Erika Bell grew up on a family farm in a tight-knit community. Her childhood stories evoke idyllic dreams of a rural upbringing: playing barefoot on a dirt road and 300 acres of land on the edge of York County, South Carolina. Though now a Charlotte suburb, back then it felt like her village.

Erika looks at the foundation laid for her by community members, from her family and teachers to the local shopkeeper. And she sees from her upbringing, grounded in local life, that everyone plays a key role in helping their communities thrive.

“Every day after school my mother took me to the thrift bread store where they sold day-old bread for a discount,” describes Erika. “And every day I’d be greeted by the lady behind the counter. She’d ask me about school, grades, friends, and family. I always felt like she cared, and I belonged. Now I wonder if she ever knew what impact she had on me. I wonder if people know the impact they have on other people.”

Listening to understand community needs

Erika knows that each person in the community is important and should have their voices heard. As a Community Development Regional Manager at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, Erika helps amplify people’s voices. She and her colleagues talk with community members to understand their needs. They then relate community concerns to the bank’s president, Tom Barkin. He uses community perspectives to guide his monetary policy perspective, as shown in this Odd Lots podcast.

While trying to understand challenges across all populations, Erika’s team focuses on low-and-moderate income households, rural areas, and small towns. They ask questions to include community members’ voices in this conversation. For example, Erika planned a recent visit to Cherokee, North Carolina. Erika and President Barkin met with staff from the native community development investment fund (CDFI), the Sequoyah Fund, which included citizens of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. They explored the questions, “What challenges is your community facing?,” “What promising solutions are on the horizon?,” and “How is the CDFI serving the community through targeted programs and lending?”

Erika worked on challenges facing families at the Y, including access to healthy food, active community environments, and the ability to work and make a livable wage. In what seemed like a “crash course in budgets” she saw how people with modest means had to make choices.

To ease one financial burden, the Y filled a child care gap. This also gave local kids access to what others more easily do – playing sports on a team, learning to swim, and being nurtured after school in a safe space. At the Y, Erika realized that all parents and caregivers want the same things for their families. This understanding is valuable to her role at the Fed.

Richmond Fed Community Development efforts are a natural fit

Erika shared three initiatives she’s working on at the Richmond Fed for which her educational, life, and work experience prepared her.

Another activity Erika works on relates to the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). This federal law encourages banks to meet the credit needs of the communities they serve, including low-and moderate-income communities. But nonprofits and community-based organizations often don’t know how to take advantage of funding opportunities opened up to them through the CRA.

Erika knows first-hand the frustration that a nonprofit leader may feel when trying to understand CRA details. Eager to help, Erika and her Community Development team host trainings for community-based organizations and bankers to explain the regulation and encourage collaboration.  

The Richmond Fed’s Community Conversations program also aligns with Erika’s passions and skills. In each conversation, Richmond Fed staff talk with business and community leaders to learn about a region’s wellbeing and needs and exchange economic updates and ideas. Erika and her community development colleagues help plan and host these meetings, which sometimes include the bank president.