Workshop to fight poverty set for Friday

Hill County Early Childhood Investment team is sponsoring a Poverty 101 one-day workshop led by Donna M. Beegle Friday at Havre Inn & Suites from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Registration is free and lunch will be provided. Registration ends today with a limit of 100 participants.

People can register on EventBrite searching for events in Havre, online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dr-donna-beegle-poverty-101-registration-89991812935?utm_term=eventurl_text, or can contact Hill County Early Childhood Investment Team Family Engagement and Coalition Coordinator Tina Thomas at 390-4772. 

“The Hill County Early Childhood Investment Team wanted to bring Beegle to Hill County because we know poverty is a significant concern in our community,” Thomas said.  “According to the 2018 Montana Kids Count Data Book, 23 percent of children ages 0-17 in Hill County are living in families where the income is below 100 percent of the federal poverty level. This is significantly higher than the overall state average which is 16 percent. Research has also shown that children living in poverty often have internal perceptions that they are not smart and have personal deficiencies due to living in poverty.”

She said Beegle, of Oregon, is the president of Communication Across Barriers, a consulting firm dedicated to building poverty-informed communities that are armed with the tools to break barriers. She is also the founder of the Opportunity Community movement that provides the foundation for a contemporary war on poverty.

Beegle’s work has spread by word-of-mouth to all 50 states in the U.S. and six countries, Thomas said.

She said Poverty 101 will provide participants with the knowledge and practical strategies needed for communicating with and assisting people who are living in the crisis of poverty.

“We will gain tools for understanding how different life experiences impact how people view and interact with their community,” she said. “We will also learn five evidence-based practices that we can use right away to improve our interactions and outcomes. Beegle will also share examples of communities that have had success in removing poverty-based obstacles.”

“I am looking forward to seeing the community come together to make a difference,” Thomas said. “I know so many agencies, organizations, groups and individuals that focus their efforts on supporting our community and making a positive impact on the people of our community. I am hopeful that Beegle’s message can shift perspectives and give all of us tools to break down some of those barriers.”