COMMUNITY CAFÉ QUESTIONS

Questions that were asked at the Community Café that took place on August 27th

1.How do we build and connect a resilient community given the size of
Harnett County and the smaller communities within, working independently?

A) Promotion

  1. Social Media- Resilience Initiative Harnett County Facebook page
  2. Email blasts and informative videos, flyers
  3. Community outreach: community fairs, grocery stores, etc.

B) Connecting Communities within Harnett County

  1. Identify smaller communities within Harnett County
  2. Establish satellite communities to ensure inclusion
  3. Connect around resilience to different areas/towns instead of having one central meeting or convening
  4. Use consistent resilience messaging in smaller communities and Harnett County as a whole
  5. Use virtual platform that allows for translation services
  6. Form partnerships with existing initiatives that reach a broad population in Harnett County


C) How do we recruit membership and encourage participation?

  1. Focus on including families and community members first and encourage family and community member participation by providing:
  2. Transportation
  3. Childcare services
  4. Create messaging that is inclusive to entire community, not just a group of professionals addressing a “problem group”
  5. Implement collaborative decision making
  6. Recruit by virtual participation 
  7. Send personal invitation with accountability
  8. Provide incentives to encourage participation with food, gift cards, door prizes, etc.
  9. Implement different modes of communication and social media

D) Understand True Needs of Communities within Harnett County

  1. Recognize current hardships for some families
  2. Help people feel connected despite physical distance
  3. Help families and communities feel more secure
  4. Use virtual platforms to connect organizations and agencies across Harnett County

E) Training

  1. Find Resilience Trainers in Harnett County and offer training to attract new agencies to attend
  2. Continue to screen Resilience, The Biology of Stress & The Science of Hope in various community venues
  3. Train diverse groups who then go and train others within their respective communities


2. Where, when, and how often should we meet?

  1. Virtual meetings initially
  2. Alternate meetings and locations to include all areas within Harnett County
  3. Monthly or Bi-Monthly
  4. Meet at different locations to raise awareness of different organizations and roles within Harnett County