Helping Others Through The Holidays: The Importance Of Relationship Building To Support Communities

Abstract

Low-income communities lack resources in the areas of education, healthcare, mental health, etc. These environments limit shoppers from purchasing healthy foods and in some cases any food at all. Commonwealth Mental Health and Wellness Center (CMHWC) is a comprehensive behavioral health and wellness clinic that provides the highest standard of care for its clientele while also meeting their diverse needs. The purpose of this senior level internship was to assist families in need with access to food items for Thanksgiving. Clients participated in a needs assessment to provide a better understanding of what each individual family needed. Donor and provider letters were sent out requesting donations for these families. A total of 50 families were provided with Thanksgiving holiday baskets during the 2020 giveaway.