On this Day of Service, many of us are looking for ways to engage kids in activities to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. Our well-intentioned efforts to serve tend to focus on once and done projects. We can enhance meaning by connecting our strategies to what Dr. King called all of us (including kids) to do: always be concerned about the collective and to fight for equality.

Dr. King challenged us to think beyond ourselves and contribute to society. In his 1956 Birth of a New Age address he asserts that “an individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.” He wanted kids and adults alike to take responsibility for the needs of others as a daily way of being, not as isolated actions. He also emphasized action with impact, not action for action’s sake.

Typical ways of engaging kids on this Day of Service involve volunteering at non-profits or attending events that facilitate many service projects in one venue. Kids can sort food, make art, clean up parks, pack hygiene bags, and make bracelets. According to University of Kent Researcher Alison Body, “most children positively engage in charitable giving through home, school and their community; however less than 20% are aware of the cause area they are being asked to support.” Without connecting activities to a bigger sense of meaning and impact, kids could become apathetic towards service, the exact opposite of what we are trying to achieve.

So let’s think differently about today’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. Rather than seeking one activity for the day, let’s use it as the starting point for a long-term practice of community service. Let’s do it in a way that builds on kids? natural curiosity, empathy, fluid thinking and concern about equality. Let’s ensure that our efforts generate both meaning and impact. Here are some ideas for how:

• Spend time as a family reflecting on issues that matter the most to you – either individually or collectively. Trigger those conversations with prompts such as: What challenges has our family (including generations before us) struggled with? What needs do we see around us? What do all children deserve but not necessarily have? What are the issues that make us the most upset/angry/passionate? When brainstorming, always start with the youngest child so that they don’t get intimidated by the ideas of adults or older siblings. Really listen to their ideas and go with the flow rather seeding ideas for what they should care about.
• Have every family member learn more about the issues and inequities they care about. Start by finding first person narratives that will help kids (and adults!) develop an emotional connection to the issue. Help kids find books, testimonials, videos, or movies that relate to the themes they care about. Next, dig into facts. Along the way, adults can role model your own explorations of issues you care about.
• Identify local non-profits that address the issues of concern through resources like the Catalogue for Philanthropy, local community foundations, or word of mouth. Show interest in your children’s explorations and give support as needed.
• Explore ways to support the non-profit’s important mission. Put kids in charge of exploring websites and social media content. Reach out to non-profits and find out what is most helpful to them. While some non-profits may be hesitant to engage children in formal service, there are many ways that kids can contribute: writing letters expressing support, creating videos promoting the organization, creating art for staff or clients, crowdsourcing supplies or money for the organization. The possibilities are endless but may require some creativity from both kids and parents.
• Once you have identified issues of concern, built an emotional and intellectual connection to the issue, and identified non-profits that could use your support, your next step is to build long-term relationships with your chosen non-profits. Show up by spreading the word, donating, volunteering throughout the year, attending their public events, reading and contributing to their newsletters. Be their champion rather than a one time volunteer.

As Dr. King said, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’” In this spirit, let’s make today the day that sets us (adults and children) on a path towards regular and meaningful service.

Amy Neugebauer is the Founder and Executive Director of The Giving Square, an organization featured in the 2021-2022 Catalogue of Philanthropy. The organization amplifies the power of children as philanthropists by testing engagement strategies, developing curriculum, and distilling insights from children. In 2021, 8-10 year olds from over 20 schools successfully and joyfully allocated $30,000 to local, kid-serving nonprofits.

Main Street Connect is the first community-oriented, affordable, accessible housing solution to redefine the concept of inclusion in a large, vibrant community space within the apartment complex itself. Just steps away from the Metro and Rockville Town Center, our thoughtful and purposeful member-based programming breaks down barriers to improve quality of life and community-building for everyone, no matter their age, location, ability, or background. This inclusive mindset and culture of hope and opportunity seeks to flourish beyond Main Street’s walls and inspire a new generation – without barriers, without judgment, and with genuine inclusion for all.

