by Brandon Elwood
Guadalupe Community School Coordinator
The holidays are a time for gathering and spending time with those you hold most dear. Guadalupe School is often referred to as a family, and the annual holiday party is one of those opportunities to gather together as a whole. Out of all of the events during the year, the holiday party may be the best attended. As such, it is a perfect opportunity for collective impact partners to get to know and serve the Guadalupe community.
The holiday party tradition at Guadalupe has been around for many years, but has only recently had a strategic focus around providing services to the community. A few years back, Guadalupe was among the first to adopt the community school model. United Way of Salt Lake was instrumental in facilitating Guadalupe’s move to a community school and paved the way for a Community School Coordinator to join the ranks of the Guadalupe team. Now, the holiday party has become more than just a fun gathering. A number of different community partners have been invited each year to provide services and interact with the Guadalupe community.
Community Nursing Services (CNS) and Comunidades Unidas (CU) were both able to play a major role in this year’s holiday party. Flu shots and other immunizations were offered to Guadalupe Families by CNS, and the “immunization station” stayed busy all night. Individuals and volunteers from CU provided a number of fun activities that opened the door to conversations with Guadalupe parents. Invitations to parent workshops and classes were extended, opportunities to become involved as parents were discussed, and positive relationships were fostered.
Guadalupe School intends to continue the tradition of a holiday party and to provide opportunities for its families through strong, Collective Impact partnerships.
