As Circles USA continues to expand, the national office is grateful to add more infrastructure and reach to our system of chapter support. To that end, Regional coaches now support the West, the Midwest, the South, and the Mid-Atlantic regions. Working across geographic, economic, and political boundaries, each regional coach hosts monthly regional community of practice calls for mutual support and collaboration, coaches their regional chapters on a regular basis, and advises new chapters in their early design phase before launch. They also support regional collaborations to expand local Big View efforts so as to have a greater impact on systemic change and inform the national office of regional trends and needs.
This blog series introduces you to Circles USA’s Regional Coaches: who they are, where they come from, and how their leadership helps realize CUSA’s vision of communities in which everyone has enough money, meaning, and friends to thrive.
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MY NAME IS…
Hi everyone, my name is TJ Williams with Circles in Northwest Arkansas.
MY IMPORTANT LIFE EXPERIENCES, JOURNEYS, CHALLENGES AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS INCLUDE…
I have been involved with Circles now for four years and was part of the launch team of the NWA chapter. I have been the coach of our chapter, as well as playing key roles in the strategic planning and development for our organization, for three years now. I was first introduced to Circles back in 2018, when I was studying at Fuller Seminary and working at a local church on developing our outreach programs to address homelessness in our community. I am a singer-songwriter and novice gardener. I have two elementary-age kids and love traveling and hanging out with family. I am so excited to support our Central Region chapters in our work to reduce poverty!
SOMETHING SPECIAL YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT OUR REGION IS…
Northwest Arkansas is one of the fastest growing regions in U.S. and faces very real challenges in keeping up with the population growth. This is especially apparent in the growing number of people who are working but struggling to afford life in our region.
A MAJOR CHALLENGE WE FACE IN ALLEVIATING POVERTY IN OUR REGION IS…
One of the biggest challenges and opportunities that we face is in shifting the collective understanding of what poverty is, and what it will actually take to make real progress in our communities.
RECENTLY, OUR REGION HAS ACCOMPLISHED…
Recently in Fayetteville, AR, our City Council officially declared a Housing Crisis. They formed a task force focused on developing solutions and recommendations for the City to consider in response. This was a culmination of two years of work, beginning with one of our Circle Leaders advocating for, and mobilizing, her own apartment complex to address concerns about living conditions and code violations. Earlier this year we convened a community-wide event titled “Home is Where the Hardship is,” with 300 in attendance. It featured many of our Circle Leaders sharing their experiences as renters in our community. The momentum for addressing housing in our community has significantly picked up, due to the hard work and partnership of many people and orgs in our community over the last two years.
ONE THING WE WANT POTENTIAL CIRCLES PARTICIPANTS TO KNOW IS…
Your voice, your leadership, and your perspective on the challenges our communities are facing are vital for us to make progress towards reducing poverty.
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To find a local chapter or learn how Circles USA can make a difference in your community, visit https://www.circlesusa.org/start-circles?tabs=FindCircles.
Read more about Circles USA Regional Coaches on our blog.
Click the Give to Circles button and help us celebrate 25+ years of extraordinary volunteers building community to end poverty!