Joana Johnson-Smith
Franklin Field Franklin Hill Healthy Boston Coalition

What does community health mean to you?
Though I’m a senior and [permanently] on crutches, I still like to stay active and be empowered. I want to encourage others to do so because health is a shared thing. If my neighbors are not healthy, then I’m not.

What are some major concerns for the neighborhood?
There is a lack of adequate services. I have always done work with disabilities and families and have raised three disabled children. My son has to play basketball in West Roxbury because the teams here can’t meet his needs. My other son is in a specialized school setting that is far from home. I shouldn’t have to drive over 15 minutes to visit him. Literacy is also important because then you can understand information, read notes from your doctor or look things up on the internet. It’s how you participate.

What do you hope to gain from the MAPP process?
MAPP has showed me that there are a lot of issues, but also how you can be a part of the change. I want the same things in my neighborhood that I see in other neighborhoods. [We need] more big events, flea markets, playgrounds, benches on Talbot Avenue so that I can walk and then sit. When I go South of Boston, I always see elderly couples walking together, but you don’t see that around here. We see a lot of young families, but there is also an older population. I want to see more respect for the diversity in the neighborhood. I feel encumbered and I want to be free. I love my neighborhood and I want others to do so too.

Joana works for an after school program in Dorchester. She also runs a support group for parents with disabled children. She has lived in Franklin Field for 32 years and enjoys dancing and reading.