Building this culture of inclusivity must begin somewhere. During the first week of November, Main Street hosted a landmark gathering of thought-leaders from across the country that kick-started a national discussion co-led by people with and without disabilities. Alongside The Kelsey, Main Street heard from Patuxent Commons, Our Stomping Ground, Our Home Inclusive Community Collaborative, The Faison Center, and other keynote speakers with this same goal of Building Inclusivity in communities across the country.

Our conference began on Tuesday, November 2nd with a big Main Street welcome to the 50 attendees from 10 different states and a discussion on Main Street’s vision, mission, and values as a nonprofit. After a good night’s rest, the bulk of the conference commenced on Wednesday, November 3rd where attendees learned about other organizations’ models and projects, as well as larger topics of financing inclusive housing and disability-forward advocacy, all led by experts from several different organizations.

The first session was led by Scott Copeland of RST Development and Main Street, who shared all Main Street had learned about financing and building inclusive, affordable housing for attendees to use in their own development processes. Micaela Connery from The Kelsey followed this discussion with a deep dive into their organization and how they have been successful in building inclusivity, ending the day with a virtual panel that covered the many ways to create opportunities for leaders with disabilities. Accessibility does not end with a sticker, as Consumer Rights Advocate, Liz Grisby, said during this panel, “Just being able to get through the door does not mean you’re accessible.”

The final day of the conference focused on advancing advocacy and disability-forward policy strategies, with discussions led by The Kelsey’s Fatimah Aure and Allie Cannington. Alison Barkoff, the Principal Deputy Administrator for the Administration for Community Living also spoke about the federal side of housing and disability rights and the impact the Administration makes, “Each year, over 10 million older adults, people with disabilities, and caregivers through [a] nationwide disability and aging network.”

Over the course of these three days, this conference ultimately taught us that we need to…

• be active in local communities with local legislators;
• form coalitions that are co-led by people with and without disabilities;
• remember that disability-forward advocacy takes curiosity, courage, and creativity; and
• celebrate the small wins – inclusive, affordable housing projects take time!

We all deserve to belong in a community where we feel valued and included; affordable, accessible housing projects across the country are working hard to do just that! Together, we can move disability housing forward with goals of ensuring different versions of the Main Street model can exist in any community and that people of ALL abilities have a seat at the table. In doing so, we are setting the standard for redefining inclusion for all.

Main Street is offering a video link for presentations from this conference that includes specific details for HOW to build affordable, inclusive, and community-minded projects. If you’d like to learn more about Main Street, feel free to contact Sharon Cichy at sharonc@mainstreetconnect.org.

Impact of Sexual Assault

Physicians treating patients with a physical wound consult a patient’s health history to tailor their treatments to work for a patient’s individual health needs. From prescribing the right medication to finding the best rehabilitation method, a practitioner creates a unique treatment plan for each patient based on their past experiences and current situation. So, ideally, when working with survivors of sexual violence, health care should look the same, right?

It doesn’t.

In the United States, there are over 433,648 victims of rape and sexual assault each year and the resulting trauma is something survivors can carry with them for the rest of their lives. At some point in time, members of this remarkably large population are going to need to access medical care, regardless of whether it is related to the sexual assault. Yet, many survivors of sexual assault will avoid routine medical help. Female survivors, specifically, will avoid gynecological care as a means of avoiding uncomfortable, triggering situations. In this setting, medical providers can inadvertently trigger the re-traumatization of previous sexual abuse, through commonplace medical practices like a pelvic or breast exam.

The CDC suggests that “examinations of survivors of sexual assault should be conducted by an experienced clinician in a way that minimizes further trauma to the survivor.” However, in a 2008 study, researchers asked female adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse about their gynecological care experiences and found that 82% of the survivors in the sample were not asked about a history of sexual abuse or assault by their provider prior to the pelvic exam – despite feeling that such information would be relevant to their care. Although an understandable defense mechanism to protect themselves from reliving their trauma, a lack of obstetrics and gynecological care can have significant implications on a survivor’s physical health. That being said, in order to best provide care and engage their clients, medical providers must be aware of the far reaching implications of these traumatic events and learn how to best provide services to patients who have experienced trauma.

