Welcome to Episode 24 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast. Today's episode was led by our host, Drew Brandom! Please join us as he interviews our guest, Dr. Rob Thomas, the CEO of Community Health Outreach, Jacksonville’s only free integrated medical/dental clinic for low-income/uninsured residents, and which also hosts the Lord’s Food Pantry and Baby Luv Center for infant care supplies. 

Dr. Thomas has worked in various healthcare roles to combat opioid, alcohol, and tobacco-use disorders in the state of Florida. As a nationally certified wellness practitioner and board-certified tobacco treatment specialist, he has worked with patients and the community on programs to prevent and control chronic diseases through public health initiatives. 

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 

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Welcome to Episode 23 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast. Today's episode was led by our host, Drew Brandom! Please join us as he interviews our guest, Jennifer Ryan, the CEO of Volunteers in Medicine, a non profit clinic that provides free healthcare for  the working uninsured.  

Mrs. Ryan is a fifth generation North Floridian with a proven reputation in building and sustaining community partnerships with experience in health care at the national, county, and hospital levels. She is recognized for being innovative, collaborative, creative, outgoing, team oriented, adaptable, and professional. 

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 

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Welcome to Episode 22 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast. Today's episode was led by our host, Drew Brandom! Please join us as he interviews our guest, Marcus Hill, the RISE Nassau Program Coordinator.

While Mr. Hill began as a Theology major with a goal of eventually becoming a pastor, he found his calling in psychology in his second year of his undergrad program. Now a licensed therapist, he works with the Inspired to Rise team in Nassau county, providing therapy services and expanding the Nassau campuses' service offerings.

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 

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Welcome to Episode 21 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast. Today's episode was led by our host, Drew Brandom! Please join us as he interviews our guest, Malik Johnson, a teacher for INSPIRED Youth.

Mr. Johnson got his start running a basketball camp for youth in Washington D.C., where he fond his passion for working with youth. After graduating college, he began working with children with special education needs before moving to Jacksonville during the pandemic. In Jacksonville, he taught math and history to 5th-8th grade students before his middle school was ultimately shut down. He came to Inspire to Rise in November of 2024 and became a teacher for INSPIRED Youth.

Mr. Johnson discusses the benefits of the program, including preparing youth to return to traditional schooling, if they so choose. He also highlights how the program supports the whole child - emotional needs, educational needs, life skills, etc. - as opposed to just educational needs, the way traditional schools do. 

INSPIRED Youth is currently accepting new participants - for more information, please use the contact information below. 

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 

Thank you for listening. 

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Welcome to Episode 20 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast. Today's episode was led by our host, Drew Brandom! Please join us as he interviews our guests, Grace, Liam, and Saheim, three participants in the INSPIRED Youth program. 

Grace, Liam, and Saheim discuss their participation in the INSPIRED Youth program, which is an alternative to public school in Duval county for children who need additional support, such as mental health services, trauma-informed care, recovery-focused education, and more.

The three youth discuss their favorite activities - cooking and free-time - and some of the important skills they've learned through their participation, such as emotional regulation.

INSPIRED Youth is currently accepting new participants - for more information, please use the contact information below. 

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 

Thank you for listening. 

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Welcome to Episode 19 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast. Today’s episode was led by our host, Drew Brandom! Please join us as he interviews our guest,  Michael Seeraj.

Mr. Seeraj is the Chief Financial Officer at Inspire to Rise and has over 21 years of accounting experience in both the private and not-for-profit sectors. In 2017, he was presented with the Business Journal - Ultimate CFO of the Year Award.

Mr. Seeraj discusses his career journey, from three days at UPS to make rent, to moving from company to company as a CFO, identifying holes and fixing problems as he went. When Aida Seeraj, his wife, came to him with an idea for a not-for-profit that would aid community members, he provided the framework to ensure they would be able to keep the doors open. 

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 

Thank you for listening. 

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Welcome to Episode 18 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast, led by our Community Behavioral Health Director, Anna Santiago. Please join us as she interviews our guest, Nikki Runion.

Professor Runion is an Instructor of Social Work at the University of North Florida, but before she became involved in academia, she spent years with children and families in the foster care system through the Department of Juvenile Justise, as school therapist, and as a provider of therapeutic services for individuals and families experiencing trauma and mental health needs in community-based settings.

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 

Thank you for listening. 

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Welcome to Episode 17 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast led by our Prevention & Family Preservation Director, Robin Rossmanith. Please join us as he interviews our guest, Treevonia Robinson.

Ms. Robinson began using cocaine at the age of 16 and continued to do so for the next 23 years. While she always quit using whenever she was pregnant, she went back to cocaine after she finished nursing each of her first four children. It wasn't until after the birth of her fifth child, and a diagnosis of Congestive Heart Failure that left her heart functioning at 22%, that Ms. Robinson got the help she needed to quit using cocaine permanently. 

At the time of recording, Ms. Robinson's heart had returned to 44% functionality, and her then 7-month-old child was strong and healthy. 

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 

Thank you for listening. 

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Welcome to Episode 16 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast. Today’s episode was led by our host, Drew Brandom! Please join us as he interviews our guest, Mrs. Enricka James. 

Mrs. James discusses her life, from being born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, to moving to Atlanta to pursue modeling, moving to Las Vegas, moving to New Orleans, and raising three children (ages 6, 3, and 13 months) with her husband, Lloyd James. After a difficult time in 2024, they decided to move back to Jacksonville, where Mrs. James’ mother still lived, after being told they could move into Mrs. Lloyd’s late-grandmother’s home. Upon arriving in Jacksonville, they discovered the home they expected to live in had been condemned and was unlivable. 

After reaching out to a friend who worked for Healthy Start, Mrs. James and her family were able to receive much needed help and a new beginning. She is also engaging in services through Inspire to Rise, Inc. Mrs. James now has her own business and she and her husband own their own home.

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 
 
Thank you for listening.  

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Welcome to Episode 15 of Inspiring Community: An Inspire to Rise Podcast. Today's episode was led by our guest host, Michael Seeraj! Please join us as he interviews our guest, Ms. Anna Santiago, Director of Community Behavioral Health at Inspire to Rise, Inc.

Ms. Santiago discusses her career trajectory and how she moved from a Bachelor's in Criminal Justice to a Master's of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. She discusses "her why" - why she is passionate about providing mental health services to others and why she believes community services are so important. She also discusses her role as Director of Community Behavioral Health at Inspire to Rise and the importance of providing counseling services to the juvenal population.  

Inspire to Rise, Inc. is a nonprofit focused on holistically helping make the community a little better, happier, and healthier place.  For more information or to support our mission, please contact us at weinspiretorise.org or via phone at: 1-844-WE-RISE1 (1-844-937-4731). 

Thank you for listening. 

Send us a text