Goodwill’s Business Advisory Council (BAC) turned over its rostrum to eight community organizations on Thursday, March 7, to kick off a “Spotlight on Community Changemakers” pitch series that will continue throughout the year.
The group, best known as a networking opportunity within the city’s business community, decided to share the stage with non-profit organizations as a way of starting the year on a positive note, said new BAC Chair Sasha James, a recruiting sourcing specialist from The Omni Grove Park Inn.
“This is going to start out with something really positive for the year,” she said. “I thought the engagement was great.”
The lunchtime meeting at Goodwill’s Workforce Development Center on Patton Avenue in Asheville highlighted:
* Helpmate, which provides “safety, shelter and support” for victims and survivors of domestic violence.
* The Mediation Center, which provides training on workplace conflict resolution.
* Sunrise Community for Recovery and Wellness, a peer-staffed and managed organization that assists those experiencing issues of mental health and substance use disorders, houselessness or incarceration.
* Our Voice, which offers an array of services to survivors of sexual violence and human trafficking, including a crisis line, legal advocacy, counseling services and prevention education.
* Western North Carolina Community Health Services, which provides medical, behavioral health and dental services as a Federally Qualified Health Center.
* Veterans Services of the Carolinas, whose programs include housing and employment assistance, suicide prevention and service coordination for military veterans.
* Resources for Resilience, which provides trainings, resources and professional development workshops to help people “manage stress and find compassion and connection.”
* Catholic Chairities, a Christian ministry that focuses on charity, service and justice dedicated to providing help to those in need, hope to those in despair and inspiration for others to follow.”
Representatives from each group were given five minutes for the same kind of “elevator pitch” an entrepreneur might make in courting potential investors.
The point, organizers said, was to give the non-profits a networking opportunity to build awareness and partnerships to improve the community as a whole.
James said she knows there are so many other organizations whose work deserves the spotlight, so plans are in the works for additional sessions later this year. She said she liked setting a tone for 2024 by focusing on groups that serve the community. “It gives us a little hope,” she said.