‘We are a community unbroken'
In Chelsea, as in many places, the pandemic laid bare all of the ways in which this country is broken.
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But COVID-19 did not break Chelsea. It made the city stronger.
'Bad things happened, but we came out so powerful,' said Elaine Mendes, pastor and director of
Those first few weeks were terrifying for everyone. Chelsea has long been blessed with community leaders who are forces of nature, but even they were initially overwhelmed.
'One of the things that the pandemic taught us is that the cavalry is not coming,' said Fidel Maltez, who headed the Department of Public Works in Chelsea in 2020 and is now city manager. 'No one was coming to bail us out, so it is on us to do that.'
Starting on March 11, 2020, city and nonprofit leaders held daily conference calls to coordinate the city's response, identifying the most urgent needs — food, diapers, health care — and creating an entire emergency ecosystem, including a hotel where infected residents who lived in crowded apartments could isolate. The usual Chelsea powerhouses —
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A lot of folks were embarrassed and afraid to accept the help at first. Recent immigrants were used to keeping to themselves, and staying below the radar.
'I remember being at those food lines and seeing mothers and children and that sense of shame,' said Maltez, his voice breaking at the memory. 'And I was saying, 'It's OK, there's no shame in that. We also have been through challenging times.''
Gradually, some amazing things happened. The people who were initially reluctant to go outside and accept help grew more comfortable in their own city. The bonds between them grew stronger. The organizations that were serving them — aided by an influx of pandemic relief and philanthropic funds — greatly expanded their capacity. Because residents trusted them to provide pandemic relief services, they were also open to their other offerings.
At Revival church, Mendez is still giving out boxes full of food, but she also offers Capoeira and yoga classes, community information and bingo nights, and ESL classes, all of them well attended. GreenRoots added a
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'A lot of folks have decided that they want to be in community more,' said Jojo Emerson, who heads the food operation.
At Chelsea Community Connections, diaper distributions have given way to wellness classes where women gather to learn about their health and advocate for themselves — and get a $30 Market Basket gift card — while their children are fed and cared for. Gathering regularly means those women have formed communities, too, friendships that allow them to rely on each other. At Chelsea Black Community, vaccination drives have given way to job training programs for young people, designed to redress some of the disadvantages that made Chelsea such a ripe target for the virus.
'We want them to be self-reliant financially, so they don't have to double- and triple-up in apartments,' said Cromwell.
Along the way, Chelsea Black Community became a full-fledged nonprofit and, like the other smaller organizations that stepped up during the pandemic, a power player in the city. Its strength, like the tighter connections forged by the pain of the pandemic, has made Chelsea stronger than ever.
'We are a community unbroken,' said Mendes.
That inspiring resolve is being tested again now, as
'It might not be a pandemic that is killing people, but it's a different kind of pandemic,' Cromwell said. 'We realize we have to stick together.'
City manager Maltez and others worry that fear will fray the deepened sense of community forged during COVID, diminishing the trust those who lead the city spent so long building.
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'Until now, I would say, 1,000 percent, people are willing to come out more,' he said. 'But this week has been rough. People are afraid.'
It's possible even the mighty people of Chelsea, who faced down the terrible virus, are no match for this new contagion.
Globe columnist Yvonne Abraham can be reached at
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