August 2023

South Dakota Voices For Peace
 
The Monthly

Mission:  South Dakota Voices for Peace builds power and enables healing in immigrant refugee, and Muslim communities by amplifying their voices in solidarity with all who dismantle bigotry and racism.

Vision:  We imagine a South Dakota that is diverse, inclusive, and anti-racist.

SDVFP has four programming areas: Education/Training, Outreach/Civic Engagement, Legal Services, and Rapid Response. 

Support our mission and donate by clicking here!

This week is National Community Health Worker week! For this month's newsletter, we are going to highlight our CHWs and all the work they do! Read on to learn more about Community Health Workers!

Meet our Community Health Workers!

Eden Liebenthal
Eden moved to South Dakota in 2018. She graduated from the University of South Dakota with her Bachelor's degree in Social Work. At USD, she studied abroad in Heredia, Costa Rica which continues to fuel her passion for learning/supporting the diversity of cultures in the state.  She started with SDVFP as a social work intern and then accepted the Community Health Worker position. Eden is passionate about community development and inclusion. Currently, she is working part time while starting her Social Work Master's Program at the University of Minnesota.

Aliyah Abdulrahman
Aliyah is from Worthington, Minnesota where she grew up in a diverse community that fostered her love for the immigrant and refugee populations. Aliyah pursued this passion and attended college at Augustana University where she studied Spanish and Education to become a teacher. Aliyah taught English as a Second Language at a middle school in Sioux Falls. Aliyah is pursuing her Community Health Worker certification from Minnesota West Community and Technical College.

Erica Aguilar
As the daughter of Mexican immigrants, English was not Erica's primary language. Nevertheless, she was resolute in her pursuit of higher education in the United States. After successfully completing the ESL program at college, she relocated to Yankton, SD in 2015. Erica's bilingual proficiency has enabled her to create meaningful connections within the community, and she has always possessed a passion for helping others. Erica believes that pursuing a career as a Community Health Worker is an ideal way to positively impact people's lives. Currently, Erica is actively working towards obtaining her CHW certification at Minnesota West Technical and Community College.

Why do we have Community Health Workers?

Our Community Health Workers act as a bridge for our legal clients, providing them with access and connections to social, medical, and community resources. By having Community Health Workers, we are able to provide a holistic and realistic chance at a better life for our legal clients. We are able to provide our clients with immigration legal services AND the tools to adapt to life in the United States!

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CHW Impact

Our CHWs have assisted our clients with access to a multitude of resources! Check out the graph to see some of the specific things CHWs have connected our clients with.

SUCCESSES

​Here are some recent wins our CHWs have had:

• Conversations and presentations regarding multilingual access to 34 organizations
• Proposed a study in partnership with Beacom fellows about a systematic review of multilingual access in Sioux Falls for basic needs services
• Assisted a client with over $28,000 in medical bills by applying for financial assistance to cover the entire amount
• Enrolled 54 families into ACP with the Outreach team, saving a total of $19,140. Some clients now have internet in their homes for the first time.
• CHW connected the food pantry in Yankton with a Mexican grocery store. Now the pantry can improve services and food options for Yankton's diverse population.

Within the last quarter, our CHWs:

• Worked with 85 individuals
• Made 207 referrals to organizations to help clients with basic needs, as well as provided clients with emotional support
• Presented and had discussions with 7 organizations and community partners
• Successfully registered 16 students from Spanish-speaking families in a free school supply program
• Successfully registered 9 people for Medicaid benefits
• Referred 9 children from uninsured families into free high-quality dental services

You can help us in continuing this important and life-changing work. Please click here to donate and support our organization.