We invite you to join us for a powerful and transformative experience on Thursday, September 25, 2025, from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. ET in partnership with the Greater Cleveland Food Bank and Catholic Charities Diocese of Cleveland.

Through this exercise, participants will gain a deeper understanding of intergenerational poverty, systemic racism, and the barriers people face. The experience will inform our collective work to address social determinants of health.

This event is not a typical training or policy discussion. In this hands-on simulation, each participant will experience financial hardships and navigate a series of day-to-day challenges such as applying for food stamps, enrolling in Medicaid, securing housing, accessing transportation, and seeking behavioral health support. Participants will interact with event volunteers who represent various agencies and bureaucracies while simultaneously facing time constraints, misinformation, limited resources, and systemic barriers.

Who Should Attend?
The event is designed for professionals and stakeholders across sectors, including the following:

• Healthcare and behavioral health providers.
• Education and youth services.
• City, county, and state policymakers.
• Nonprofit and philanthropic organizations.
• Faith-based and community leaders.
• Business, technology, and workforce partners.
• Anyone committed to building a just, nourishing, and thriving community.

What You'll Gain
Assumptions that we each hold will be challenged and participants will gain an experiential foundation that fosters collaboration, promotes equity, and drives innovation in health and social services. We'll go beyond the reports and data and come out of the experience with the motivation and insights necessary to catalyze true system-level change.