On the Table: Worries about housing, mental health

The report is in, and the results are clear.

Across a wide swath of Southwest Florida, there is deep concern about the community’s pressing social issues, the desire to connect with others to explore them and the realization that collaboration is critical in order to take action to solve them.

The participants in On the Table SWFL have committed to do just that.

On the Table is more than a place to eat. It is about big ideas springing from small conversations.

The recently released On the Table SWFL 2023 Community Conversation Report compiles the results of hundreds of On the Table events attended by about 4,000 people throughout Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Glades and Hendry counties. They came together on March 30 in groups large and small, literally around a table, whether it was in a park, school, library, church, community center, office, restaurant, or someone’s home. The idea was to share not only a meal, whether it was catered or just coffee and cookies, but to share ideas. They sought to identify and explore what they believe are the top social issues facing Southwest Florida today and discuss possible solutions.

MAZANY

The event was the result of a partnership among the Collaboratory, the Collier Community Foundation and the Charlotte Community Foundation. The participants came from all ages, genders, backgrounds and economic circumstances. After the event, the participants were asked to take a survey that was analyzed by Florida Gulf Coast University. About 1,000 responded. The survey enabled the foundation partners, in partnership with FGCU, to capture discussion themes, and identify those region-wide social priorities.

Survey respondents from across all five counties were unified in identifying seven of the top 10 social issues, including the top three. “Affordable housing and homelessness” were the top issue, followed by “mental health and substance abuse.” “Health care access and cost” was tied with “jobs and economic development” for third.

There were a host of other social issues, about 20 total, all generated by the participants themselves. There was no agenda or topics provided for them to talk about. They included hunger and food insecurity, environmental issues, transportation and traffic and K-12 education.

Just over half of the survey respondents resided in Lee County, with Collier and Charlotte counties collectively accounting for just under half. Hendry and Glades were 2% each.

CASAGRANDE

Starting in Chicago in 2014, On the Table is an award-winning model that has engaged over a half-million residents in more than 35 communities across North America,

The initiative is right in line with the mission of the Collaboratory, which is committed to coordinating solving of all of Southwest Florida’s social problems on an 18-year deadline. That includes homelessness, poverty, mental illness, racism, illiteracy and more. They plan to do this with the entire community working together, including people of all ages, races, abilities, beliefs and imaginations across all five counties.

“There has never been a more important time in Southwest Florida for all of us to come together and chart our path forward,” Terry Mazany, chief collaboration officer at Collaboratory, said in a statement, speaking on behalf of the three community foundations. “While the stakes are high, the possibilities are even greater and the voice of each and every one of us matters.”

Collaboratory held the first On the Table in 2019 in Southwest Florida, with about 1,500 people participating. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The Collaboratory planned to re-start again in 2022, but then Hurricane Ian devastated the area.

The pressing social issues were all exacerbated and accelerated by the impact of COVID-19 and Hurricane Ian, said Noelle Casagrande, communications lead for the Collaboratory. This makes On the Table SWFL take on a renewed importance.

The survey respondents show collaboration with others is key, Casagrande said. The Collaboratory’s work with two coalitions it has already established, Stable & Affordable Housing and Health & Wellness, indicate that they are going in the right direction in tacking the top social issues in Southwest Florida. For example, one of the goals of the affordable housing coalition is to ensure that access to transportation and housing costs are less than 45% of income by 2040.

Charlotte Community Foundation’s mission is “Connecting People Who Care With Causes That Matter.”

Ashley Maher, CEO of the Charlotte Community Foundation, says the Community Conversations Report demonstrates the success of the On the Table model.

“The table has been set. Inviting people to share their ideas and collaborate is a key step to addressing Southwest Florida’s major issues,” she said. “Lasting, meaningful change requires the voices, resources and efforts of every individual, organization, leader and business in the region, so we benefit from everyone who has a stake in our shared future.”

Collier Community Foundation focuses on local private philanthropy and is one of Florida’s fastest-growing community foundations.

“The foundation partners are determined to work together with a wide range of Southwest Florida voices to tackle urgent areas of concern, including mental health and substance abuse, as well as affordable housing,” said Collier Community Foundation President/CEO Eileen Connolly-Keesler. “We are energized by the voices that are represented in the survey findings.”

It’s unprecedented for all these foundations to collaborate this way, Casagrande said.

However, “Need knows no boundaries,” she said.

The social issues faced by the Southwest Florida community don’t often offer quick fixes, the onthetableswfl.com website states. ¦