Community engagement shifts from day to day, but the heart of it stays the same: listening, showing up, and working as a team to support people in ways that feel real to them. What keeps me grounded is remembering that wellbeing—for the community and for our team—comes from the small, consistent moments where we slow down and actually hear people.
For that reason, when I think about what my role looks like, listening is the first thing that comes to mind. Not the kind where you keep an ear open while rushing to the next task, but the kind that gives someone room to share their story at their own pace. Many of the community members we work with haven’t always had that. Once they feel heard, they open up about what matters to them, what isn’t working, and what support would be most meaningful. Some of those relationships continue long after a project ends, which says a lot about how trust builds over time.
Listening is where authentic conversation begins, but it’s only the starting point. The work grows from there—adjusting plans when people tell you what they need, handling sensitive moments with care, and leaning on your team so you can keep showing up with consistency.
No two communities respond the same way, and we learn quickly what builds comfort and what doesn’t. In some regions, phone calls work fine. In others, trust only forms when you’re sitting across from someone, hearing their story face-to-face. There are groups who prefer digital communication, and others who feel more at ease when you stop by in person.
The key is paying attention and adjusting the approach instead of assuming one method fits everyone. Once we shifted to more in-person conversations in one area, the tone changed instantly—people were more open, more curious, and more willing to engage. And moments like that remind me that flexibility is a cornerstone of successful community partnerships.
Every so often, a community member will share a past experience that makes them uneasy about a partner, speaker, or resource we’re planning to include. These moments are delicate because the feelings behind them are real, even if the situation has many layers.
When that happens, I try to understand what’s underneath the concern. People want to feel safe recommending something to their own community. They want to know that we hear them. They want reassurance that their experiences won’t be brushed aside.
Instead of shutting anything down immediately, broadening the conversation often helps. Sometimes that means offering additional perspectives or adding another resource, so people have more than one path to choose from. Sometimes it means giving someone space to share their experience in a way that feels empowering. The goal is to support the individual while still giving the broader community access to everything that may help them.
This process is a balance, and it requires empathy from everyone involved—including our internal teams—and people walk away feeling respected when we handle these moments thoughtfully.
"People want to feel safe recommending something to their own community. They want to know that we hear them. They want reassurance that their experiences won’t be brushed aside."
Community work sits at the intersection of several internal teams: content, data, client strategy, marketing, and more. Each of us brings a different piece to the table, and the work only comes together when we communicate openly.
Since we’re mission-driven, roles aren’t boxed in. People are willing to step up, try new things, and venture outside their usual lane when a situation calls for it. That flexibility helps us move quickly when something shifts in the field. I’ve taken on responsibilities I didn’t expect and so have many of my colleagues—in a good way. You learn where you can best help, what you enjoy, and what the community responds to.
Working closely across teams also means being honest. If something in our materials doesn’t land well with the community, I bring it back. If the data team needs something clarified, I will adjust how I gather information. That back-and-forth is part of why the work functions. We all want the same thing: to help people feel supported and informed.
Affective Trust, trust rooted in emotional connection, doesn’t show up in one big moment. It’s usually a slow shift—someone speaking a little more openly, sharing personal details, or giving feedback they were hesitant to share before. Sometimes trust looks like someone telling you what they didn’t like because they believe you’ll treat their concerns seriously.
One person I worked with told me she expected our relationship to continue long after the project ended. And it has. Connections like that remind me how personal this work can become when you give people time and attention.
Every project brings moments that stick with me—someone saying they’ve never been invited to a health event before, someone realizing they deserve to understand their condition, or someone sharing their story publicly for the first time.
For example, one caregiver spoke on a panel after years of staying quiet about his experience. When he finished, he told us he was “just getting started.” That stays with me because it shows what can happen when people are given a platform. Most of the time, it’s not that people don’t want to share. It’s that no one has asked.
Community engagement asks a lot of the people doing the work. It asks for patience, empathy, flexibility, and emotional bandwidth. None of that is sustainable without a team that supports one another.
When our internal wellbeing is strong, our external work reflects that strength. We communicate better, adapt faster, and create experiences rooted in care. That’s how trust builds—through steady, shared effort over time.
Our engagement model works because it’s human. We listen. We adjust. We collaborate. And we treat every person we meet as someone whose story deserves room. That’s what community engagement looks like when teamwork and wellbeing guide the work—and that’s what I’m proud to be part of every day.
Ready to learn more about our community partnerships? Schedule a 1:1 with our team.