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August 28, 2025
HRI is seeking organizational partners by transferring stewardship of its programs to ensure the mission is carried forward with strength and sustainability.
Rev. Terrlyn Curry Avery
By Jeanette DeForge June 19, 2025
On June 24, the institute will hold a two-hour community dialogue at the University of Massachusetts Henry M. Thomas III campus in Springfield. The agenda: discuss how to fight and heal from racism, especially in the current political environment.
The Rev. Terrlyn Curry Avery sits in a boat next to the Botti Falls in Ghana
By By Staasi Heropoulos | Special to The Republican November 6, 2024
The Rev. Terrlyn Curry Avery sits in a boat next to the Botti Falls in Ghana. The pastor of Springfield's Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Presbyterian Church recently traveled to Ghana to trace the origins of her ancestors.
August 28, 2025
HRI is seeking organizational partners by transferring stewardship of its programs to ensure the mission is carried forward with strength and sustainability.
August 28, 2025
HRI is seeking organizational partners by transferring stewardship of its programs to ensure the mission is carried forward with strength and sustainability.
Rev. Terrlyn Curry Avery
By Jeanette DeForge June 19, 2025
On June 24, the institute will hold a two-hour community dialogue at the University of Massachusetts Henry M. Thomas III campus in Springfield. The agenda: discuss how to fight and heal from racism, especially in the current political environment.
The Rev. Terrlyn Curry Avery sits in a boat next to the Botti Falls in Ghana
By By Staasi Heropoulos | Special to The Republican November 6, 2024
The Rev. Terrlyn Curry Avery sits in a boat next to the Botti Falls in Ghana. The pastor of Springfield's Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Presbyterian Church recently traveled to Ghana to trace the origins of her ancestors.
The Rev. Terrlyn Curry Avery is the pastor at Martin Luther King Jr. Presbyterian Church.
By Staasi Heropoulos | Special to The Republican June 24, 2024
The Rev. Terrlyn Curry Avery is the pastor at Martin Luther King Jr. Presbyterian Church. She has advanced degrees including a doctorate from Hofstra University and is interim executive director of the Healing Racism Institute.
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Healing Racism Institute of Pioneer Valley is committed to assisting individuals and institutions with becoming anti-racist. It is not enough to not be racist; the process promotes anti-racism.  The difference is not subtle. Our work provides a space where individuals can examine their bias and begin to heal.  It’s an authentic dialogue, learning, and a process to recognize the wounds caused by systemic and internalized racism.  While it is a community conversation, the intention is to speak to the heart and mind of the individual.  It introduces citizens to the idea of oneness and interconnectedness; and that race is a construct—that there is only one human race.  The evolution of our work includes strategies to embed ourselves in institutions and organizations working to become anti-racist. Please join us in Healing Racism.

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