When Issues Converge: A Holistic Approach to a Healthy Community

Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention Workshop in session

Creating safe and healthy communities is a holistic process in which all social needs must be considered. The Resurrection Project, having a presence and sensing the pulse of our communities, sometimes encounters people seeking help on just one particular issue of their concern. Once at our doors, they are very grateful of our capacity to serve them on other concerns.

Last fall a female seeking assistance to attain her citizenship came to one of our New American Initiatives (NAI) citizenship workshops. NAI workshops are designed to educate on the requirements for filing for citizenship and also provide assistance with the application. As volunteers meet with candidates seeking citizenship status and review every item in their applications, TRP’s Franky Stebbins met this female and learned that she was currently suffering from breast cancer. The stage of her cancer was advanced as she had one of her breast removed but still had no opportunities to receive further assistance to properly treat her condition.Aware of her hardships, Franky referred her to our Health Advocate, Araceli Lucio, for help.

TRP, in collaboration with Access Community Health Network has been advocating to reduce the incidents of Breast and Cervical Cancer in our communities. Through our program, underserved local women, predominantly Hispanic and African-American, can access low-cost or no cost medical services along with educational opportunities on the prevention and early detection this disease. No health insurance is necessary to participate in this program financed by The Center for Disease Control and Prevention, thus facilitating local females with easy access to services that they typically would not seek due to economic constraints or would but only under urgent situations. It was such program that gave this female cancer patient the opportunity to receive the chemotherapy treatment she needed, 6 sessions every 3 weeks. Currently, she continues battling the disease and is due for radiotherapy, but she is not alone anymore as we are assisting her not only with this life threatening disease but with her legal status too.

From citizenship advocacy to health initiatives, we have been able to offer the community the sense of security and stability it needs to succeed. However, our job is not complete as we know this female represents one of the many underserved females worried about her legal status and deprived of basic social services imperative for healthy living. As we grow, our initiatives expand, converging at points and bridging those in need of our legal, financial and social programs to our doors. We are proud to be that portal to a healthier community.