A voice for the vulnerable

LaToya Jones-Joe rises from her chair and walks towards the podium amidst applause from colleagues, friends and family. A woman raised on the south side of Syracuse, finally receiving appreciation for her countless efforts in improving the community. Her son, Nyshaun, and husband, Quintrell Joe, stand up, beaming with pride. 

“This award recognizes a woman who has contributed to the advancement of her field and her continuous support to her community,” said Iris St. Meren, the emcee of the Spirit of American Women Gala, “We are thrilled to recognize LaToya Jones-Joe for the Spirit of American Women Award.”

“It’s been a journey, a little girl from Ostrander Ave wouldn’t think she would standing before you, accepting this award,” Jones-Joe said in her speech. “But I always say that this award isn’t about me, it’s about the community I care about.”

“It’s not work for me; it’s my passion.”

For Jones-Joe, advocacy work was deeply embedded in her childhood as she grew up in a family of service. But her grandmother served as the “beacon of service.”

“My grandmother was a cook at Catholic charities, and she was that grandmother who fed the neighborhood, who fed the kids, and helped anybody in need,” she said over Zoom, from her office at the Central New York Community Foundation (CNYCF).

Jones-Joe was introduced as the first director of the newly made LeadSafeCNY coalition in early July, in an effort by the CNYCF to reduce the gap between communities and officials in the battle against lead poisoning in children.

Syracuse has one of the highest lead positive rates in the nation, and it was something Jones-Joe had experienced from her childhood.

“I grew up in communities where you see the incidents of lead in housing, and where you see most of those zip codes where it pops up,” Jones-Joe said. “Those are the zip codes I grew up in.”

Nancy Kern Eaton, the president of United Way of Central New York, said that the decision to make Jones-Joe the coalition’s director was based on her ability to connect to people of all backgrounds.

“She can work with government officials, she can work with people and experts in the healthcare community, she works with other partners and nonprofits,” Eaton said. “I mean LaToya really can connect with everyone and help them understand what this all means and why it’s important.”

Eaton says this is attributed to her “authentic” self that helps her bring a human perspective to the issues at hand.

“She has a lot of expertise, but she doesn’t speak in jargon,” Eaton said. “She’s very authentic and she never loses the human side of things and the connections they bring.”

Sara O’Neill works with the 1199 Service Employees International Union (SEIU) in a political coordinator role. She said Jones-Joe incorporated an inclusive aspect to the lead discussion with her time at the Healthcare Education Project (HEP).

“(Jones-Joe) helped with a discussion while she was still at HEP where she brought together a state senator, a family member whose kids were poisoned by lead in their home because of a really crappy landlord,” O’Neill said. “I’ll never forget the power that LaToya gave that family to advocate in front of their state senator but also to teach community members and the public about what’s truly going on.”

At HEP, Jones-Joe led 13 counties on healthcare-related issues from her office in downtown Syracuse and organized efforts with the sister union of 1199, giving her access to more connections and deepening her sense of advocacy throughout the community.

“I think all those life experiences that I had been given really has built me into an engine that I am now, being able to go through systems to see what doesn’t work for people,” Jones-Joe said. “And what the end result would look like if we kind of built what people need from the community instead of from organizations.”

The turning point that caused much of her work in advocacy, preceding HEP and LeadSafeCNY Coalition, stems from her own family. Around ten years ago, Jones-Joe’s son NyShaun Joe suffered a near fatal Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). 

Jones-Joe’s professional life “had taken a backseat” as she devoted her full time with her husband Quintrell Joe to rehab Nyshaun and some of his working abilities. 

Jones-Joe, a certified nurse with experience working at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Upstate Medical University, said she was able to use those skills but felt there was a lack of resources in the area to help families like hers. So she started the Joe Family Foundation for Disability Advocacy.

“Even with the knowledge base I had, there were still a lot of barriers for us as a family and for him as an individual,” Jones-Joe said. “Starting that organization allows me to connect with other caregivers, other mothers, and other minorities so I can connect them with relevant resources.”

Photo by Ciara Feltham

LaToya Jones-Joe with her son, NyShaun Joe, at a 2024 Home for the Holiday event.

During events with LeadSafeCNY and her Joe Family Foundation, Jones-Joe keeps “a good pulse” on everything going on, making sure to take time to meet everyone with a bright smile.

“She really does give everyone the time to talk about what’s important to them and offer next steps she can do to help whatever it is that they need,” said Ciara Feltham, the official photographer for the Joe Family Foundation.

Feltham says Jones-Joe understands the importance of taking pictures of these events and has meetings with her regularly to encourage creative ideas.

“I’ll come up with one idea, and she’ll be like ‘Actually, let’s do that and while we’re talking, let’s make sure we get some of this,” Feltham said. “She’s forward-thinking in that way.”

After Nyshaun Joe’s injury, Jones-Joe reached out to Feltham to incorporate photography into his rehabilitation routine. Nyshaun Joe wanted to learn photography before his TBI, which left him unable to use his right arm. Through an intensive eight-week program, Feltham collaborated with Jones-Joe in teaching the basics of photography.

“I was able to teach him and also find solutions for him to be able to take photos by himself,” Feltham said. “We were able to work on a strap situation around his neck and set up the camera in a way that made it possible for him to achieve what he wanted.”

Due to these efforts, Joe is now a first-year Photography major studying at Onondaga Community College. Feltham says there are potential plans to expand the program to other individuals with disabilities. 

Jones-Joe said the Home for the Holidays event was inspired directly by Joe, who wanted to be able to share his story with others.

“He said ‘Mom, I just wanna do something good for people,” Jones-Joe said. “Christmas was his favorite holiday to make people feel good.”

It was the feeling that Jones-Joe couldn’t shake, during the time of her son’s injury, of anticipation to have Joe come home before holiday festivities began. It started with her organizing donations of gifts and food for those who didn’t have the opportunity to be home for Christmas like her son. 

“It was my promise to my son that we would give back to the community and make a family or individual happy through the holidays,” Jones-Joe said. “So that’s how we kicked off that project and we continue to do it annually.”

In all her programs and initiatives, Jones-Joe urges others to be able to rise up and make their voices heard on issues because, to her, that’s where change starts. 

“It’s okay to ask questions,” Jones-Joe said. “It’s okay to get involved, but it’s important that you get your voice heard.”