The first Bridges out of Poverty Northern Colorado workshops are set for May 17 and 18 and will feature two nationally renowned speakers on poverty alleviation.
Scott Miller is founder of the Circles Campaign, a national anti-poverty effort aimed at increasing financial literacy and addressing some of the systematic causes of personal debt, now operating in Colorado and 22 other states. He also authored the book “Until It’s Gone: Ending Poverty in Our Nation, in Our Lifetime.”
Jodi Pfarr is a consultant and co-author of “Tactical Communication: Law enforcement tools for successful encounters with people from poverty, middle class, and wealth.” She also worked several years for Catholic Charities and is former executive director of Emma Norton Services, which provides housing and supportive services in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan areas to women struggling with issues surrounding low income, mental illness and/or chemical dependency.
The May 17 training is open to government and public sector employees and allows those representatives to collaborate with colleagues to explore models and methods best suited for their agencies. The May 18 training is a community-wide workshop open to representatives from the nonprofit and faith-based sectors, as well as individual community members in Larimer County.
Both May trainings will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Embassy Suites in Loveland, near The Ranch Larimer County Fairgrounds Complex.
There is no charge to attend, but pre-registration is required at BridgesNoCo.org. Breakfast (at 7:30 a.m.) and lunch will be provided. All participants will leave with tools they can begin using immediately to ensure their organizations and communities are as effective as possible in helping people move out of poverty.
Sarah Hach, director of community programs at Bohemian Foundation, said she encourages all interested community members to attend, even if they have had previous training in the Bridges out of Poverty constructs.
“The May trainings will offer something new by providing attendees with an opportunity to collaborate with their colleagues and other community members to explore models and best methods for addressing poverty here in Larimer County,” she said. “In addition, attendees will learn how to connect Bridges constructs to the specific work they do within the community and learn about the next steps for implementing Bridges and Circles in our community.”
Bohemian Foundation will offer additional Bridges workshops in August and October for the education and business sectors, and another community-wide workshop in October at the Fort Collins Lincoln Center.
For more information, go to BridgesNoCo.org.