The Force Of Justice

of

Community Champions

Creating Innovation Solutions to Improve the Quality of life from Our Communities

I would like to tell you a story. When a Community Champion contacted me to support Catholic Charity in its efforts to provide with a backpack to migrant children, children of our agricultural workers in the Grant Area of Washington, I said yes. As a CHWCMR Executive Director, a new non-profit organization, I knew it would be a difficult challenge, particularly because 200 backpacks were needed. I also knew that we did not have enough funds to pay for those backpacks. However, we have power, the power to have collaborators, sponsors, and partners. I contacted Dr. Mejia from Molina, who is also our Medical Officer, for help and he said “Yes” we can get 200 backpacks from Molina to give to our partner and collaborator from Catholic Charity. Molina cares about their members around the state and about non-profit organizations such as ours so that we can make a difference by supporting others. As a non-profit, we asked Molina to provide the backpacks and we paid for the backpack to be delivered to our partner. Thanks to our combined efforts 200 children received a backpack to go to school today. We are proud to work together for a common goal with others. We are a coalition, Community Health Worker Coalition for Migrants and Refugees in Washington State.

If you asked me what is CHWCMR?

Ileana Maria Ponce-Gonzalez, MD, MPH

Executive Director

A message from

Ileana Ponce, MD, MPH

CHWCMR and my Garden

My garden also represents the mission of the Community Health Workers for Migrants and Refugees, because most of my plants are stressed. As many of the people who work with refugees and agricultural workers.

Many of my plants are displaced like agricultural workers and refugees as well as stressed, needing any things and resources.

of my plants die, not because of a lack of love or resources, but for their post-traumatic experience.
My plants were transplanted, and they needed to adapt to s new environment, perhaps to a hostile one for them.
Maybe they lost their leaves to breathe, or their roots to survive on their long road.

Some of the plants achieve it, others do not.
Like our communities, they lost a lot on their way to find an asylum, a shelter or a place to work hard.
Some of us achieved it, others did not.