The Center for Healing Hearts and Spirits will host a Community Support Forum in conjunction with the Camden-Magnolia-El Dorado Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity and the Camden Fairview School District on Thursday at 6 p.m. at Garrison Auditorium.
"The Center for Healing Hearts and Spirits is a project of the Women's Council on African American Affairs, Inc.," according to a brochure for the center, and has the mission to, "promote and nurture individuals in areas of education, economic and community development, healthcare issues, public safety and race relations."
The center, based in Little Rock, "was created to assist victims of violent crimes and chronic illness and their affected families to improve the quality of their economic and social environment, transition back into the workforce and to provide for self sufficiency," according to the brochure.
Dr. Jeffrey C. Franklin, the senior pastor at Greater St. Paul's church in Camden and chair of the community service branch of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Alumni association said he thought it would be a good idea to bring the center together with the fraternity and the school district.
"I thought it'd be a good idea to get them involved with presenting this service to the community, because over the last maybe year, two at most, there's been such a rise in violent crime and domestic abuse," said Franklin.
Franklin said he has been working for the center for a long time. Previously his work was done primarily in Pine Bluff and El Dorado, but he has seen an uptick recently in the need for services in Camden.
"I think it's time to make a greater introduction to the Camden area," said Franklin. "We just opened an office here and we're doing the ribbon cutting on the 17th."
The office for the center is located in the parsonage of the Greater St. Paul's church on Holloway Drive.
Franklin said the goal of the center is to help connect victims of violent crime and those with chronic illness with services they need to help and heal.
"For example, if someone is the victim of a homicide and the family can't provide funeral services we help with paying the cost up to $7,500," he said. "We assist with helping people get legal representation and we don't financially pay for it but... we have different lawyers and therapists and so forth, their work that are connected with the agency. So we have a referral -- personal referral to those help services, we go to court with clients."
Franklin also said the center offers preventative training.
"For example recently this big rise in the vaping and interest in vaping in young children. We partner with the state of Arkansas to produce or put out information," he said, "and about how much more harmful it is; how much more addictive it is -- the damages it's doing."
In addition, Franklin said the center also provides preventative training for opioid use and parenting classes.
"We're mainly overwhelmed with the victims of violence," he said. "I've developed a relationship with the Camden Police Department and most of our calls now, like I said, is domestic violence or the homicides that are taking place, so that's kind of up front and dominant in my work here."
With the new office in Camden, Franklin said the center will be able to provide more programs and services and he has been working to develop more interest in the community.
"That's one of the things that I think the relationship between the Kappas and the school district. It's going to help to facilitate because that's a win-win situation that is interested in having a presence in the community for the positive," he said. "The school district benefits from our involvement with some of their issues over this way."
Franklin said they are going to be proactive in helping and educating the community.
"We're here to assist people who hurt, you know. Our motto is 'Healing hearts of the community,'" he said.
According to Franklin the presentation on Thurs. is, "A partnership between the superintendent and his staff and the constituents, they're able to bring to this information in an informative forum partnering with the campus outside and their constituents to share with the community."
Franklin hopes as the Vice President of the Ministerial Alliance to be able to work with the churches to raise more interest and awareness of the center's programs.
Currently the center is working with the Kappas and the school district in Camden, but he hopes they will be able to have similar partnerships with the school districts in El Dorado and Magnolia.
"I think one of the things that really sparked here was that we opened the new office and so that was part of the push, but I'm gonna step out on a limb here because there's need. There's need for it there," he said. "I'm looking forward to the opportunity to present in those other communities."
Franklin said the presentation on Thursday will give the groups partnering with the Center for Healing Hearts and Spirits the opportunity to share what they have to offer with the community and his goal was to get this information out to the public before the holidays.
"I just hope leading up to the holidays; I just hope that some people can hear and maybe prepare themselves to not go that extra distance to victimizing or becoming the victim," he said. "Sometimes just the reminder that, hey, this is the season that these issues rise can make somebody have a second thought and slow down and hopefully that happens through these information forums."
For a list of services offered by the Center for Healing Hearts and Spirits visit www.hhscenter.org.