Health and Human Services Day - Class of 2023

A day of reflection: “Just be a nice human”
 
How might we not forget about the forgotten, those left behind, those that are experiencing a rough patch in their lives? Certainly not by assuming we know exactly what the individual needs. However, by asking questions, being familiar with resources, and being willing to volunteer and serve on a non-profit board we can each help our community.
 
In session 4 of Leadership Wilmington on December 13, 2023, we learned about non-profits that provide services to those in need, took a grocery walk for experiential learning, and learned about effective networking. Highlights of our experiences follow.
 
Health & Human Services Non-profits
Non-profit speakers included Katrina Knight, Executive Director, Good Shepherd Center; Shelbourn Stevens, Senior VP and President, Novant Health New Hanover Regional Medical Center and Coastal Market; Donna Fayko, Agency Director and LW alum class of 2022, New Hanover County Health and Human Services; Yasmin Tomkinson, Executive Director, Cape Fear Literacy Council; Dawn Ferrer, Executive Director, A Safe Place; and Meade Van Pelt, Executive Director, The Jo Ann Carter Harrelson Center.
 
Everyone in the class learned from these caring leaders about needs of individuals in the community and resources to help. My main takeaways:
 

1. Good Shepherd Center is low barrier and respects the privacy of who they serve without pressing for information or rules. 90 people sleep at Good Shepherd each night in bunks temporarily as they work through a “blip” in their housing, work, etc. The Good Shepherd team works with individuals to get them in their own homes again as a priority. Good Shepherd also offers a day shelter, food (hundreds of warm meals served every day), medical care, and more. People all around you have experienced homelessness and had a helping hand such as Good Shepherd and its volunteers.
2. Novant Health has a program to provide preventative and emergency care to those that are at the 3x poverty household income or under. Shelbourn provided an example of providing free services to a family of four that has a household income under $84,000 if not insured. As a non-profit, they provided $3M of free services last year to ensure that everyone has the emergency and preventative care needed to keep them healthy.
3. New Hanover County promotes self-reliance, prevents adverse experiences, and protects the community through a large suite of services from mobile medical units to child protective services to helping individuals apply for Medicaid to pandemic services and so much more. The County serves 20% of county residents with programs. One community need highlighted is the need for child care facilities so that people with children can go to work. Wait lists are too long, and additional facilities are needed to meet the need.
4. Cape Fear Literacy Council matches trained volunteers with individuals who don’t have the literacy skills to succeed. According to the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy, low literacy prevents millions of Americans from fully participating in our society and our economy as parents, workers, and citizens. One class member reminded us that it wasn’t that long ago that the majority of people did not know how to read. The Council also offers Adult Literacy and English as a Second Language (ESL). Reading is important – volunteer if you are available.
5. A Safe Place focuses on prevention, advocacy, and restoration to assist victims of commercial sexual exploitation and sex trafficking. In 2021 alone, 279 victims of commercial sexual exploitation were identified. We were reminded that human trafficking was not illegal until a law was passed in 2000. We learned about the intersections of trauma, substance abuse, and trafficking and were reminded that no woman woke up one day and decided to go on this path. It is a complicated issue, but there are resources to help the women who have been exploited.
6. The Jo Ann Carter Harrelson Center is a campus of 20 non-profits. Because they are together, there is an economy of scale so they can share resources and perform outreach even better. An example of services is the Help Hub which offers emergency financial assistance for permanent housing, utilities, medication, and other essential bills. They offer tours twice a month, and you can sign up here.

 
A Grocery Walk
Next, Leadership Wilmington divided into six groups of about six people each. Facilitators from Northside Food Co-op and Vigilant Hope read a scenario to their group for what they are about to experience. The group that I was in had a scenario in which we were an elderly woman at The Roastery (where our meeting was held that day) and the friend who drove the woman to The Roastery had to leave for an emergency. We had $10 to pick up a prescription ($2 copay) and the remainder was to be used for dinner that evening and breakfast the next day. Our daughter was going to visit with groceries the next afternoon. We didn’t want to bother anyone and didn’t want to spend money on transportation.
 
So, the group started walking on its mission to pick up a prescription and food at 11:45 a.m. We walked from The Roastery (16^th street), to the doctor’s office, and then to a food mart that is across from where she (theoretically) lives on 4^th street. With the $8, we debated with each other about what items to purchase for two meals. We agreed that we would purchase mac & cheese and canned tuna in this scenario. However, we weren’t sure if this was our lunch, so we purchased a jar of peanut butter and some crackers and negotiated for free spoons for everyone. Yes, we ate the peanut butter on the walk back – we were hungry! My group arrived back to The Roastery at about 2:30 p.m. almost 3 hours later. It might have taken longer for us because our elderly lady was arthritic, so we needed to pause regularly to rub our arthritic knees.
 
When returning, each group had an opportunity to make their own ham and cheese sandwich and get some fruit. Everyone discussed causes of food insecurity in Wilmington. Some issues discussed: not enough money, conflict, no family and/or social support, addiction, no transportation, no childcare, cost/quality of food, benefits that don’t last the whole month, employment issues, new to the area, health concerns, no insurance, fleeing domestic violence, and paying too much for housing. It is complicated and needs many different types of providers to address.
 
Effective Networking
The final speakers of the day were Craig Snow, Greater Wilmington Business Journal Account Executive and LW alum class of 2013 and Tiffany Tucker, Deputy Director of Athletics, UNCW. Even though they “kept it light” for us after such an intense day of learning, the content was great. Some tips shared included overviewing different types of networkers, how to “work the room”, and how to develop meaningful relationships as a result of the networking. Some takeaways: (1) be focused and targeted in your networking, (2) networking is an investment in your career, and (3) it’s on you to initiate and maintain communication.
 
Overall, I give the day an A+ and believe that it will help each person in Leadership Wilmington 2023 to “just be a nice human.”