4 minute read
Connell Sanders
CONNELL SANDERS
Worcester women we’re watching in 2021
Advertisement
SARAH CONNELL SANDERS
Our society’s elevation of hegemonic masculinity became glaringly evident last week at the Capitol Hill riot. The heartbreaking news and frightening footage led me to look back at many of the remarkable local women I’ve interviewed over the last year, in search of hope. Here are some wise words and professional leads that bear repeating as we seek peace and justice in the new year.
The 13-year-old dedicated to keeping Black dads safe
Name: Madison Whalen
Memorable Quote: “After the murders of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, I was scared for my dad. All the stories I had been hearing made me nervous for him to even be out walking around. Me and my mom created this idea to hand out dash cams over the summer to help the community in the best way that we could.”
Contact: Maddie’s efforts are in collaboration with 508 Forever Young. You can inquire about dash cams by emailing info@ 508foreveryoung.com.
The artist who reminded us that size is not indicative of power
Name: Lord Smokey Bruja
Memorable Quote: “I want everyone to know they are not alone ... It’s about being as small as a bee, but making something as beautiful as golden honey.”
Contact: LSB’s most recent gallery show took place at The Bridge at 300 Southbridge Street. For more information about future events, email savebridgepride@gmail.com.
The web developer who built a database of tenacious women
A painting by Worcester artist Lord Smokey Bruja from her 2020 show on strength and survival, “Bee Like Honey.”
Memorable Quote: “Publishers go after whatever is going to make the headlines more clickable and the stories easier to write. Women tend to kind of shy away and run away because we’ve been taught not to brag. With this project, I’m asking women to brag about their friends.”
Contact Info: You can contact Claudia through her site, Women Worc.
The 21-year-old model and activist who organized Worcester’ Amplify Black Voices rally
Name: Magdelene Barjolo
Memorable Quote: “Just because Black men and women, and even children, are not killed on a daily basis in the streets of Worcester does not mean that racism doesn’t exist here. It’s within the healthcare system and the education system. It’s in different aspects of our daily lives. And, it’s time that we realize and acknowledge the oppression and injustices that Black people face.”
Contact Info: Follow Maggie’s progress on Instagram at @ magdelenebarj.
The doctor who tackled childhood trauma in a pandemic
Name: Heather C. Forkey, MD
Memorable Quote: “Use the three R’s: reassure safety, return to routine, and regulate. Regulation asks us to identify emotions and address them. For kids, it can often mean giving them the words for what they’re feeling or teaching them how to understand what the feeling is if they’re too young to learn words. We sometimes substitute colors
SUBMITTED PHOTO
for words. I’ll ask, ‘Do you feel red today? Is what you’re feeling making you feel purple?’”
Contact: Dr. Forkey is the clinical director of the Foster Children Evaluation Service and chief of the Division of Child Protection for the UMass Memorial Children’s Medical Center in Worcester. Learn more about her work at https://www.umassmed. edu/faces/.
The running coach who helped girls find their inner strength
Name: Karen Spencer
Memorable Quote: “Girls on the Run teaches girls how to stand up for themselves and deal with their emotions in a healthy way … We organize small groups of 15 to 20 girls to meet after school, twice a week for 10 weeks. We have trained coaches who implement a social-emotional development curriculum that is basically focused on girls empowerment.”
Contact: Learn more about out how the local chapter of GoTR has persevered through a global pandemic at https://www. gotr-worc.org/.
The woman who made sure no student went hungry when Worcester Public Schools went virtual
Name: Donna Lombardi
Memorable Quote: “Through the national school breakfast and school lunch programs, we feed approximately 18,000 students every day. That number will expand as breakfast evolves into the classroom in additional schools.”
Contact: Donna is the Child Nutrition Program Director for the Worcester Public Schools, tasked with overseeing all USDA and Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education (DESE) funded child nutrition programs. Check out the most up to date grab-and-go and mobile meal delivery schedules on the Menus & Nutrition website.
The woman who worked to create a critical mass of economic activity in Main South
Name: Ivette Olmeda
Memorable Quote: “I feel very proud to say, as a resident of Worcester for 30 years who has shopped in this neighborhood, the businesses are finally organized as the Main South Business Association. They meet on a monthly basis. The last milestone was to appoint an executive committee. One of the things they immediately began to do was engage with the neighborhood residents.”
Contact: Ivette is a MassDevelopment Transformative Development Initiative Fellow. For more information about Worcester’s TDI districts, you can email her at iolmeda@massdevelopment.com.
