In this week’s Fellow Spotlight, we are checking in with Ellen Trudell. She fills us in on what she enjoys most about Detroit, her host company, SME, and what she enjoys most about being a Challenge Detroit Fellow.

Tell us about living in Detroit. What neighborhood do you live in and what things make it unique and exciting?

Living in Detroit is unlike any place I’ve lived before, in a great way. I live in Lafayette Park which is a neighborhood, quite frankly, I’m obsessed with. Have I mentioned it’s on the National Register of Historic Places? It’s situated in the enviable location of being equidistance downtown to Eastern Market. I’m right smack in the middle of them.

Aside from a great location, it’s truly a place that feels like a home. It has the best of both worlds – I feel like a truly live in a city, yet in a tucked away, quaint corner. I get those high rise views of the Detroit skyline and the Detroit River, but live right next to a park and overlook townhomes with tree-lined streets.

What makes my apartment building so unique is it was designed by a man widely regarded as one of the pioneering masters of modern architecture, Mies van der Rohe. Only in Detroit could I live here affordably.

What do you enjoy most about living, working, playing, giving and leading in Detroit?

What I enjoy most might be the sense of self I have developed. Like my affection for the city before Challenge has become more realized. I’ve started to feel entrenched in the city – constantly learning things, feeling things, doing things, teaching things. Working with nonprofits in the capacity we do as fellows is rather unprecedented. On at least two of my teams are deliverables are already in use. I’ve contributed something. I’m also contributing by living, working and playing as well. It feels right.

Tell us about your host company and your role in the organization.

SME is a one of the Midwest’s leading consulting engineering firms with offices throughout Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. Their professionals are consultants in the geosciences, materials and the environment. They take pride in their employees being passionate people building and revitalizing our world.

What it all means to a layman (one such as me before I started working there) is any new/old/building maintenance construction project typically involves some combination of three things: the construction company, the architect ,and consulting engineers to make sure everything involved is sound. Are you building on a brownfield? SME has experts to help with that. Trying to waterproof your building? SME has experts for that. Trying to improve the pavement of your parking lot? SME has experts to help you cut costs. Trying to get an economic grant from the Environmental Protection Agency? SME can take the lead. Building a bridge? SME will make sure it’s engineered properly. SME once took on a project to dip a statue in gold for a church.

SME can consult on and improve just about any project in their industry.

As marketing assistant, I was responsible for SME’s digital presence: I led our email marketing, social media and updates to our website. I also handled PR for the company in terms of media relations: pitches and press releases.

2014 marked SME’s 50^th anniversary. To commemorate the event, every office held individual celebrations of which I was responsible for designing, sending and managing invitations. We invited A LOT of people. In terms of event planning, I helped with the Plymouth, Mich. (the office I worked out of) headquarters’ 50^th party and company holiday party. SME is also in the middle of rebranding for the next 50 years and I got the word out to clients.

What have you learned from Challenge Detroit so far?

1). Never underestimate your abilities. 2). Being with like-minded people inspires you to grow as a person – intellectually, emotionally – and surrounding yourself with people that have different perspectives than you makes you grow as well.

Additionally, Challenge solidified my existing belief that you should always open yourself up to experiences.

What kind of impact do you hope to have with your host company and within the city?

My host company is amazing – they truly valued not only my work, but my insight too – and continually let me know. Colleagues I didn’t even directly work with went out of their way to tell me they recognized my work. That can be rare so early in your career (or maybe in general) and I can’t express enough how much I appreciated it. When you get the feeling of having truly made an impact, the sense of gratification is vast.

While I know I have made an impact at SME, I want to feel that way about Detroit as well. My hope is to be a driver of positive change that is sustainable and real. You have to find your niche though first, I think. Your “cause” if you will, needs to be your focus; have all your attention. That’s how you know you’re doing it the best way you can because you’re all in. I’ve spent the past year searching for the best way I can make a real and helpful difference and I’m still waiting for the perfect fit. I’m not in a hurry, because I know it will come and I know it will be worth it.

What are you most looking forward to in the final months of Challenge Detroit?

Honestly, soaking up all the time I have left with my fellow fellows. I’ve truly come to appreciate and admire them all in different ways. It breaks my heart that our time together is almost finished. But I’m so glad I had the time with them I did.

Also, be sure to check out Ellen’s video to learn more about her time in Detroit, so far.