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Gathering and Coming into Community

Ms. Pontheola Abernathy of the Clevedale Historic Inn and Gardens shared her story of how she had overcome discrimination in the real estate sector to reclaim and renew the last 4 acres of a former slave plantation to renew it into a place of well-being where everyone could feel like they belonged.

RISE Communities began their week in the beautiful gardens of the Clevedale Inn marking the beginning of WIN Week 2023.  This reunion was a time to reflect and share stories about how communities had kept their neighbors safe through the pandemic, the challenges and lessons learned.  People gathered around storyboards and exchanged the “how.” 

Communities played a scavenger hunt BINGO game organized by Elizabeth Romero and Kelley Gray about how different communities had solved thorny challenges. Hilda Ortiz and Sarai Arpero of Latino Health Access and Somava Saha of WE in the World through a powerful analogy about why we need to go upstream and introduction of the Pathways to Population Health Equity framework, described why it was essential that we shift from response to address the underlying community conditions and root causes to address the underlying causes of health inequities.  

Communities played a scavenger hunt BINGO game organized by Elizabeth Romero and Kelley Gray about how different communities had solved thorny challenges. Hilda Ortiz and Sarai Arpero of Latino Health Access and Somava Saha of WE in the World through a powerful analogy about why we need to go upstream and introduction of the Pathways to Population Health Equity framework, described why it was essential that we shift from response to address the underlying community conditions and root causes to address the underlying causes of health inequities.  

“We need to make a choice to be better ancestors, for the future.”  Somava Saha, WE in the World

Reclaiming the Past to Chart a Path to the Future

RECLAIMING THE PAST TO CHART A PATH TO THE FUTURE | 8:30 am - 12:00 pm ET

Recording | Slides

Speakers: Drew Martin, Soma Saha, Esther Dyson, Lindsay Morgan Tracy, Jennifer Bereskin, Shereese Rhodes

Communities gathered Tuesday morning at the CC Woodson Community Center in a session hosted by Wellville and the town of Spartanburg.  After a powerful start with poetry, a panel including current and former mayors and community activists talked about  the history of Spartanburg and the story of its journey to reconciliation with how racism shows up in past and present systems. They described the Apology Resolution and how they are continuing to work–and struggle–as they translate the apology to policy and systems change.

After a community to community exchange including building a chain of links, a powerful panel including the Chief Innovation Officer of Washington State Lindsay Morgan Tracy and two Steering Committee members with lived experience Jennifer Bereskin and Shereese Rhodes shared how they had reclaimed their history to chart a path to eliminating poverty in Washington State. They described why the leadership of those with lived experience was essential to this process and how they had created a policy that built inclusion, pay and exemption from having this pay count against receiving core benefits.

Tuesday afternoon included workshops and community to community exchanges on Creating Belonging and Racial Justice, the Meaning Making Machine and Addressing Vital Community Conditions and Root Causes of Health Inequities followed by powerful visits to three neighborhoods of Spartanburg led by community residents who shared the stories of the places and how our history had created the conditions for poor health and life and what they were doing to repair that.  As Jennifer Bereskin noted: “Poverty is not a choice.  Policies are systemic.  When we build them, we need to be thinking about the seven generations that come after us” 

Leaning into the Opportunities of Today to Chart a Path to the Future

After a powerful land blessing led by Dr. Ruby Gibson, we held our first multisolver world cafe! Here, we were trying to creatively think of strategies that could move more than one vital condition at the same time!   Communities shared their ideas and voted on what would most move areas like digital equity, climate equity and structural racism in public health and health care.

Wednesday afternoon, some communities visited another Spartanburg neighborhood while others engaged in a series of workshop tracks to build our collective capacity to change the system together in four tracks: Communication and Narrative Change, Data for Power, Moving the Money, Shifting Policy.

Changing the System Together

Changing a system of inequity requires much more than just good intention, it requires teamwork and community–and we all hold a piece of the puzzle. As Dr. Maria Rosario Jackson, chair, National Endowment for the Arts stated, “I know we’ve been so proud and happy to be able to be part of this process and begin to help people understand the role of the arts in wellness and resilience, in equity and well-being.”  Rear Admiral Paul Reed, MD, Rear Admiral described how 45 federal agencies are coming together to advance equity in the vital conditions through Equitable Long-Term Recovery and Resilience.  

Abeni Bloodworth of chromatic.black, community activist Shu Ling Zhao, investor Esther Dyson, Kara Big Crow of Freedom Lodge, and Malikah Berry Rogers of the Southern Black Girls and Women’s Consortium, reflected on the courage and commitment that was required to change the system in the face of erasure of story, active shooter threats and active opposition. As Anne Ekedahl summarized,  “A grassroots to grasstops movement is a bridge–it means authenticity, respect, compassion, and listening.”

BREAKOUTS ROOMS | 09:45 am - 11:15 am

Communities then prepared for the journey home by reflecting on how they would share what they had learned and be in action together.

“WIN Week was an enlightening gathering where I learned that community is an important piece in the work that we do to advance equity and wellbeing. My limited participation as a virtual participant further whets my appetite to attend the next WIN Week in person.” 

-Moyin Amoo

“I learned that as navigators in the social space, we need to embrace participative democracy, while also recognizing that communities organize in slightly different ways across different spaces. One word? Intentionality. Intentionality about rewarding the bravery of those who risk trouble for coming forth and speaking up! Intentionality about inviting others into spaces.”

- Marion Olang

Concurrent affiliate sessions

All gatherings are free and open to all unless noted otherwise.

For questions, please email us at win@weintheworld.org

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