One Dozen Who Care, Inc.
A Community Development CorporationFor the past six years, One Dozen Who Care, Inc. has been working to strengthen leadership and create community in and around Cherokee County. The small group of mainly African American women focuses its efforts in three areas: building bridges between cultures and races in far Western North Carolina; developing and strengthening leadership among local women and youth; and preserving African American culture and heritage.
One Dozen Who Care was initially organized by Ann Miller Woodford, a community leader who was born and raised in Cherokee County. Seeing the need for Black women to assume roles of leadership and empowerment, Ann began canvassing the African American women of the far western mountains. At a meeting on April 26, 1998, a group of these women united as an organization that would empower not only African American women, but all women in the region, and they named their new group One Dozen Who Care.
Building Bridges between Cultures and Races
One Dozen puts much of its energy into efforts to build bridges of communication and understanding between people of different racial and cultural backgrounds in the far western counties of North Carolina. Perhaps their most well known event is the Multi-Cultural Women's Development Conference, an annual event held in Hayesville, NC with the goals of teaching women self-reliance skills, building relationships across culture and race, increasing self-confidence and respect, and re-connecting women to their culture and heritage.
For the last five years, the conference has brought together a racially diverse group of over 100 women to explore their personal and professional development, with workshops covering everything from starting a small business to dancing and drumming and car repair. Every year, participants respond that one of the most important aspects of the event is simply the chance to come together in a meaningful way with dozens of women from other cultural backgrounds.
In order to build on that cultural experience, in 2004 One Dozen added a third day to the conference, specifically focused on exploring issues related to race and diversity. Cultural Diversity Day included both men and women as participants and speakers. In a series of panel discussions, presenters shared information on the histories, cultural practices, economic situations and other current issues of Cherokee, Latino, and African American communities in the region. Other sessions explored questions of race, power and economics, and the need to address institutionalized privilege and prejudice so that all people may reach their full potential.
The challenging and thought-provoking discussions of Cultural Diversity Day have inspired One Dozen to move forward with more efforts around cultural diversity training and discussions. Ideas range from informal discussion dinners and one-on-one conversations to more formal trainings and workshops, and the goal of making Cultural Diversity Day an annual event.
Leadership Development for Women and Youth
Another focus of One Dozen's work is developing the skills and leadership abilities of women and youth. The 10-10-10 Youth Empowerment Program focuses mainly on youth of color, with the purpose of building confidence and self-esteem, broadening their vision of what's possible, and developing future leaders who can give back to the community. The Women's Leadership Initiative provides empowerment-focused educational and cultural experiences along with support and encouragement to women living in the far western counties. As with all of One Dozen's efforts, these programs take a holistic approach that recognizes and utilizes the connections between social, economic, educational and spiritual development.
Preserving African American Culture and Heritage
The third major focus for One Dozen is preserving and celebrating the heritage and culture of the African American communities in the far western counties of North Carolina. Despite the popular conception that Appalachia is (made up of White people only), many African American families and communities trace their history here back to well before the Civil War. The histories and cultural patterns of Appalachian African Americans are unique in the United States, but often go unrecognized even in their own communities.
One Dozen Who Care's forthcoming documentary "When All God's Children Get Together: a Celebration of African American Church Music" will celebrate this part of African American history and culture. The book, video and audio tapes will not only help preserve a piece of history that is in danger of being lost, but also affirm that the community development efforts of groups like One Dozen Who Care build on strong traditions that go back more than a century.
The Center for Participatory Change enjoys a strong connection with One Dozen Who Care, Inc. CPC staff work with One Dozen on issues related to strategic planning, Board development, and fundraising, and annually assist with evaluation and reflection sessions to evaluate the Conference and other major projects. Ann Woodford is an active member of CPC's Board of Directors, serving on the Fundraising Planning Committee and the Review Committee of the Self Development Fund. And as both organizations have set multicultural and anti-racism efforts as critical aspects of our strategic plans, we look forward to an even stronger partnership in the future.
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