In a three part series, we will be sharing the incredible story of the Griffin family, who have maintained and grown their connection to the Annex Teen Clinic over three generations: from grandmother (Gretchen Griffin), to mother (Jennifer Griffin-Wiesner), to daughter (Nora Griffin-Wiesner).
Today, hear from long time Annex supporter and youth development professional Jennifer Griffin-Wiesner, on her experience with the Annex Teen Clinic as the daughter of a volunteer and as an advocate for the community.
Jennifer Griffin-Wiesner’s Story:
“I don’t recall a time when I wasn’t aware of the Annex. Which makes sense, given my mom’s involvement with the Annex Teen Clinic dating back to the 1970s. It didn’t really become important to me, however, until I moved into the Robbinsdale Area School District (ISD 281) in the late 1990s. As a youth development professional, I knew the importance of “social capital,” for kids and families; though my kids weren’t yet school-age, I started looking for ways to connect with people, organizations, and systems supporting children and youth in my new neighborhood. That led me to a collective of folks working on something called the Mosaic Youth Center, which was all about supporting young people in the community. The Annex was a key partner and I was thrilled to be reconnected.
I was inspired not only to work with the Annex Teen Clinic but to become a monthly sustainer because, having worked with and in non-profit organizations for my entire career, I know the value of having steady, unrestricted funding streams. And, as a youth development professional, I know the value of organizations like the Annex to health of individual young people as well as to the health of the community as a whole. Putting those two things together, becoming a monthly sustainer was an obvious choice.
The Annex’s mission aligns with my personal values and beliefs because first, I believe that health care is a human right and we don’t do a good job collectively of ensuring access, especially to sexual and reproductive care. However, I support the Annex as much out of practical self-interest as a sense of morality. The world is better, from my perspective, when young people are healthy and thriving. I want to live in a community where that is the case. So, by providing teens and young adults in Robbinsdale and beyond with access to confidential, affordable, affirming, developmentally appropriate care, the Annex is helping make my little corner of the world a place I’m happy and proud to call home.
The Annex’s presence in our community is about so much more than just the services provided at the clinic. The staff do such important education and advocacy work in the community that helps young people have important conversations, make informed decisions, and know they are valued and valuable. In my family, we’re pretty candid; conversations about sexual and reproductive health are just part of the mix when it comes to talking about health and health care. But in the outside world, so many things we care about—education, science, human rights, compassion— are under attack right now from myriad threats. Supporting the Annex with a regular, sustained contribution is a way to exercise our power at a time when it doesn’t feel like there are a lot of good avenues for that. I can’t do the work the Annex professionals and volunteers do, but I can do a little bit to help ensure they are able to continuing doing it by donating monthly.
When I think about the kind of world my daughter will grow up in, I think I am pretty realistic and maybe a little cynical. I don’t think there’s ever going to be a time when there isn’t some societal strife over reproductive rights. My vision, therefore, is for a world where kids know they are fundamentally loved and cared for just as they are, and where they can develop the knowledge base and self-efficacy to advocate for themselves, their rights, their needs, and their well-being.”
Thank you for reading! We are grateful to Jennifer Griffin-Wiesner and her family for sharing their stories. Tune in to the other stories in this series of 3 Generations. 1 Mission. here.
