Sam’s Community Connector Journey with ActionDignity: Building Bridges, Empowering Communities
Sam has always been driven by a deep desire to help others. Long before joining ActionDignity as a Community Connector, she spent her time tutoring newcomer families and translating for those who couldn’t speak English utilizing her language skills (Somali, French, Italian and Arabic). She worked with people who were struggling to find their footing, families who couldn’t afford to pay for her help, but that didn’t matter to Sam. What mattered was making a difference. She says, “Many of the families I helped were low-income and couldn’t pay me, but I enjoyed helping them.”
However, Sam yearned for something more. She wanted to be part of an organization that shared her values and would allow her to help on a larger scale. When she discovered ActionDignity, it felt like a perfect match. “I was drawn to ActionDignity’s work because they share my values and bridge the resources to make a meaningful difference in the lives of vulnerable people,” Sam shares.
Now, as a Community Connector, Sam is a vital link between ethnocultural communities and the resources they need. She organizes meetings, events, and dialogues to bring people together, raise awareness about their struggles, and give them a platform to speak up. One of her key roles is to ensure that marginalized voices are heard in policy dialogues, helping shape decisions that directly impact their lives.
Working within ActionDignity’s Theory of Change frame, Sam focuses on empowering individuals to become their own advocates. By fostering leadership, building civic capacity, and connecting communities, she is helping to create a real, lasting change. “I’m proud that through my work, we can bring about positive changes to society,” she reflects.
Sam’s journey with ActionDignity shows how one person’s commitment can ripple out to touch countless lives. If her story resonates with you, consider getting involved—whether through volunteering, advocating, or spreading the word. Together, we can help build stronger, more inclusive communities and bring about positive change, one connection at a time.
ActionDignity’s Community Connector strategy: trains and temporarily employs racialized community members who are deeply engaged in their communities to engage others, ensure culturally appropriate initiatives, bridge community members with decision-makers or service providers, conduct research, and support community-led actions and advocacy work.
ActionDignity has always pursued and supported projects that advance ActionDignity’s mission and that are priorities for ethnocultural, racialized groups, communities, or organizations. We have strong connections and working relationships with funders, policymakers, and other service providers that ethnocultural communities need to engage with to influence change.
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