When Vickie Meyers' van died, she relied on cabs, friends, coworkers and public transit for rides to where she needed to go.
She received a donated vehicle three months ago from a Community Action Duluth program that provides transportation assistance. Since then, she hasn't needed to ask anyone for a ride, she said. She is also getting more sleep because she no longer needs to accommodate extra travel time. She also pointed out that limited transportation options meant that she could only work days and times at her job that matched the bus schedule, she said.
"People can walk, but you can't walk when you work 6 miles away," she said.
The Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation has been focusing on closing the opportunity gap in the Twin Ports. Two people shared their experiences of overcoming a lack of opportunities during the foundation's annual celebration, themed "Opportunity Rising," on Wednesday that highlighted the effort to close the gap in the Twin Ports.
Foundation board member David Kropid noted that learning about the opportunity gap has been a transformative experience for him.
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"I shifted from somebody who said, 'Hey, all you need to do is pull yourself up by your bootstraps' to, 'It's a lot about luck, about where we're born, about who our parents are, about the opportunities we have, about where we live, whether there's transportation that's available, whether our parents are available to help us,' " he said.
Michael Kelly, a 2016 East High School graduate, received a scholarship from the community foundation to attend St. John's University, where he's studying psychology with plans to go into medicine. Kelly was placed in foster care when he was 15 years old and he credits a network of teachers and friends with pushing him toward his goal of attending medical school. He explained that he feels like he started life on a "downward slope" that continued down until foster care.
"Before I was put into foster care, not a lot of people noticed that I was struggling in life, academically and socially and at home. My home life wasn't the best. Once one person figured that out, I was placed into foster care and all of a sudden, everyone in my new community knew about my situation and were able to assist me," he said.
Amanda Imes, who is a mentor in the Mentor Duluth program, encourages people to volunteer or donate to area organizations.
"I even remember that I didn't have enough time or I was scared or I didn't have the right experience. I'm not a teacher or someone with a lot of experience with kids. Or else I hear people say, 'I have kids, I don't have time.' Anybody can be a mentor and it's been so much fun," she said. "Trust me, you're qualified. You can do it. Don't be scared. You'll get back so much more than you put in."