Trauma-Informed Care

Trauma is holistic and should be treated as such. The field of human services is embarking on a new approach of helping and there is growing understanding about how a person’s trauma alters the way they understand, perceive, and experience the world. Trauma-informed care, according to SAMHSA, “acknowledges the need to understand a patient’s life experiences in order to deliver effective care and has the potential to improve patient engagement, treatment adherence, health outcomes, and provider and staff wellness.” This perspective incorporates the assessment of trauma and trauma-systems into a routine practice and ensures that patients have access to high-quality survivor-specific interventions that acknowledge their unique experiences.

Trauma-Informed Care and Sexual Assault

Simply put, survivors of sexual assault are not being cared for in the holistic fashion that they deserve. Many institutions like doctor’s offices or medical clinics are not yet trauma-informed and many of their practices, although kindly intentioned, may place survivors at a higher risk of re-traumatization and reinforce damaging messages to both staff and clients. While there is growing attention to the traumatic impact of treatment on survivors of sexual assault, the phenomenon is largely invisible to healthcare providers.

For survivors of sexual assault, this appointment may be the first time where they are given the opportunity to address their victimization. Practitioners are uniquely suited to provide support and direct survivors towards helpful resources. Here, practitioners can share information regarding STD and HIV prevention medication, survivor support groups, and other resources (e.g. mental health care, legal services, on-campus support). However, if practitioners are not aware of the patient’s trauma from the beginning, they are limited in their capacity to provide sensitive and appropriate care and could be causing unintended harm to a survivor.

What Can Be Done?

Trauma-informed care and the holistic understanding of trauma are now being used to inform changes in policy and practices to ensure that service providers are better equipped to support survivor recovery and do not inadvertently cause re-traumatization or pain. Network for Victim Recovery of DC (NVRDC) is working to be a part of that change.

In Washington, DC, there is currently no standard training requirement or on-going education requirements for OBGYN doctors, nurses, or medical staff regarding trauma-informed care for survivors of sexual assault. To address this gap in care, NVRDC is building a trauma-informed care training project called iEmpower for OBGYNs and other related medical practices in the DMV to bolster providers’ abilities to provide and incorporate trauma-informed care into specific policies and procedures. Care is now being looked at from the ground up, analyzing everything from the minute they pick up the phone and schedule an appointment to the moment they walk out the door. Medical practices must now consider the entirety of the medical appointment and how that may impact a survivor. They may ask themselves questions like:

• “Is the waiting room set up in a warm, inviting, and open way?”
• “Did the intake documents ask about a history of sexual violence?”
• “How did it feel when the nurse asked you to change out of your clothes and into the medical exam gown?”
• “Did the doctor talk to you about what the purpose of the appointment was and did they walk you through the procedure?”

These questions pinpoint elements that are crucial for medical clinics to pay attention to when creating a trauma-informed environment that survivors of sexual assault perceive as safe, comfortable, and supported.

NVRDC has developed two surveys to better understand the current landscape of trauma-informed care among the medical field. The first survey is meant for survivors of sexual assault and provides opportunities for them to share their experiences when seeking out OBGYN care. The second is tailored to practitioners and medical providers, and evaluates the level of training they have received regarding trauma-informed care. Both surveys are currently seeking participants.

In general, as we embrace our roles as philanthropists and aspire to be positive disruptors in this world, our work will not be meaningful if our path perpetuates harm. NVRDC is one of many organizations trying to create awareness, create change, and survey survivors and practitioners to better understand the landscape and fill the gaps in current practices. Change is not easy, but it also cannot wait.

If you or someone you know is a survivor or a medical practitioner and would like to participate in our surveys, they can access the links to our surveys below.

• iEmpower Practitioner Survey
• iEmpower Survivor Survey

If you’re a survivor in DC and would like to access a medical forensic exam following a sexual assault, please contact the DC Victim Hotline at 844-4-HELP-DC (844-443-5732). The hotline is open 24/7.

