This story was originally published on Nov. 5, 2016

Melanie Cooley, the Many Mouths One Stomach’s All Souls Procession volunteer coordinator and board member, has always been unconventional and proud.

At 19, she left Iowa’s prestigious Grinnell College in her pickup truck to travel and do some soul searching throughout the southwestern US. She eventually ended up in Tucson and got her bachelor’s and master’s in creative writing. After working a variety of job titles ranging from massage therapist to professor to IT team leader, she started wrangling volunteers for the All Souls Procession, welcoming Syrian refugees to the Old Pueblo and administrating for the Tucson GLBT Chamber of Commerce. She also studies an embodiment-investigating dance practice. She has a nose piercing, two dorky border collie mixes and an ER nurse husband whom she met dancing at the Boondocks. She cannot describe a typical day in her life.

Read what the self-proclaimed humanist has to say about her travel adventures, self-awareness, mentoring young women and working with refugees:

On never having a typical day:

Until recently I worked at the university [for Information Technology Services] and I left it several months ago. One of the things I’m doing now is working on a teaching certification in a dance-meditation modality called 5Rhythms, and part of the reason I left the university is because since mid-April, I have spent eight of those weeks on the road attending workshops for 5Rhythms. So I don’t have a typical day right now.

On coordinating volunteers and human connection:

Somebody’s gotta wrangle them. But one of the things that’s a theme through everything I do is connection between strangers — the things that give us an opportunity to see past and feel past the story. [I have] opportunities over and over and over again to connect with people who may always be a complete stranger to me, but I’ve had that moment of connection with them that’s really heart to heart, that’s really soul to soul. And as my role has gotten bigger [at Many Mouths One Stomach] — less specifically one on one and more global — I have those interactions electronically, I have those interactions face to face on the street, in workshops — all sorts of ways.

On making Syrian refugees feel welcome in Tucson:

State Sen. Steve Farley had instigated a group earlier this year, and working with refugees is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. And he started the group in response to the cultural [and] political climate, just to greet the people at the airport with a sign and, I don’t know, a basket of fruit. Just to say, “You are welcome here.”

We met a family this week, a Syrian family of six. So, a husband, wife and four boys under the age of 13. They arrived and they’d been traveling for two days with four kids — never mind everything that came before that. That is daunting! But they arrive and are understandably shell-shocked … and I wound up sitting inside with the mom for a bit while the dad and boys went outside to help get luggage in the car.

She spoke a tiny bit of English, and between her English and gestures and so forth, we managed to have a little bit of a conversation. And watching and feeling the change from when she was very tired and reserved and nervous and uncertain, [then] within 10 minutes of just managing to connect, she was smiling and asking questions and trying to learn words based on the conversation we were having.

It just was this beautiful moment of connection. In that moment, across languages and cultures and life experiences, we had that connection that says we can find some common ground.

On mentoring young women:

One of the things I really have found over the years that I love to do — and it’s something I’ve really come into in my 40s — is mentoring younger women. Turning around and suddenly finding that I’m a role model for younger women is kind of surprising and really awesome. There’s obviously really real things that women and people of color and all sorts of dimensions have dealt with and continue to deal with, and one of the things I love to do is help people find in their heart their own strength and their own ability to be who they are and be okay with that.

On living out of her truck for eight months:

I headed back to Iowa [after a LBGTQ youth conference in San Francisco] and my horizons were just too big. I had to go. I had a pickup truck and it was winter, so I headed south. I did a lot of driving and a lot of hiking on my own. A lot of being self-sufficient as a 20-year-old woman, which is pretty cool. I slept in the back of the truck and had my little key on a lanyard around my neck and the little window open between the back of truck and the cab of the truck so if anything happened, I could dive through the window and start the engine and go. Only once did I actually feel threatened.

I was sleeping off some road somewhere in the middle of the dark — I don’t even remember what state I was in — and somebody pulled up and knocked on the cab of my truck. And I just thought, “Crap!” I don’t know why, but I was sure it wasn’t a cop, and I pretended there was someone in the cab of the truck with me, so I was like “Did you hear that! What was that?” I waited for a minute and they walked off. I dove through the front, got in the car and drove away. I never knew who it was or what it was, but I was out of there.

But that was okay. I took care of myself.

On being a badass:

Sure I am. I think that a lot of badass-ness, in my world, comes down to integrity. For a woman to be who she is, to say what she means, to do things in the world, to not apologize for who she is — it’s pretty badass, in our culture. It shouldn’t be badass, but it is.

Editor’s note: This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

27 questions with Melanie Cooley

Your name, age, occupation.

Melanie Cooley, 46, 5Rhythms teacher in training.

I'm on a mission to _______________________.

Increase the compassion in the world.

What's your astrology sign? Does it fit you?

I'm not a believer in astrology, but Scorpio. And rumor has it that, yes, it fits.

Describe yourself in five emojis.

👈🏼👣🌎🐋🌵 Says my husband. I outsourced. And he did an excellent job!

How long have you lived in Tucson?

26 years

Who and/or what inspires you?

Seeing people try something beyond their comfort zone.

The secret to coping with stress is ________________.

Dance, move, shake it out!

Your favorite Tucson spot?

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La Cocina

A favorite song?

"What a Wonderful World" Joey Ramone I'm a punk rocker at heart, and the combination of the hopeful, loving lyrics with Joey's vocals and driving rhythms makes my heart sing. My husband and I used this song as our recessional at our wedding—which was in Club Congress.

Your go-to order at your favorite Tucson restaurant?

Vegetarian chalupas at La Indita.

What's your favorite Tucson-only thing?

All Souls Procession, naturally.

You know you're a Tucsonan when _____________.

You don't really think it's hot until it hits 107 degrees.

What constitutes your morning getting-ready routine and how long does it take?

Getting ready involves rolling out of bed, letting the dogs out, brushing my teeth, and making a cup of coffee before sitting down at the computer. So ... 20 minutes if I'm slow.

Favorite app at the moment?

SimpleTime. It's fantastic at helping me stay focused on tasks, whether it's work for the Tucson GLBT Chamber of Commerce or just getting stuff done around the house.

Give us a two-sentence pep talk.

People are generally too wrapped up in their own lives to notice how you live yours, so don't let what you think they might think rule you. Your willingness to try new things, to risk and perhaps fail, to act with integrity will ultimately be an inspiration to those around you.

What would you tell your teenage self?

You're growing up in a place where it feels like there's almost no one who shares your values and priorities, but you will find your people. You've already started. And you will be surprised how many people from your hometown will come around.

What's a quality you got from your mama?

My mother made a point to teach both me and my sister problem solving skills. She let us figure out how to do things for ourselves — within reason — instead of jumping in to fix them for us. It's been one of the most important lessons she's taught me.

People would be surprised to hear you're actually a ______________ expert.

Pumpkin pie baking.

Is there something you've always wanted to learn, but haven't had the time?

How to speak Russian. Encaustic painting. Stilt walking. The list is long.

Anything you've always wondered about Tucson?

How do we sustainably move forward in our desert environment as the global climate changes?

Favorite ice cream flavor?

Isabella's Spicy Chocolate.

Where can our readers follow you on social media?

On Facebook.

Is there something you REALLY nerd out about?

I can spend blissful hours digging through code to figure out how to reverse engineer a website.

What's your spirit animal?

Otter.

Which fictional character just gets you?

Xena, Warrior Princess.

What makes you feel the most confident?

Dancing.

The best piece of advice you ever received?

From my mom: Be true to yourself. Follow your heart and moral compass. Stand up for yourself and others. Speak up for what you believe, even when it is hard. Be the best person you can be and then strive to be better.