Jacquelyn Hunt, a longtime Madison-area community leader, has been named the recipient of the 2020 Nan Cheney March for Justice Award. Foward Community Investment made the announcement this morning.
Hunt is the founder and CEO of F.O.S.T.E.R. (Families Overcoming Struggles to Encourage Resilience) of Dane County, a nonprofit that seeks to promote and strengthen marginalized families particularly families of color through culturally relevant, strength-based, and trauma-informed services, activities, and resource provision. Hunt created the organization based on her vast experience in day-to-day counseling and family support services where she observed and analyzed the many barriers to providing resources and services to communities and families in need.
“I am a true visionary who sees possibilities and who believes in a strength-based approach to servicing those I encounter,” Hunt said in a statement. “I am a passionate advocate assisting the disadvantaged in recognizing their strengths, developing confidence in their abilities, and creating a deep desire within them to want and realize the great potential which they are capable of.”
A prominent Madison peace activist, Nan Cheney was a fierce advocate for peace, social justice and the environment and worked for decades on social justice, anti-war and environmental activism. Every year, FCI honors a community member in her name.
Hunt earned her master of arts degree in counseling from Lakeland University, a bachelor’s degree in Human Services from Upper Iowa University, and an Associate’s Degree in Human Services from Madison College. She is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor and a Clinical Substance Abuse Counselor through the State of Wisconsin.
Hunt’s knowledge of formal systems like the Department of Corrections and the Department of Children and Families Services assists her as she serves her consumers and their families with navigating those systems to obtain the best possible outcome, according to a press release from FCI, and the understanding of these systems also comes from her lived through experience.
The 2020 Nan Cheney March for Justice Awards Ceremony has been postponed due to coronavirus pandemic but the staff at the Monona Terrace is working to find a date to reschedule the event in autumn.
