
Welcome to the August edition of our blog!
Our monthly blog is a student-run platform that allows different scholars within the StepUP program to share their personal experiences with the greater community. Everything written, designed and curated was by StepUP students! Delivered straight to your inbox every ο¬rst week of the month.

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Event Updates!
MNYPAA and 4 of July!
The Minnesota Conference for Young People in AA was over the 4th of July weekend! It was an epic couple of daysο¬lled with ο¬reworks, friends, and recovery.

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Final week of softball!
It was the sober softball league ο¬nals, and we are proud to announce that StepUP came in 3rd place! AND we made it to the playoffs π
Thanks everyone for another great season!!

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Be a Villager
Written by Moss
July 2026
Be a Villager
Hi my name is Moss. I spent four years in the StepUP program. All of those years I lived on campus, and three of those years I had the honor to work for the program as a StepUP Peer Advisor, or SPA. The job duties of a SPA are similar to that of a regular college resident assistant. However there is a much heavier emphasis on building and maintaining a really stellar community, and itβs a lot harder than one might think. Donβt get me wrong, the program is awesome and ο¬lled with amazing people, but living together isnβt always harmonious. Conο¬ict, inο¬ghting, and some drama are unfortunately inevitable aspects of a choosing to be in a tighknit community such as StepUP, but in my opinion, totally worth it. Here are a few things Iβve learned during my time in the program that I would advise all current and prospective StepUP students to keep in mind:
1. Be a Villager
If you want a village, youβre gonna have to be a villager. That sounds super obvious, but you would be surprised at how hard it can be. Everyone who knows anything about community will give you the same advice: just show up. Showing up is half the battle, and, yes, sometimes it takes some sacriο¬ce, but the rewards are priceless.
2. Itβs not that deep.
In times of turmoil, sometimes Iβd go complain to Shane, one of our lovely counselors, and often he would tell me to βlet it goβ. Like I said before, StepUP is a tightknit community, we spend a lot of time together, and the majority of us live in the same building. Resentments are deο¬nitely a thing, and not everyone is always gonna get along. We all have our own ideas about how we should act, live, and what the moral thing to do is, and sometimes we unfairly project them onto others. In AA itβs called taking someoneβs inventory. I guess what I am trying to say is, while unhygienic and annoying, your roommate's dirty dishes arenβt a moral failing. Donβt let those little differences ruin your perception of them. Itβs really not that deep, and at the end of the day things are what you make of them.Β
3. Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery and today is a gift; thatβs why itβs called the present.Β
You might recognize that saying from the ο¬rst Kung Fu Panda movie. These were the late Master Oogway's final words of wisdom before turning into cherry blossom petals and passing onto the next life. I have always loved that quote, as cheesy as it is. Iβve realized that all I ever really have is the present moment. I think itβs important to remember that, like all things, your time in this program will come to an end. If I could go back in time and tell freshmen year me anything, Iβd say βmake the most of itβ.Β

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Nature photography by Ben
Please »ε΄Η²Τβt take his pictures π


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Thank you so much to Moss and Ben for your contributions towards this month's blog!!! Happy August everyone and weβll see you in the next one!π€
