Beginning in September, the Truth School is partnering with The Community Resilience Hub in Northampton, MA.
The Hub is a collaborative initiative coordinated by Community Action Pioneer Valley and the City of Northampton, MA, which aims to build coordinated access to services and resources for the city’s most vulnerable residents. The Hub is currently based at St. John’s Church in downtown Northampton. Soon the Hub will have a building of its own and will be a space where community members can access meals and food resources, medical services, mental health support, case management to assist in accessing services such as social security, legal aid, housing navigation, and more, as well as intentional peer-based support systems to amplify the city’s work around mutual aid and non-institutionally-based support.
The coalition of partners working to establish the Hub are focused on centering voices and increasing representation of those with lived experience throughout this process, aiming to expand their access to power in decision-making and fostering a culture that respects and values diverse input.
This Fall the Truth School will join with the Hub at St. John’s Church to offer classes there at the church, open to all. Each class will start with Truth School class participants joining those coming to the Hub for the free dinner meal. The community meal, open to everyone, will be an opportunity for TS class participants to share a meal with members of the Hub community, forge relationships, and share stories. Following the community meal, everyone will be invited to a room adjoining the dining hall for the TS class. The community meal will begin at 6 PM, and the TS classes will begin at 7 PM.
The Truth School classes being held at the Hub this Fall are:
Resting to Rise, with Benita Jackson, on September 14;
Ladder 2 Leadership, with Nikai Fondon, on October 12;
Cultural Humility and Cross-Cultural Communications: The Building Blocks of Racial Equity, with Amihan Matias, on November 9;
Circle Practice to Mark the Winter Solstice, with Strong Oak Lefebvre, on December 21.