Meet Isaac Organista, former Futurewise employee, seasoned political organizer, and coffee connoisseur.  I had the pleasure of working with Isaac when I first started at Futurewise and was eager to interview him for this series. Isaac has the unique perspective on life in Washington that can only come from having lived in a rural town, suburbs, and cities of different sizes.  He spent the first part of his life in rural Georgia, as a teen moved to the Tri-Cities with his family, and has most recently lived in various neighborhoods and cities in the Seattle area. I’m thrilled to share his thoughts as he shares what it was like living across the state (and the country!) and to welcome him back into the Futurewise space again.  I hope you enjoy!

Tell me about growing up in Georgia.

I was born and raised 20 minutes outside of rural Calhoun, Georgia. When I say rural, I mean the town itself is more or less a pitstop in between Chattanooga and Atlanta. Cows were my neighbors. It was very car dependent. We were by state highways out in the country without sidewalks. I loved the nature of rural living and being exposed to life experiences without pollution, and getting to enjoy a night sky. Smaller towns made it easy to build community.

What about moving to Washington?

When I was a teenager, my family moved to Eastern Washington to Kennewick in the Tri-Cities, and it was a big culture shift for me. Tri-Cities, three cities, that was huge for me.  When I left Calhoun, the population was 14,000.

Everything was so close. Grocery stores are 5 min away.  If you wanted a night on the town, Olive Garden was only 15 min away. There were sidewalks! Buses! That was the craziest thing, that there were sidewalks. You can just walk on the side of the road.  And the population was bigger and a lot more diverse. We went from being one of the few kids of color to being one of many.

What was it like moving to Seattle?

I went to school in Seattle because I wanted something new. It was a shift, it was even bigger than Kennewick. I’d visited before as a tourist for Pike Place Market and the Space Needle, but living there was a different experience. I lived in the U District and fortunately it’s very walkable. I would walk from the U District to Fremont, and I finally learned how to take the bus.

I know you’ve lived in other places in Seattle.  Can you tell me about that?

I left the U District after I graduated. I found a place in North Beacon Hill because my new internship was in the Central District. It was great! I had never really gone farther south in the city than the International District, and I didn’t realize how much is still technically Seattle.  

I immediately fell in love with North Beacon Hill. It’s also a great walkable neighborhood, but in a more quaint area. I could hop on the link, could walk to cafes, bakeries, and parks. It was diverse too with a very big immigrant population, different generations, families, older folks, and working professionals. It was the perfect place at the time. It felt very similar to Georgia and the Tri-Cities. It was a breath of fresh air and made me see Seattle from a different perspective.

And where do you live now?

As of June, I live in Burien, in the south by Normandy Park. It’s very homey and residential. It’s more suburban but there’s still elements of a city. It’s a lot more car-dependent and there’s more traffic, which reminds me of Kennewick. I’m still exploring though, I don’t have a full understanding of the unique characters of Burien yet.

My favorite thing about living in a suburb is the potential. There’s more resources than rural communities and there’s a lot of opportunity to be the bridge for rural and urban dwellers with a robust bus system. They can take urban development and apply it while enjoying the advantages of being a smaller place with a quaint lifestyle with less cars and pollution.

Where would you live for the rest of your life?

Oh my goodness that’s hard! My only urban experience is Seattle but I want something new. I’d like to live in an urban area to take advantage of and keep experiencing more diversity, walkable neighborhoods, great public transit, greater job opportunities, and more culture.