Dear Friends,
It is hard to find the words to describe the pain, grief, and anger our community is experiencing right now over the death of George Floyd, but silence is not an option.
True Friends serves people from all over the state of Minnesota and a large number from the Twin Cities area. We have many people engaged in our mission (participants, families, volunteers, staff, and donors) that have been impacted by these current tragedies.
Please join me in keeping those individuals in our hearts and minds.
Like many of you, the hurt we feel for the family of George Floyd and countless others who have been victimized by racism in America, is overwhelming. For many of us, it is difficult to know what to do. What action can I/we take to make a difference, to make a positive impact?
At True Friends we are reexamining our role as individuals and as an organization.
As individuals we will:
1. Listen. Listen to understand the experiences of others.
2. Build trusting, respectful relationships with those who are different than ourselves.
3. Stay committed to learning from each other.
As an organization we will:
1. Increase our competency on the broader topics of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
2. Increase our competency on specific realities such as race, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities (ableism), age, etc.
Last year, True Friends officially opened the conversation of the broader topics of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) with our board of directors and senior leadership team. For True Friends, we are committed to enhancing these principles.
We know we can do better and we will do better to support the individuals and families we serve.
If you have an idea or suggestion on ways True Friends can offer better support, please reach out to us at info@truefriends.org.
In Solidarity and Friendship,
John LeBlanc
President & CEO
