. My work has focused on understanding community needs to help guide initiatives that align with evidence-based nutrition interventions. I contributed to the development of the pantry labels and their nutrition-related guidelines so that community members who frequent the pantry can make better informed decisions about what they are choosing.

Why did you choose La Paz to fulfill your internship?

I am working with La Paz as my capstone project for my Master's in Public Health. I chose to work with La Paz because of my long-standing connection to the Spanish language and the communities it represents. I have been studying Spanish for most of my life, and through undergraduate electives, I have developed not only language skills but also a deep respect and appreciation for individuals who make the impossible decision to leave their home in search of a way to better their lives. I have always valued learning about cultures that are different from mine, and I view the ability to understand and communicate with individuals who may not share my first language as a fundamental pillar of respect in my own moral framework.

What have you learned or gained through this experience?

My research has taught me so much more about the sacrifices that people make in order to move to this country, including several health outcomes (political stress, food insecurity, Western diets, etc). This capstone project has solidified for me the true importance of reaching out to people who may not look, speak, or think in the same ways that you do, because people who have different perspectives always offer something valuable to learn. Speaking directly with the community members at La Paz, especially at the produce distributions, has been so fulfilling and has strengthened my ability to listen intentionally, interpret community needs through a lens that is not my own and goes beyond existing data, and reflect on the lived experiences of the people in my community. Passive allyship will never be enough, so I am so proud to have dedicated my semester and capstone project to this organization and the community it serves. 

Final Reflections

I have absolutely adored working with La Paz as my capstone project. The staff is so inviting and the community members are always so gracious, even if my Spanish is difficult to understand. I will miss you guys!

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Renee Radford

Community Garden Coordinator

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Major: Environmental Science and Spanish

What are some of your roles and responsibilities as Community Garden Coordinator?

I decided to stay so that I could focus on the community garden program La Paz

has been wanting to build for a long time! I am currently responsible for all things gardening including sowing, transplanting, growing, watering, and maintaining the plants. I expanded the garden by adding three new beds made out of cement blocks and I filled them with a mixture of logs, twigs, leaves, sand, compost, perlite, and of course, soil to make them perfect for growing! We plan to include clients at La Paz who are interested in gardening and can join me for an hour or two a week. The food that we grow will be shared among the volunteers and the food pantry as part of our Food Access Program!

Why did you choose La Paz to fulfill your internship for the second time?

I am still here! I chose La Paz for my internship because I had a wonderful experience during my first internship here and could not get enough! La Paz is a powerful place that has made a lasting mark on the Latinx community in Chattanooga. Throughout my time here, I have become very committed to La Paz’s mission and do not see a future where I am not involved in any way that I can be of use.

What have you learned or gained this semester that you missed in your previous internship?

La Paz continues to challenge me in ways that I did not know were possible! The development of the community garden program has been a difficult task to manage alongside school, work, and my personal life, so I have definitely learned ways to help me manage my time more wisely and prioritize what is important. I am learning that plants are like tiny children, they all have different needs and wants and sometimes they don’t like anything that you do! Everyone has so much on their plate at all times, so I am trying to brainstorm ideas to make the community garden more accessible to those interested.

Final Reflections

I said this last time, but it’s so truthful I don’t believe I could say it any better. The last thing I would like to add is how much I appreciate what La Paz does day in and day out and I believe that all of Chattanooga benefits from the resources and advice La Paz gives to the Latinx community. To be working on the inside, getting to know the people who work here, and seeing the people whose lives have changed as a result is very inspiring. It gives me hope that progress can still be accomplished in troubling times and that love always wins over hate.

GRACIAS to our Interns for all you have done for La Paz Chattanooga!