Profile

“I just [have] a passion for protecting people and helping them.”

Originally from the Toronto area, Camille Charles first came to Boston to be closer to her family. Soon after she arrived, she began surveying communities with her aunt at Union Capital Boston, a nonprofit leadership development organization. She remembers how “it was just very helpful [being] with her, assisting with that whole process, because if she didn't need help, I probably wouldn't have found that opportunity.” As someone who grew up participating in community programs as a child, Camille recognized their importance and felt enthusiastic about giving back.

After eleven years of working as a certified nursing assistant in several  healthcare facilities in the Boston area, Camille became Urban Edge’s Financial Capability Officer through LISC Massachusetts AmeriCorps. During her time at Urban Edge, she fully realized her passion for bridging the wealth gap through wealth building. She explains that “wealth building and bridging the wealth gap, for me is important for people to figure out,” because there are several widely accessible methods and strategies to ”make your money work for you.” While promoting financial stability and wealth building is important to Camille, she also enjoys the aspect of her work as a financial capability officer that focuses on supporting individuals in attaining their goals. She regularly discusses personal finance with people who have encountered several obstacles while trying to accomplish their goals and find themselves doubtful in whether they can at all. She appreciates being “a word of encouragement outside of being able to give resources and tools, because… it just brings [a] human touch” to her work.

Although Camille knew of Mel King’s work and saw him around Lower Roxbury and the South End years before her service, she recently discovered the Mel King Institute through the training opportunities provided by LISC AmeriCorps. She especially enjoyed the community engagement training facilitated by MAPC staff that we offered earlier this year and remembers appreciating the questions she was asked about how a community agrees on certain decisions. Pondering and discussing these questions gave her a better understanding of the dynamics between different types of community members. She reflected on this experience during her speech at our fifteenth annual Mel King Breakfast last June (see the photo above).

After her year of service at Urban Edge, Camille plans to either continue her career in the community building sphere or continue her education by pursuing a nursing degree with the education grant from her LISC AmeriCorps service. With 11 years of experience as a CNA and a deep passion for patient care, she is considering resuming her work in healthcare. No matter the field Camille ends up in, she plans to continue serving the people in her community.

In her free time, Camille enjoys going on walks with her daughter, reading books, listening to beats and frequencies, and spending time on the beach.