I will never become homeless because I am too smart to be homeless.

That’s what a young, early teenage version of myself repeatedly told themselves. But why would a child have to say that?

Being raised in the DC area by a mom and dad you knew was not yours only because you attended your real father’s funeral at 5 years of age. Watching your stuff on the sidewalk but mostly watching your daddy’s PlayStation, hoping no strangers came and took it as mommy and daddy figure out where we will stay next. Having someone knock on your door and take you and your little brother away from the only parents you knew. Moving from foster home to foster home, being beaten, molested, treated like a b****** who needed rescuing. These are my childhood memories. These are the reasons the teenage version of me had to convince themselves that homelessness could and would never be an option. Put out of the house by my adopted mom at age 16 to emancipation from CFSA* at age 21 to homelessness, living in different homes up to age 25. From age 16 up to today I’ve lived in over 40 different places.

How did a child manage school, mental health, and other needs through all of this? Well of course drugs and alcohol helped me through 12 years of that trauma. But also that child continued to tell me “You’re too smart to be stuck on the streets. You’re too smart to not succeed.” This child version of me kept me alive for many years.

The trauma the child version of me saw and experienced. How could they be so strong? Why would they want to keep pushing on? This couldn’t have been all that was out there for me. It couldn’t just be struggle after struggle with no gold sitting under a tree.

Today I am the Executive Assistant to the Founder & President of HER Resiliency Center, Natasha Guynes.

It’s not a coincidence that I ended up here. For the past 6 years HER has been here for me. When I wanted to kill myself and was admitted to the hospital, HER was there. When I couldn’t pay bills and just wasn’t stable, HER was there. Natasha answered my every call and not once did she leave me stranded. The day I decided that I couldn’t drink any longer, HER was there. And when I just couldn’t push any further, Natasha found the best rehab she could find and helped get me a scholarship and I went there.

I wouldn’t be 5 months sober today if HER had given up on me like many programs have in the past. I wouldn’t be writing this blog if HER’s founder hadn’t gone through her own traumas and built the resilience she has today. If Natasha would’ve believed that no one deserved a chance to fight another day I would not be here. For that I am forever grateful. For that I am able to share my story with the next woman just hoping that they too will see that there is purpose, that they have purpose, and that they are here on purpose.

Resilient: The process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or significant sources of stress. I’m now able to see that I’ve always been resilient in many different ways but I had to learn how to cope and be resilient in a healthier way. HER is a part of the reason I have the resilience that I have today.

*CFSA – DC Child Family Services Administration

For more than three decades, the PEN/Faulkner Foundation has connected authors with students in classrooms across the District to inspire the next generation of readers and writers. This year, we join Americans for the Arts in celebrating National Arts in Education Week to recognize the transformative power of the arts in education. Since 2010, this national celebration has brought attention to the arts as an essential part of a complete education, with students of all ages benefiting from artistic learning, innovative thinking, and creativity.

PEN/Faulkner believes that our society only thrives when we all have access to stories from a diverse variety of perspectives. Through our education programs, we empower young people to be confident and empathic global citizens by equipping them with the skills and tools they need to tell their own stories. Our experience of the pandemic this past year has shown us that the arts play a critical role in healing and unifying our communities. However, according to a 2012 report from the National Center of Education Statistics, high-poverty schools are significantly less likely to provide students with access to arts education. We strongly support access to the arts for all learners and, alongside peer literary and arts organizations serving the District, are working to address these inequities.

In response to the decline of students’ reading habits and comprehension across the country, reading specialist Elena Forzani states that “we’re teaching kids to read in a content and motivational vacuum.” Our methodology intends to achieve the exact opposite: we want to center students’ lived experiences to demonstrate how storytelling can be valuable for them.

Last school year, we served a total of 4,007 students in grades 3-12 across 41 public and public charter schools, of which 95.1% were Title I schools where at least 40% of students qualify for free and reduced meals. We donated 3,709 books to these students, including texts like Stamped by Jason Reynolds, This is My America by Kim Johnson, and Into the Beautiful North by Luis Urrea. Aside from giving students free books that they can add to their home libraries, which have been shown to positively impact individuals into adulthood, our team partners closely with educators to select the contemporary texts and authors that would best reflect and represent their students.

