Fighting Poverty with Faith Reflections by: Dr. Valerie Maholmes Caregivers Conference May 4, 2016

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Actualization Esteem Needs Belonging Needs Safety Needs Basic Needs

Hierarchy of Needs Basic Needs : food, shelter, warmth, clothing; physiological needs Programs and policies that provide transitional and long term housing. Interventions should teach basic skills of home maintenance, budgeting for food, clothing and other important daily needs to promote stability. Programs that provide stress reduction, mental health services and programming for recovery from addictions and other challenges meet basic needs Safety Needs – protection, security, social order. Programs and policies that help create safe havens in the community for children to play and for families to establish social and behavioral norms. This may include neighborhood watch and community policing programs. Programs that teach parental monitoring skills also meet these needs. Belonging Needs – family, friends, affiliations Programs and policies that help promote social cohesion in the community through establishing social networking opportunities. Faith-based programs, community centers, as well as social, civic and sports/entertainment organizations help foster these needs. Esteem Needs – achievement, status, responsibility, feelings of accomplishment Programs that engage community members in their own improvement process, fostering shared goal setting and program planning as well as community redesign. Community development organizations, community councils and neighborhood advisory boards help to facilitate these needs. Self- Actualization – personal growth and fulfillment Programs and policies that provide opportunities for higher education and training for parents and opportunities for adult-to-adult mentoring and goal-setting programs. Programs that focus on promoting optimal child development, fostering creativity, and prosocial skills address also these needs. Programs that teach financial literacy, entrepreneurship and self-sufficiency help meet these needs. Opportunities for home ownership to promote family stability and potential for economic security are appropriate as well.