- Good afternoon Fowler Family!
- COVID UPDATE:
- On Monday, Dallas County added 484 cases and 13 deaths
- Positivity rate has dropped to 5.6%
- Testing of teammates remains at 1/week
- FOWLER UPDATES:
- New visitation policies from HHSC are starting to roll out – we have 3 calls tomorrow which will provide more details and answer a lot of questions – we may have new policies to share by Thursday
- Teammates,
- GREAT PLACE TO WORK:
- Our Great Place to Work teammate surveys will take place in April
- We have been certified 3 years in a row and ranked nationally – #27, #17 and this past year #15
- And while we appreciate the recognition it brings Fowler; we are more excited for the recognition it brings our team
- We do this to honor our team – to shine the light on how they love people, pursue excellence and make a difference
- Team members, our certification is based on many things; our first hurdle is participation – your voice is critical to this process and we receive valuable feedback
- Last year:
- 95% of you said my work has special meaning, this is not just a job
- 95% said; when you join the company, you are made to feel welcome
- 95% said: I feel I make a difference here
- 94% said: this is a physically safe place to work
- When you participate, you are sharing your pride and respect for your teammates, you are stating that you feel camaraderie
- WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH
- Our women’s history focus today is on Delores Huerta who was nominated by Lubia Gwak, service coordinator at Fowler Christian Apartments
- Co-founder of the United Farm Workers Association, Dolores Clara Fernandez Huerta is one of the most influential labor activists of the 20th century and a leader of the Chicano civil rights movement.
- Born on April 10, 1930 in Dawson, New Mexico, Huerta was the second of three children of Alicia and Juan Fernandez, a farm worker and miner who became a state legislator in 1938.
- Her parents divorced when Huerta was three years old, and her mother moved to Stockton, California with her children.
- Huerta’s grandfather helped raise Huerta and her two brothers while her mother juggled jobs as a waitress and cannery worker until she could buy a small hotel and restaurant. Alicia’s community activism and compassionate treatment of workers greatly influenced her daughter.
- Discrimination also helped shape Huerta. A schoolteacher, prejudiced against Hispanics, accused Huerta of cheating because her papers were too well-written.
- In 1945 at the end of World War II, white men brutally beat her brother for wearing a Zoot-Suit, a popular Latino fashion.
- Huerta received an associate teaching degree from the University of the Pacific’s Delta College.
- Huerta briefly taught school in the 1950s but seeing so many hungry farm children coming to school, she thought she could do more to help them.
- In 1955, Huerta began her career as an activist when she co-founded the Stockton chapter of the Community Service Organization (CSO), which led voter registration drives and fought for economic improvements for Hispanics.
- She also founded the Agricultural Workers Association. Through a CSO associate, Huerta met activist César Chávez, with whom she shared an interest in organizing farm workers. In 1962, Huerta and Chávez founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), the predecessor of the United Farm Workers’ Union (UFW), which formed three year later. Huerta served as UFW vice president until 1999.
- Throughout her work with the UFW, Huerta organized workers, negotiated contracts, advocated for safer working conditions including the elimination of harmful pesticides.
- She also fought for unemployment and healthcare benefits for agricultural workers.
- In 1973, Huerta activism led to the ground-breaking California Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975, which allowed farm workers to form unions and bargain for better wages and conditions.
- Throughout the 1970s and ‘80s, Huerta worked as a lobbyist to improve workers’ legislative representation. During the 1990s and 2000s, she worked to elect more Latinos and women to political office and has championed women’s issues.
- The recipient of many honors, Huerta received the Eleanor Roosevelt Human Rights Award in 1998 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.
- As of 2015, she was a board member of the Feminist Majority Foundation, the Secretary-Treasurer Emeritus of the United Farm Workers of America, and the President of the Dolores Huerta Foundation.
- Lubia shared: “Growing up in the border cities of El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico both Delores Huerta became the voice of the Latino community. Not only did I feel I was represented but it also encouraged me to become an avid advocate social worker. There is much to be said about her and all that she accomplished in effort to bring awareness, support, and human rights opportunities to poor working class workers like the Farm Workers groups, immigrant women’s rights, and many other community groups and organizations.”
- Thank you Lubia for sharing this story
- EVENTS:
- This Saturday, our One Heart Society volunteers will be at Fowler planting flowers from 10-12 noon; if you are out walking, please stop and say hello – they will be planting in the gardens by Support Services and the Abrams parking lot.
- TEAMMATE TUESDAY!
- Happy birthday, Luis Martinez! Luis’s birthday was yesterday, March 22.
- Wishing Janette Boutte’ a happy birthday today, March 23.
- Happy birthday to Tamica Holmes! Tamica’s birthday is March 26.
- Jan Matise’s 11-year anniversary was yesterday, March 22. Happy anniversary, Jan!
- We have two new teammates who joined our team yesterday! We hope that we have made them both feel welcome, as they have joined Fowler. Welcome Armen Tonyan! Armen will serve as Facilities Manager at Fowler Christian Apartments. All of Armen’s experience in facilities has been in senior living. Most recently, Armen served as Director of Plant Operations at Adora Midtown. Prior to serving at Adora, Armen served at Cantex as Maintenance Director. Also joining us is Lin Chavez. Lin is serving on the FCA facilities team as a Tech 3. He most recently served at Hunter Fire Protection Services as Pipe Fitter. Prior to that, Lin served at Allen’s Carpentry and Custom Trim where he made custom cabinets and trim.
- Congratulations to Luis Martinez, who has accepted the Facilities Manager position for JFC! Luis has worn many hats at Fowler over the last 15 years. He has been instrumental in JFC maintaining PNCC as life safety ready! He has a working knowledge of our boilers at PNCC and is highly skilled in plumbing and electrical work. Luis is also tech savvy! Please join me in congratulating this well-deserved promotion for Luis!
- Gary Willis celebrates two years with us on March 25. Happy anniversary Gary!
- Shout out to Gentry, Valarie and facilities for their hard work on getting the new artwork up in the Worth neighborhood. We know it will look beautiful. Thank you for pursuing excellence in beautifying our neighborhoods. It is evident in your work that what you do has special meaning and it is not “just a job”.
- Gay VanWart at JLC gave a shout out to Shirley Williams. Gay said, “Shirley is great! She is friendly and will talk to you. She is very helpful, pleasant and happy”. Shirley, you are definitely making a difference!
- Make it a great day on purpose!
All COVID Updates are posted on our website – www.fowlercommunities.org/covid19/
COVID Hotline: Phone: 214-515-7184 • Spanish Speaking Line: 214-515-1385
Email: Covid19info@fowlercommunities.org
COVID-19 Mental Health Support Line 24 hours a day, 7 days a week toll-free at 833-986-1919
