Minutes-12-12-2023-Business Meeting

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20 • Perform poorly in school • Use tobacco heavily These are all populations that I have worked with personally through Grow Your World. We talk with our community one-on-one about these issues. Shady Kimzey asked that the Board increase funding for Grow Your World. Veronica Petrick said Grow Your World has helped her child with anger management, improving her grades, and getting her back on track. She said that the organization has encouraged her daughter to avoid getting involved with drugs. She said Grow Your World teaches her daughter skills that she cannot. She said she appreciates what Grow Your World has done for her family and wants those opportunities for other families. She said that Grow Your World is consistent with reaching out and providing opportunities for her child. Courtney McWilliams said she is the program manager for Grow Your World. She said one thing that stands out for her is that they do not just give tools to families and then send them on their way. She said they continue to check in and work with families. She said $10,000 to purchase materials is absolutely absurd, to say the least. She said she spent 10-20 hours a week volunteering with Grow Your World and there are dozens more doing the same thing. She said to expect community members to have full responsibility, bear the brunt of the effort, and the financial burden, but the county can pay for their staff did not make sense to her. She said there are dozens of volunteers and dozens of families who work to take care of their community and put resources back into the community. She questioned whether the county could say the same thing. She said they cannot grow and change unless they are given the instructions to do so. She said in order to support children they need to keep checking in with them. She said many volunteers work with families at Grow Your World. TJ Mundy said she is a volunteer with Grow Your World. She read the instructions for how to use Narcan during an overdose. She also read the instructions for how to use Naloxone, which is administered through the nose. Sophie Suberman continued to read the instructions for administering Naloxone. She then read advice for self-care for those who have administered Narcan or Naloxone. She said that she would distribute Narcan to anyone in attendance who would like to have it. She said there is no prevention anymore. She said anything they do to build communities cannot happen in a one- time moment. Will Elmore said the work that all of the organizations do is priceless. He said the funds are not enough to get the job done. He said he has worked shoulder to shoulder with people overdosing, people who have relapsed, people who have come out of incarceration. He said they need more funds to do the work. Kari Hamel asked the Board to schedule another meeting to make sure all of the applicants have a rubric in advance and an understanding of the criteria. She asked for a public presentation on the rubric as they make these important decisions. She said the three organizations under discussion are the ones getting people to shelter and helping children stay in an academic setting. She said transparency is making sure everyone has quality information, and it did not happen this time. She asked the Board to schedule another meeting and make sure the providers have the rubric. Commissioner Portie-Ascott said that the county and nation face a loneliness and isolation crisis. She said that transparency is important to the Board and that the process is important. She said there was a breakdown this time. She asked if there was a way to take another look at the process. Commissioner Richards said she is concerned about the process and the lack of firm criteria that was understood by the community. She asked the Board to consider what they can do to pause and regroup. She said there are always things they can and cannot pay for based on what's allowed and what's not. She said that the community indicated a lack of understanding