According to Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop, who has contributed groundbreaking research within the fields of education and American children’s literature, “literature transforms human experience and reflects it back to us, and in that reflection we can see our own lives and experiences as part of the larger human experience.” In a publishing industry that is predominantly white, with less than 30% of the 3,299 books reviewed by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center in 2020 written by BIPOC authors, it is important that we start to shift the narrative around who is “allowed” to tell stories and who can be in them.

Our education programs create supportive and inclusive learning communities where students can write poems about fear in a writing workshop led by author Derrick Weston Brown; where students can work with a professional writer in a year-long residency to self-publish an anthology of their own writing; and where students from different schools can come together to write a collaborative poem inspired by author Aida Salazar’s use of sensory language.

As Dr. Yusef Salaam, member of the Exonerated Five and co-author of Punching the Air, said to students in one of our Writers in Schools visits, “Historically, when you don’t see yourself being talked about or being dignified in what you’re reading, you disengage. We’re storytellers. We get to tell those stories.” While our team continues to address pandemic-related challenges this school year, we remain more committed than ever to provide students across DC, especially students from low-income families and students of color, with equitable access to the arts in their classrooms.

To learn more about the multicultural literary opportunities PEN/Faulkner offers to students across DC, you can visit our website, subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

While the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines across the country has begun, Christ House leadership has been diligently preparing and coordinating access to vaccines for patients, Kairos permanent housing members, and staff. Christ House’s Quality Improvement Committee decided to focus efforts on access to vaccines in January and has made great strides.

As of February, many staff had received both doses of the Moderna vaccine, or are scheduled to receive their second dose shortly. Christ House clinical staff have been identifying patients who want to learn about the vaccine, setting up appointments, and monitoring symptoms after patients receive their doses. They have been meeting with patients 1-on-1 to review how the vaccine works and most importantly, to answer any questions a patient might have about the vaccine. “This way,” says Mary Jordan, Executive and Clinical Director, as well as Nurse Practitioner, “patients are prepared either way once the vaccine is available to them.” The fact sheet distributed during these meetings includes information on how the vaccines work, risks of COVID-19, benefits of the vaccine, and information for those who have a weakened immune system.

Connecting patients with vaccines has required a high degree of patience and coordination among shelters, Unity Health Care workers, and the DC Government. The adaptability of the staff has already opened the door for many patients and Kairos members to receive their vaccines. Part of this adaptability includes extending patients’ stays when needed so that they are able to receive the second dose of the vaccine without complications. Nurse Practitioner Mari Lowe discusses another challenge to connecting patients with the vaccine, “There are misconceptions that vaccines make you sick. There is a history of systemic racism where communities of color have been mistreated in medical settings. What we’ve done to make patients comfortable is to promote autonomy in decision-making and provide access to information.” Using these strategies, Mari is happy to share that most patients, staff, and Kairos members have received at least their first dose of the vaccine at this point. She says “There is a consensus among patients, staff, and Kairos members that we are a community and vaccines are another way to protect and foster our community.”

When asked about receiving his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, one patient shared, “I didn’t feel a thing. No bad reaction. I’m glad I took it. I recommend everybody take it.” For Mary Jordan, the most important aspect of receiving the vaccine is our ability to continue to treat patients: “We’re fortunate – it gives us a degree of protection to keep working with patients coming through our doors.” In looking ahead into 2021, she shares, “I’m hopeful because we?ve contained any outbreak, we’re effectively working to get staff and patients immunized, we’re doing daily surveillance and weekly testing of patients and Kairos members. We, as healthcare workers, all feel more hopeful now that there’s a vaccine available.”

People experiencing homelessness are particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 when living in congregate settings such as shelters. Practicing hygiene and accessing PPE also present challenges to this population, increasing the risk of transmission. Ensuring the homeless population has access to vaccines quickly can help reduce the spread of the virus.