WINDHAM — Banter about the theme “Celebrating Democracy” was well received by the incoming Windham County NAACP President Wichie Artu as he received the gavel on Oct. 21 during the organization’s fourth annual Freedom Fund Dinner.
Artu was lauded for helping create data governance structures for Vermont’s Bureau of Racial Justice Statistics to address racial inequities in the criminal justice system and coordinating, with the Vermont Department of Health, COVID vaccine clinics for over 1,100 Vermonters of color using new trust-building data collection methods. He also generated a qualitative report for the Vermont Department of Health that analyzed common themes around why people did or did not choose to get vaccinated.
Xusana Davis, the Vermont Racial Equity Director and featured speaker for the evening, suggested that given the state of current affairs, it might be better to suggest a title more along the lines of “Working Toward a Better Democracy.”
Representative Becca Balint carried on the same theme, describing her experience in the House of Representatives during this time of historic gridlock.
The outgoing president of the Windham County NAACP, Steffen Gillom, along with the current president of the Rutland NAACP, Mia Schultz, had just been elected to the NEAC (New England Area Conference of the NAACP) executive team, as First and Second Vice presidents, respectively, along with Kayon Morgan, who was elected vice president for NEAC’s Youth Council.
Imogene Drakes, the recipient of the Community Service Award, had worked with Dr. Tony Blouson to eliminate a clinical algorithm from the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital system that was considered disadvantageous to Black and African American people before the National Kidney Foundation issued a general recommendation for its correction, and is an advocate for pregnant and expecting mothers in the health care system.
Maira Tungatarova, the recipient of the Above and Beyond Award, was an unlikely NAACP Treasurer for the past four years, having served in high-level positions in Uzbekistan before coming to the U.S. She was lauded for not only learning the NAACP systems but making them effective locally.
Cliff Wood, the orchestrator of the event, called it a labor of love for the Beloved Community and expressed his appreciation for the over two hundred diverse Vermonters in attendance in support of the work of the Windham County NAACP.