Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicole S. Bursey.
Nicole, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I grew up in the South Suburbs of Chicago. In college at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, I met my college sweetheart. After finishing graduate school we married and relocated to Springfield, IL. It was in Springfield that I began my career serving as a Policy Research Specialist for a commission created by the Governor. My role was to review, analyze and make policy and legislative recommendations to legislators and state agency Directors on behalf of African-American families across the state. It was in this role that I began to understand the importance of having a seat at the table if you wanted to see real change take place in the lives of families. It was with this sense of passion, understanding and a real desire to make life better for families, particularly the most vulnerable, that I pursued and accepted a position at the Illinois Department of Human Services. This role provided me the opportunity use my social work background, experience in policy research and administration to serve in a leadership position within the Division of Community Health and Prevention. Our Division was responsible to administering programs aimed at supporting at-risk youth, promoting and improving the health status of families, reducing violence and drug use, promoting self-sufficiency and supporting positive birth outcomes. This role further deepened my desire to advocate on behalf of families in a more direct way.
In 2005, both feeling a deep desire to further walk out the purpose and plan God had for our life, my husband and I took a leap of faith and relocated to Frisco, Texas. While indeed it was a leap of faith, we knew no one here, and we had no crystal clear plan. What we knew for sure is that where God leads, he always supplies you with everything you need. After serving in a short-term role supporting Hurricane Katrina efforts, I began serving at Frisco Family Services (FFS). My service as FFS has been a true calling. As the only nonprofit social service agency in Frisco, our mission is to help those in our Frisco and FISD communities who are facing hunger and homelessness and other urgent needs improve their quality of life and achieve self-sufficiency. Serving the past 14 years at FFS and the last nine years as Executive Director has been so fulfilling. I have truly been able to daily walk in my calling of strengthening families and my community. When we have strong families, we have a strong community. It brings such joy to my heart to know that all that my team and I are doing is making such a positive difference. Daily, I get to see families who walk through our doors in fear, leave with a sense of hope. It’s truly an honor to serve in this role in my community.
Has it been a smooth road?
Every leader, particularly nonprofit leaders, face challenges along the way. I have always felt that every challenge that I have had to endure comes to teach me something. I believe that it is through our challenges that the real person we were created to be is developed. As an Executive Director, I have found that I have to remain fluid, but focused at the same time. I have to remain open to different ways of doing things in order to really meet the needs of our changing community. I am often faced with figuring out how to do more with less. I have learned that in challenging situations such as this, a level of creativity comes out that might not have otherwise been be tapped. I then grow and become better at what I do.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Frisco Family Services story. Tell us more about your organization.
At FFS, we help families in our community that are facing hunger, homeless or other urgent need improve their quality of life and achieves self-sufficiency. Individuals, seniors and families we support are experiencing an unforeseen crisis as a result of sudden unemployment, illness, divorce, etc. We provide families with the support that they need to move from where they are to where they desire to be, which is self-sufficient. We equip them with the tools, resources and support that they need or desire to improve their quality of life. We provide support such as food through Frisco’s only community food pantry, payments toward rent/mortgage, utility assistance, childcare, prescription medication, adult employment support and life skills workshops. In addition, we offer seasonal programs such as summer lunch, back to school, holiday programs and a variety of other services to help meet a family’s unique needs.
What sets us apart is that we involve the client in their goal-setting process so that they are active participants in setting and meeting their goals. Also, we aim to ensure that our programs are administered in a way that brings dignity to those we serve. For example, we have a client choice food pantry in which families shop as they would in a local grocery store, choosing the foods they know their family will eat at no cost to them. As a result of health and safety concerns brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, we have had to alter this process, but at the same time still allow some choice to the extent we can.
We also operate Frisco Resale, which provides financial revenue to support our programs and services. In addition to the community being able to shop and donate at the resale store, we also provide vouchers to agency clients so that they can get clothing, furniture and other items they may need at no cost.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
In the next 5-10 years and as our community continues to change, I think we will need more supportive services for seniors in our community. Our senior population is growing and we will need to be positioned to meet those needs. Also, I think it will be critical to have the ability to travel to the homes of those who are unable to get to our location due to illness, disability, etc. Lastly, I think as nonprofit leader’s we have to begin looking at how we can use technology to help us be more efficient and effective, but at the same time not lose the human care and connection that we provide.
Contact Info:
- Address: 8780 3rd Street, Frisco TX 75034
- Website: www.friscofamilyservices.org
- Phone: 9723359495
- Instagram: @friscofamilyservices
- Facebook: @friscofamilyservices
- Twitter: @friscofs
Image Credit:
J. Ridout https://www.jridout.com/
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