Things are different here at the grant program. I am so used to meeting in person and connecting with folks. It’s easy to come to life and build authentic relationships when you share common space. I was seriously concerned about how our relationship building would be affected by the inability to be together with community leaders and groups throughout the city. That was my challenge. Yes, things are different but Community Connections figured it out and continues to build and support authentic relationships.

The bulk of my interactions are now virtual. There are even more emails being sent and daily video meetings are the new norm. The global pandemic forced a major shift in how we work and more importantly how we relate to one another. As a grant program, working with groups that are most in need we couldn’t afford to wait to see how things might change. We got fast to work figuring out how to continue relationship building on a virtual platform. Let me share a few ways of how we have adapted our outreach and technical assistance.

A typical day for me in March of 2020, found me attending community meetings, hosting workshops, and assisting people with grant applications in our office or at a location in the community. Our creativity kicked in overnight as we pivoted to a virtual platform. We came up with creative content for social media, created raffles, and we have even sent out grant information via snail mail. I realized early on that we were still effectively reaching our audience. The response to our new way of outreach was positive. New applicants were responding to our outreach in impressive numbers. I also host various virtual workshops and make a ton of calls and send emails to spread the word about the grants we have available. The workshops are conducted on Zoom and we’ve added a fun raffle in lieu of the snacks we used to have when meeting in person. I am very pleased to see people enjoying the workshops, so much so that there are some applicants and grantees that attend several times simply to be a part of the experience.

I also give dedicated, focused attention to each applicant and grantee through video calls and phone conferences. Providing assistance is always a rewarding experience as I get to witness groups go from rough initial grant drafts to more polished final submissions. It is a source of satisfaction and pride given the challenges posed by the pandemic. The challenges require us to take our efforts to the next level. Due to our family-like approach when engaging with the community, many of our conversations begin with connecting with people on a very human level, hearing and sharing about their highs, lows, joys, and fears.  It’s often the little things spoken and unspoken that spark the connections for all other matters to be effectively addressed. People seem to need a space to connect on a human level before and during receiving support for their grant. The need for such connection has increased enormously during the pandemic. There aren’t many grant programs that make space to relate on a human level. At Community Connections, we provide that space and opportunities for that and more. This is how authentic relationships are formed. When these conversations unfold, the apparent needs of the community inform us how we can continue to best support them. There is so much to learn once the fruits of relationship take root and start to grow. Building relationships is a huge component of the work that we do. It has been important to invest increased energy into establishing relationships to maintain connections as durable as those made when we engaged face-to-face before the pandemic. I understand that this is a challenging time and many people have never applied for a grant, which can be intimidating. So, as we adapt to the changes, we continue to make the process simple and transparent with support for the community every step of the way.

Virtual outreach and technical assistance are an adjustment for us and the groups we support, but our commitment remains the same. We are in this together and we are continuing to do our best to support the community as we always have. Stay tuned for all of the great things we have coming.