With federal COVID dollars, Lexington can live up to its ‘Compassionate City’ title

Lexington, we have an extraordinary opportunity to further live up to our reputation as a caring city (ranked 29th by WalletHub, 2016) and our 2017 self-designated title as a Compassionate City.

In 2017, we resolved to, “live compassionately and embody the best of human values and provide human services to those in need.” Throughout the past four years, we have lived up to that promise in a couple of ways. We have significantly reduced the number of veterans experiencing homelessness and set up a compassionate street outreach program to assess immediate needs of people experiencing homelessness. Lexington also implemented and, with UK Hospital’s help, maintained the Community Paramedicine program. This program is providing non-emergency healthcare to our most vulnerable citizens, in addition to health education and individual assessments to improve their health outcomes and avoid preventable and expensive ambulance transportation.

But we can and should do even better. With the American Rescue Plan Act funds Lexington is scheduled to receive, we should prioritize funding through the lens of compassion and begin rectifying inequalities the COVID pandemic has clearly revealed to us.

We have citizens across the city of all ages experiencing trauma and grief, much of which is due to gun violence and a record-breaking 35 homicides this year. Friends and families of the deceased and the accused wrestle with a myriad of emotions over the violence that has infiltrated their lives. We recognize their fragile emotional health and find ways to rally around them as they process their grief and fear. Meanwhile, our friends and colleagues who live in neighborhoods where violence has occurred are neglected. They are the collateral damage. The neighborhoods where many of them have lived comfortably for decades now seems unsafe, even under siege. They now (consciously or subconsciously) experience heightened and extended levels of stress and distress, which has been linked to poorer health.

Similar to our ingenuity and compassion to establish the Homelessness Outreach and Community Paramedicine programs, we should establish a Mobile Crisis Team program, particularly in response to gun violence. This program will provide front-line mental health care by trained clinicians when and where it is most needed, tending to the neighborhood’s mental health after traumatic events. In addition to its potential to quickly squash thoughts of retaliation by loved ones, Lexington can actively help reduce the stigma of receiving mental healthcare and reach traditionally under-served populations.

Many have cautioned using ARPA funds to create new programming that will require ongoing revenue. However, with ample funding, our talented budgeting staff, fierce resolve to prove Lexington truly IS a Compassionate City, and our amazingly dedicated nonprofit community and emergency service providers, we have consistently proven our ability to establish and sustain programs that embody our compassion as a city. We have truly achieved impactful results! Why not do it again, for our own mental health?

Angela Evans is a former councilmember for the 6th District who recently received her Master in Public Policy from Princeton University, and is an attorney in Lexington.