September 19, 2023 | Community Voice
“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view, until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.” – Harper Lee “Walk a Mile in My Shoes” is a timeless expression that carries a strong sentiment – don’t judge me – you...
July 25, 2023 | Community Voice
When the Next Stage team hosted Justin Taylor from Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont a few weeks ago, we were shocked to learn more about the ‘benefits cliff’ in North Carolina and other states. The term refers to the sudden loss of benefits...
July 18, 2023 | Community Voice
Written by: Brooke Lackey In my first week as Next Stage’s Community Voice Fellow, I was given my main task of the summer: to explore the Albemarle corridor, one of six Corridors of Opportunity in Charlotte. I was to get knee-deep in the demographics, history and...
May 30, 2023 | Community Voice
The Next Stage Team is excited to welcome Brooke Lackey who will be joining us as our summer community voice fellow starting on Monday June 5, 2023. As Next Stage has worked with nonprofits and corporate social responsibility teams the past eight years, our reputation...
May 9, 2023 | Community Voice
By Helen Hope Kimbrough “The best questions get to the heart of the matter.” – David Ehrlichman, Impact Networks A common first question when meeting someone is “What do you do for a living?” Responses range from reflections on a journey as to how someone got to...
April 25, 2023 | Community Voice
Over the last few months, we’ve talked a lot about the importance of centering community voice and building trust. But what is the cost of mistrust? Lack of trust for an organization, project or community comes at a huge cost. Cultivating authentic, long-term...