On Thursday, February 21st, Pearls of Empowerment hosted The Cost of Poverty Experience (COPE). COPE is a simulation designed to help participants understand real life situational poverty. It allows participants to experience the impact poverty has on real families in our communities.
Groups were formed to represent families and were then tasked with finding resources and allocating the minimal monies and possessions they had in order to live day-to-day and survive. This impactful event beautifully aligned with the vision and purpose Pearls of Empowerment strive to fulfill and was insightful for the 80+ participants.
Each year Pearls of Empowerment award grants with the purpose of improving the lives of women and children in our community. The COPE event was planned and hosted with the intention of gaining a better understanding of the purpose behind various grant requests that Pearls receive each year.
With the facilitation of Tara Wallace-Boone, a Success Coach with the Community Service Block Grant through YVEDDI, this event was impactful for all Pearls and community-wide participants.
Many participants were educators or those who work for various agencies. These participants see the effects of poverty on students and community members daily. COPE gave educators the opportunity to better understand what their students might experience outside of the classroom, therefore informing their teaching and classroom management methods. COPE also encouraged collaboration and communication between agencies in order to provide thorough assistance to those in the community.
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