John Bilbao graduated from University of Minnesota, Twin Cities with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism in 2019, and returned to his home city in Los Angeles to kick off his career in the nonprofit sector. Given that John’s background and experience is in professional strategic relations, it was no surprise that he ended up in the marketing field in Los Angeles.  He stated, “Non-profits are really appealing to me because many of their mission statements align with my code of ethics. There are a lot of questions going around about how we as individual citizens make an impact within the world.”

While John could focus on gaining employment at a big corporate marketing office, he has decided to stay within the non-profit sector because it allows him the opportunity to make a positive impact within his community. Up until now he has made a continued effort to work at nonprofits with causes that he supports. Prior to serving as an Up2Us Sports VISTA at A World Fit For Kids, John worked at the AIDS Healthcare Foundation serving the greater Los Angeles as the Creative Media Intern. “Contrary to popular belief and as you might imagine from its name, The AIDS Healthcare Foundation is not at all just LGBTQ+ all encompassing. It’s many issues from women’s equality, multiculturalism, and housing” said John. He later decided that he wanted to gain experience in different areas and began his first year long service with AmeriCorps at Habitat for Humanity as a Digital Media Coordinator.

Now, John serves  as a Communications Associate VISTA at A World Fit for Kids, an organization that primarily serves Black and Brown youth. John Bilbao knows he is acting on his words. As a VISTA he has been able to contribute to A World Fit for Kids by creating an online website, a platform the organization previously did not have. Furthermore, John and his co-VISTA Rebecca have been able to lay the groundwork for the organization’s marketing and outreach efforts. While the organization is well established, marketing and outreach has been the responsibility of the executive director or associate director. Now, with the help of John and Rebecca, A World Fit for Kids has dedicated staff members to take charge of social media, press, and create new long lasting systems to maintain the communications team. 

After his year of service, John looks forward to continuing his work in marketing and communications in Los Angeles at organizations that align with his personal values and interests in sports or music.