At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, it seemed as though PPMM’s newly revitalized PromotorX adult peer education program, conducted in person and entirely in Spanish, might be de-railed. But Health Educator Lydia T. said just the opposite has happened.
“In this new ‘virtual’ environment, our PromotorX members can connect (online) from Salinas, Soledad, Greenfield – all over Monterey County,” Lydia said. “Every other week, we meet to learn about a different sex ed topic – STIs, birth control, anatomy – and we have conversations in a way we couldn’t before.”
The PromotorX group members are then able to reach out to members of their own communities, through phone calls, text message, and digital platforms like Zoom, to share what they’ve learned.
“They’re the most wonderful facilitators of these conversations. I’m in awe of them,” Lydia said. “Since the beginning of the pandemic, we’ve also been sharing a lot of information about where to get tested for COVID, how to wear a mask properly, how to get help from food banks, and lots of other resources.
“The Latinx community has been disproportionately affected by this pandemic for several reasons, including the language barrier, when accessing resources and information,” she said. “All of our PromotorX have been consistently participating in our program every month since this began, and they have made a huge difference in their communities as trusted sources of information.”