COVID19: One Year Later - a Q&A with Executive Director, Leslie Hartman

This past year saw our community come together in ways we could have never imagined. The COVID-19 pandemic affected every facet of life at Safe Harbor. From the children and youth served who proved to be resilient and flexible in the face of uncertainty, to the dedicated staff who showed up every day, with a smile behind their masks. From our donors, who showed incredible generosity by selflessly giving of their resources, to our volunteers who looked for every opportunity to have a meaningful impact. It is in these extraordinary moments that we are reminded that our community can stand strong in the midst of fear and uncertainty.

As she eyes her 10th anniversary at the helm of Safe Harbor Center, we sat down with Executive Director, Leslie Hartman, to discuss how she has led Safe Harbor Center throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Q. What has leading through the COVID-19 pandemic been like for you as Safe Harbor Center’s Executive Director?

A. It has been unique and unlike anything I have experienced before. You cannot prepare or practice for moments like this. It brings into perspective what is most important and what you need to pay attention to. I never thought 75% of my week would be navigating a pandemic, but I would never take back what I have learned from COVID-19.

The first few weeks of the pandemic were extraordinarily intense. The days were long and required a heightened focus to keep up with everything moving and changing so quickly. Now, it is more of a rhythm where I can think more about the future while also needing to keep people positive and focused on being successful.

Q. How did you keep your residents and staff safe in those early days of the pandemic?

A. COVID-19 brought tremendous uncertainty in those early months when we did not know what was around the corner. I know for me personally, I felt the weight of responsibility in keeping our clients and employees safe while dedicating efforts to keeping our doors open.

We put numerous measures in place to keep our clients and staff safe in all of our seven programs: increased cleaning measures, social distancing, and closely monitoring our staff and clients if and when they presented symptoms. We implemented staggered staff schedules to minimize risk, while continuing to provide the same high-quality services.

Most importantly, we had the discipline to not let fear and panic change the way we make critical decisions.

Q. How did the COVID-19 pandemic require Safe Harbor to operate differently?

A. The COVID-19 crisis required us to operate in ways that were new and unfamiliar, changing methods of service delivery, adapting to managing staff remotely, all while dealing with the underlying health challenges an event of this magnitude presents.

Like many nonprofit organizations, Safe Harbor faced multiple challenges in addressing the COVID-19 crisis, including: 1) increased demand for services, 2) decreased contributed revenue, 3) decreased volunteer engagement and capacity, and 4) an insufficient technology infrastructure.

As we temporarily adjusted to virtual operations and program service delivery, enhancing our technology capacity was critical both for data-informed decision-making, and as a method of delivering services more effectively, efficiently, and with greater scale.

While many organizations in the community made the difficult decision to temporarily suspend or limit their operations, we remained committed to operating at full capacity and keeping our doors open 24 hours a day. We feel fortunate and grateful there has been no stoppage of our work and that we have been able to maintain 100% of our professional staff during this time.

Q. Across the United States, nonprofits are feeling the financial impact. What has been the case for Safe Harbor?

A. I think because we have been able to maintain, and in some cases, increase operations, it gives a public perception that we have all that we need – and this just is not the case. We have lost revenue through canceled or postponed fundraising efforts. Though CARES Act funding has been quite beneficial, we are not using CARES money to fill our reserve, we are using it to cover salaries in order to keep our doors open 24/7. But we also understand that our community of private donors may be struggling. I have no doubt that those that have been privately investing in Safe Harbor will come back when the dollars are available. Our donors believe in our mission, and we will do what we can to hold them up until they have the resources to come back.

Q. What are your concerns about child abuse now, specifically, during this ongoing coronavirus crisis?

A. While the coronavirus crisis continues to capture the headlines of the day, one concerning trend that can get forgotten is how the COVID-19 crisis has exacerbated child abuse. The onset of the pandemic was a particularly concerning time for several reasons. First, most disclosures of abuse happen in school or childcare programs. But children were isolated at home and away from the eyes of school professionals, and so abuse was not noticed or reported. Secondly, for many children, home is not a safe or nurturing place. So, for families with challenges such as mental illness, substance abuse, children with special needs, domestic violence, or extreme poverty, the coronavirus crisis only exacerbated the risk of child abuse. as school, religious organizations, sports, or recreational activities. Since most abuse occurs at home, there is the added factor of children living in what can be an unsafe environment with caretakers who are more stressed due to fear, loss of income, and lack of support from extended family and community agencies. Lastly, we also know that under stress, people are more likely to turn to unhealthy coping behaviors such as substance use, gambling, risk-taking, and withdrawal, all of which will have a negative impact on the children in their care.

Leslie Hartman, LPC Executive Director

Now that children and youth are somewhat returning to school and “normal” day to day activities, we have experienced a tremendous upswing in the number of reported cases of child abuse, specifically in our children’s Advocacy Centers.

Q. If you could tell the community one thing, what would it be?

A. I would want everyone to know that heroes work at Safe Harbor Center. There has never been a time in our 30-year history when our employees have been stronger, braver, or more committed to carrying out Safe Harbor’s mission in the most fundamental ways. Honestly, I am humbled when I think about our employees coming to work every day, without fail, even when the world around us was unstable and uncertain. Placing their personal fears aside, they held our children and youth in such high regard and provided comfort and stability. Courageous young people continue to walk through our doors, and the heroes that work at Safe Harbor know that those experiencing abuse and homelessness are worthy of giving their best every single day.

Q. Do you have anything you would like to add?

A. I just want to say thank you. Thank you to our partners and supporters who immediately offered services of guidance and support. This year is unlike anything any of us have experienced, and at Safe Harbor we could not have done it alone. From no-questions-asked grants to donated PPE for our staff and youth, our partners leaned in and propped us up. Myself, my team, and the more than 1,300 individuals we protected and served during the pandemic are so thankful.