House Concurrent Resolution 47

(As Adopted by House)

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE ESSIE B. AND WILLIAM EARL GLENN FOUNDATION FOR BETTER LIVING ON THE OCCASION OF HOSTING ITS FOURTH COMMUNITY FOCUSED ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES TRAUMA AWARENESS SYMPOSIUM AND RECOGNIZING APRIL 20, 2023, AS ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES (ACES) TRAUMA AWARENESS DAY.

WHEREAS, the Essie B. and William Earl Glenn Foundation for Better Living will host its fourth community focused Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Trauma Awareness Symposium on April 20, 2023; and

WHEREAS, this year's theme is "The Movement to Build Positive Childhood, Adult and Community Experiences: Preventing and Mitigating Environmental Trauma and ACEs" which will focus on environmental and political determinants of health that cause intergenerational trauma; and

WHEREAS, the symposium will also address these realities and highlight communities throughout the country that have been gravely impacted by poor environmental factors, and underscore the scope of environmental traumas, with a focus on building protective factors to sustain human health; and

WHEREAS, this foundation was created in 2014 by siblings: Howard, Helen, Clyde, John, Robert, Essie and Doris, to honor the "spirit of community" that their parents Essie B. and William Earl Glenn exuded throughout their lives, and thus, appropriately named it after their beloved parents; and

WHEREAS, the mission of the foundation is to create thriving communities and eliminate disparities impacting children, youth and families; and

WHEREAS, since its inception, the foundation has consistently worked to serve the community in various ways, such as training Cleveland schoolteachers on the Biopsychosocial Implications of a Healthy Brain, partnering with the City of Cleveland to host a socially-distanced annual health fair where more than 55 clinical providers and service organizations address the needs of uninsured and under-insured Delta citizens, and feeding nearly 7,000 community children, providing approximately 600 flu shots, 3,500 face masks and hand sanitizers and distributing over 43,500 pounds of food to needy families during its Annual Health, Wellness and Safety Tailgates; and

WHEREAS, more recently, the foundation helped launch food pantries to address college student hunger at two historically black colleges and universities, Alcorn State University and Mississippi Valley State University; and

WHEREAS, in 2020, the Glenn Family Foundation and ACEs Awareness Foundation expanded its footprint into Sunflower County to disseminate trauma-informed resources and advance the knowledge and practices of holistic health; and

WHEREAS, with the advent of COVID-19, the Glenn Family Foundation formed the Mississippi Community Trauma Coalition (MCTC), which is a collective of individuals representing advocacy, education, law, government, public and private sectors, communities of faith and healthcare with a mission to create resilient, sustainable, trauma-informed communities where children, youth and families have opportunities and support systems necessary to thrive; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of this Legislature to honor the fine works of organizations that seek to improve the quality of life of Mississippians and provide long term solutions:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE SENATE CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend the Essie B. and William Earl Glenn Foundation for its impressive humanitarian efforts, congratulate the organization on the occasion of its fourth statewide symposium and declare April 20, 2023, as Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Trauma Awareness Day.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to the Essie B. and William Earl Glenn Foundation and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.