It’s called Tuscaloosa’s One Place, but it’s not one thing.

In collaboration with private and government agency partners, a dedicated full-time staff of 50, plus 100 contract employees and some 500 volunteers, One Place delivers more than 20 diverse programs that provide an array of resources.

Yet, it is all connected by a singular mission: to strengthen families.

Tuscaloosa’s One Place supports families across West Alabama from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

Commitment to this mission permeates One Place at an almost cellular level, said Ashley Cornelius-Hester, the director for communications. “I was just recently looking at the cover for our annual report, and it’s a photo of our staff and their personal families at one of our events. The smiles just underscore how much families – all families – mean to this entire agency, on a service level and on a personal level. It’s because we all believe that strong families build strong communities, and that is our goal.”

The effectiveness of One Place’s approach is compelling. By addressing causes of family disfunction, the organization works to help improve quality of life. “We see it as a holistic treatment that elevates the entire family,” Cornelius-Hester said. “That’s how you make meaningful, long-term change. And that’s the vision: to make change that is sustainable and that will make Tuscaloosa One Place no longer needed by a family.”

RELATED: Tuscaloosa’s One Place is an Alabama Bright Light helping families

The means to this end are the programs, services and events that fill One Place’s extensive calendar. They include the “Community Baby Shower” and “Fathers in the Park” events that promote and celebrate parents powerful influence and responsibility. But there is so much more: Relationship and parenting classes ensure moms and dads have the tools and techniques to properly fill those roles. Other classes teach career skills so they can get a job or advance in the ones they have.

Intensive in-home services put broken families back together, arming parents who have lost custody with the knowledge to understand their finances, repair their credit, communicate with their children, pursue education, secure work and stay employed. The Parent Project focuses on at-risk teens by helping to get disruptive behavior under control and provide positive outlets.

Tuscaloosa’s One Place serves families with a team of staff and volunteers. (contributed)

After-school and expanded learning programs give students a boost by enriching their academic experience. Children are nurtured in physical, emotional and educational development through the Healthy Families Tuscaloosa program. One Place’s food pantry tackles food insecurity. Parents and kids always have a safe place to turn thanks to One Place’s dedicated social workers.

It all helps family members form deeper relationships, develop resilience and reach their potential.

Adapting & Assisting

One Place is a big operation but it started small in 1999, sprouting from a desire to support families dealing with poverty and the issues that too often go hand in hand with it. Today, One Place depends on the partnerships  and support it receives from people, businesses and organizations like the Alabama Power Foundation. One Place hosts several annual fundraising events; its festive and free Tinsel Trail will celebrate its 10^th year in 2022, when more than 200 sparkling Christmas trees sponsored and decorated by local families, businesses and organizations will be on display for the public to enjoy. “It’s really fun and has become a tradition for so many families in our area,” Cornelius-Hester said. “And it’s very successful. We’ve even added some other smaller events that go with it, like a pet night and an ugly sweater party that has appealed to younger adults, those without kids.”

Taking a popular event and tweaking it to attract a broader audience is evidence of the organization’s flexibility and innovation, attributes that have served One Place – and those it serves – well since its inception. “Throughout our 22 years, we’ve always been willing and able to shift and change so our programs remain in line with the original vision while also responding to new, emergent family needs,” Cornelius-Hester said. One way One Place stays nimble is having its staff sit on community boards and committees – more than 20 last year alone. “That is how we continually assess needs and then tailor our programs and offerings.”

In the past few years, One Place has added its food pantry and expanded its school-based social work program, which places a social worker in schools to meet kids’ needs right where they often are found. The school social work program more than doubled in scope last year and is now spreading to outlying counties. “The transition between remote learning and in-school and all the disruptions and turmoil caused by the pandemic were really hard on a lot of kids,” Cornelius-Hester said. “That made our school social work program really timely.”

The proof is in the positive feedback. Cornelius-Hester routinely collects comments from students and parents who have reached out to their school social worker for solutions. Remarks include: “My mom and I have a better relationship, and we communicate better than ever before.” And from a parent: “I’ve learned how to take the time to think about my actions before doing them.” And “I’ve learned to save and build credit.” Cornelius-Hester stresses how these wins are the result of the easy access the school-based social work program provides. “Having a social worker in a school means kids and parents have a direct connection to One Place; it just streamlines our engagement with them.”

Growing for Good

Being efficient is vital for an organization that is doing so much and continues to expand its reach. “We served 30,000 people last year, and we help more than 3,000 families each year,” Cornelius-Hester said. Through the school-based social work program, One Place now has professionals in place not only in Tuscaloosa County schools but in Demopolis City Schools and Hale County Schools – covering 43 schools in total. A need for its parenting programs came to light in Bibb County, so One Place made it happen.

“Any drive for expansion comes from the community and its unmet needs,” Cornelius-Hester said. “We don’t want to duplicate services, but when we see a gap or crack we can fill, we want to react quickly. A lot of times it is just us being out and about, being in the room to hear the need, and then saying, ‘Hey, we can fix that.’ Making a meaningful impact is the why behind everything we do.”

And the One Place team knows they don’t do it alone. “I’m so proud of this work, and I’m just a small part of it. It’s everyone here and all our partners, the agencies and other groups we work with and the businesses and organizations that fund us. It takes all of us working together,” Cornelius-Hester said.

One Place’s culture of listening, adapting and collaborating is clear, but there’s another essential factor helping propel the organization forward. “We appreciate all the help we get that lets us help others, but our staff is so amazing. I can’t say that enough. Everyone here truly loves the families we serve, loves their clients,” Cornelius-Hester said. “With that love, we are making a huge impact. It’s just really cool to be a part of it.”

This story is from the Alabama Power Foundation 2021 Annual Report. To view the complete report and learn more about the foundation’s programs and initiatives, visit powerofgood.com.