Shakeema Grier
^{Community Engagement Specialist}

Shakeema Grier is the Community Engagement Specialist for The L.I.F.E Group. As the Community Engagement Specialist she collaborates with philanthropic non-profits as well as affordable housing and youth programs. Part of Shakeema’s personal mission statement is to "seek first to understand, then to be understood."

Shakeema gained the skill set of engaging people through over 20 years of experience as a Social Worker. The bulk of those years were spent within the Department of Social Services in Mecklenburg County in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this role she obtained recognition for her ability to manage caseloads of families dealing with concerns related to child abuse and neglect. Within this area of her work she made an insurmountable effort in ensuring families understood the ecosystem they were a part of along with their contribution in society. Her passion to help families gain understanding of the system and obtain a level of self-sufficiency was demonstrated via families she served and the outcomes produced. Once families are linked to needed resources within their relative communities, they feel supported and that their needs are met. Shakeema wanted people in concentrated poverty to understand that financial education is critically important to all other basic needs for their overall well-being.

Her primary focus has been working with The Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance (LNA) as the Development Associate. In this role she is fortunate to employ her engagement skills to cultivate relationships with donors and sponsors to support the ongoing fundraising efforts and operational needs for Lakeview residents. The Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance is a community aiming to build strong community leadership, develop programming and create a safe and beautiful environment for residents to thrive and position themselves for upward economic mobility.

Shakeema is a Daughter, a Mom, and a Sister. When she’s not working she spends her time overthinking life as a mom, loving on her kids up close and from a far. She describes herself as being able to do a little bit of a lot of things because she’s always willing to learn and grow.