Written by Tanya Terry
Featured photo: Nearly 100 attendees participated in interactive activity and conversation stations during a recent Ruth Mott Foundation Community Forum, designed to be fun, while accomplishing a purpose.
Featured photo provided by the Ruth Mott Foundation
On Tuesday, April 15, nearly 100 Flint residents danced and enjoyed music from a DJ and dined on a catered meal by Spectacular Spudz as they provided their input on what matters most to those living in the area. It was all part of the Ruth Mott community forum that was held at Holmes STEM Middle School on that day.
“The foundation is preparing with its board to take a look at the work we’ve done over the last 10 years and asking the community for feedback to help us decide where they want to go in the future,” said Raquel Thueme, president of the Ruth Mott Foundation.
Thueme pointed out Ruth Mott’s current north Flint strategic focus and strategic plan takes them to 2025. So, strategic planning work will take place in June and October.
Some of the questions asked by the Ruth Mott Foundation at the forums included:
- What resources or programs have been helpful to you or your community, and what about them was helpful?
- Outside of your home, school and place of worship, what community spaces are important to you, and why?
- And what does it mean to you to thrive in your neighborhood, and in your household?
Flint residents’ input is critical to the Foundation’s work in grantmaking and at Applewood, the historic Charles Stewart Mott estate, according to Thueme.
Flint Resident Raymond Collins was attending his second Ruth Mott community forum on April 15.
Collins went to the forum to express his concerns and said “you can’t get better than Ruth Mott” when it comes to pouring into the community.
Flint Resident Meshelle Merritt said she was attending her third forum.
“I attend because as a resident I want to know what’s going on,” said Merritt. “I hope Ruth Mott is doing good things in the community. I believe they are, but I wanted to see what they were doing.”
Merritt said she continues to hear organizations say they are working to improve blight, help the youth and improve economic empowerment.
“As a resident, I keep hearing these themes over and over again, but I don’t see anything improving,” stated Merritt. “My personal feeling is I don’t think it’s Ruth Mott’s fault.”
Flint Resident Meshelle Merritt-Photo by Tanya Terry
Merritt shared that she felt “the Biden Administration opened up enough programs and money for Flint to have all it’s problems solved.”
“But, actually I feel that, as a resident, the quality of life is getting worse,” Merritt said. “We all hear justice for all and all the things that are written in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. But, I don’t think that’s people’s lived experience. All the talk of racial injustice and systemic racism and all these things are still very much part of our life today.”
Regarding the forum, Merritt said: “I think if something is truly going to be done, I believe in it. If it’s just an activity and the community doesn’t really get helped, I’ll eat the food and music is going. But I see other major cities thriving.”
Thueme stated the Ruth Mott Foundation is waiting to get the full results of the forums before sharing the results with everyone.
“We have committed to reporting back to the community on what we heard from everyone, and then also telling the community what we’re going to do with that information – and how it’s going to influence our work going forward,” Thueme said. “We want people to come and provide their own feedback. Every voice is important to us.”
Thueme added “Ruth Mott is recommitting to our core values at a time when we think the external environment is becoming more challenging, both to the nonprofit environment and the partners that work in community, as well as certainly to residents.”
Since June, The Ruth Mott Foundation has been working with a community engagement committee of 10 Flint residents, who helped plan and implement the forums.
The Ruth Mott Foundation’s current 2016-2025 strategic plan is focused on four priorities that were identified at a series of forums 10 years ago – youth, public safety, economic opportunity and neighborhoods.
The latest series of forums will help the Foundation to determine whether those four priorities are still the most important, and if there are other pressing issues.
On May 6, the last forum within the series will be held at Potter Elementary, from 5-7 p.m., which will also include a free meal for attendees. Preregistration is encouraged. To register, visit ruthmottfoundation.org/forums.
To read the the Foundation’s recently refreshed mission, vision and values, visit https://www.ruthmottfoundation.org/about-us/mission-vision-values/.
