Glynis Phillips: A Conversation

Glynis Phillips, Springfield Network Coordinator

When we sat down with Glynis Phillips, one of Union Capital Springfield’s dynamic Network Coordinators, it quickly became clear why she’s such a vital part of the UCB family. Originally from Hartford, Connecticut and now calling Springfield home, Glynis joined Union Capital a little over a year ago and stepped into her Network Coordinator role this past April. Warm, passionate, and deeply committed to her community, she embodies the spirit of connection that Union Capital stands for.

In this conversation—recorded over Zoom—we talk with Glynis about how she first discovered Union Capital, the impact it’s had on her life, and what inspired her to take on a leadership role. Enjoy this behind-the-scenes look at her journey and insights.

Finn:  What is your job as a Network Coordinator?

Glynis: My job as a Network Coordinator is to basically train people who are new members. I'm going to train you on how to use the app, how to check into new events, how to search for new events that are going on, how to do selfie events, and I’m also as a Network Coordinator going to make sure I’m going to spread the word to people who aren’t members, and they’ve heard about Union Capital, but they're not sure what it is, that's the big mouth job. I go through and tell you what it is and what it entails, some people say “Oh yeah I’ve heard of Union Capital, it sounds fake, it’s some kind of finance company right?”. Bing, you’re wrong! So I jump in and really explain. 

Finn: Interesting, and do you have a partner organization?

Glynis: I do. I have a partner organization with Baystate Health and Baystate Brightwood. Baystate Health has a wellness on wheels bus. So they go around the city and do blood pressure screenings, they stick people's fingers for diabetes. They give you different flags for different health concerns that you may need to follow up with your primary care. I have only done one event with them; it was a health screening. A lot of people came through, it was at an apartment complex. It was a majority elderly people. A lot of them weren’t very tech savvy, they have a phone just to call family members, they don’t know much about downloading and using apps. I tried the best I could in their language to explain it. Then I do the Brightwood food pantry. They have people coming in from different neighborhoods that need food, which is unfortunately a lot of people nowadays with this economy.

Finn: How did you hear about Union Capital?

Glynis: My husband because he thought it was a scam! He went to an event and signed up, he gave these people his information, they told him he would get a gift card for going to the event, and he’s like “Yeah right”. So he comes home and everyday he’s complaining, “I shouldn’t have given those people my information, I think I just got scammed! I can’t believe I let that happen!” Then he got a gift card, and he goes “i didn’t get scammed, these people actually gave me a gift card!” And I’m like “who are these people?” I thought he was crazy. Then when I saw it worked for him I was shocked and said “well i’m gonna sign up too!”

Finn: And when did you join?

Glynis: July 2024

Finn: When did you become a Network Coordinator

Glynis: I just started, maybe in April or May.

Finn: Awesome, so then how did you become a Network Coordinator?

Glynis: It was Tito. Whenever I had questions or problems for the app, I was blowing up his email. “Tito, Im doing this, this is happening, why?”, and I think he said “Oh my god”. After a while I stopped bothering him because I figured most of the stuff out. I was showing him where I was and what I was doing. He said “You figured out this app, Im pretty impressed. Most people don't figure out the app that quick! I have a vacant position.” I didn’t know what a Network Coordinator was. I had just retired so anything I did on the side or volunteered I wanted to do on my time and something I would enjoy doing. So when he explained it to me I said “Well. Let me think about it”. I thought about it for a couple weeks and I thought “I’ll try it”, and I’m very glad. 

Finn: What does Social Capital mean to you?

Glynis: Alright, to me, I'm gonna break it down into two works, social and capital. Social to me is being connected to some form of a community, whatever your community may be. Other women, maybe other African Americans, veterans, right, I was in the air force so maybe other veterans, that would be my community. Capital to me always equates to funds and money, so the capital would be the gift cards you receive from Union Capital, but not only that, the resources. I have recommended the resources from Union Capital to other people. So capital is funding, is learning, it’s sharing, people that have similar values that you live by, and the bottom line is that we are all trying to reach the same common goal, we are all people that want to be treated with dignity. We want humanity, we want to have food on our table for our family and clothes on our backs. So in the long run no matter if you're rich or poor, we all have a common goal. We need to face the stank, we need food to eat, and income coming in. So to me that’s what social capital is, it’s like a circle of all of those things going around and around. 

Finn: That’s a great way of putting it. I joined a Virtual Network Night last night and these people really love having a place to talk and share resources with each other. It’s such a great community.

Glynis: It is! It’s like, so much bigger than one person, it’s so many people together at different level. I meet people at some of the Union Capital events, not that I'm on their level or they are on my level, we are all on different levels. Some people may not have finished high school right. Some people may not be able to spark good English, some people are homeless. Some people live in a big house, but we’re all people at the end of the day. We all have some commonalities, the same goals. We just have to achieve them differently because of where we stand. So we have had the same thing we are trying to do.