My name is Abby and I am the Housing Systems MSW Intern for the 2023-2024 school year. In my final few months in this position, I would like to use this space to reflect on the work I have done with the Coalition and what I have learned about community and coalition building.
For the past few months, Jenn Dela Cruz and I have been hosting the Advocate Connection Space, a gathering aimed at building community and connection between advocates. The intention has been for this to be a co-created space that meets the needs of advocates, as identified by advocates. I want to express gratitude for the advocates who have attended our gatherings for the past few months, and take a moment to reflect on some of the themes that have come up during our rich conversations.
These early meetings have largely been centered around creating intentions for the space, figuring out sustainable ways to schedule and hold these meetings, and exploring topics that come up for advocates. A topic that has come up in various ways is the importance of relationships in this work, and having skills to approach relationship-building with both survivors and other providers. I have greatly appreciated the vast knowledge and practical expertise that has been brought into the room regarding this and other topics.
Another common theme that has come up is the importance of having streamlined ways to share resources. Several ideas have come out of these conversations, including a dedicated Teams channel, but it has also been an opportunity to remind us of the platforms that already exist. One such platform that I think deserves its own shoutout is the New Day Database (linked here), which is a great tool for advocates who are looking for up-to-date local resources.
This month we hosted our first hybrid meeting using the Coalition’s new Owl smart camera. This meeting sparked conversation that has prompted me to think more about the changing nature of social service provision as it has largely moved into a more virtual space. Given this, I have been reflecting on what it looks like to schedule and plan gatherings in an accessible, sustainable, and helpful way, while maintaining a connection-centered focus.
Being in these spaces has made it evident to me the range of expertise that exists in this work. There are advocates in our community that have been doing this work for decades, as well as those who may be new to this specific work but bring other experiences to help inform this work. From my own experience in direct service work, I know this work can at times feel isolating and service systems can often feel very siloed. But I also know that the times when I’ve felt the most supported are also the times when I’ve felt most connected. So a question I keep coming back to is: considering the challenging and busy nature of this work, what does sustained and connection-centered mutual support look like?
Once again, I want to extend extreme gratitude for those who have attended our previous gatherings! Our next gathering is scheduled for March 13, 2024 from 1:00pm-3:00pm at the Coalition’s office. We are trying out this new time, and we hope it will work for the majority of folks. It will be another hybrid meeting, so feel free to join via Zoom! You can find more info, including the Zoom link, on our events page.
If you have questions, feedback, suggestions, or would like to collaborate in planning future meetings please feel free to email abby@endgv.org.