Malcolm Farmer III, Partner and lifelong Rhode Islander, has been recognized with the 2024 Community Hero Award by Lucy’s Hearth at the recent Fall for Lucy’s Hearth event.
“We are so grateful to Mac for being such a huge champion of Lucy’s. He has worked tirelessly to ensure that Lucy’s has strong footing and continues to grow and be a leader as our state combats the current affordable housing crisis. With his steadfast commitment and thoughtful strategic guidance, Mac is a champion for Rhode Island’s children and families facing homelessness,” said Heather Bishop, Lucy’s Hearth Department Director.
“As one of Rhode Island’s only family homeless shelters, Lucy’s Hearth celebrates 40 years of service and it has a bright future ahead providing trauma-informed care and wrap-around services to families in need of permanent, affordable housing,” said Mac Farmer. “I’m proud to have been a part of their impactful work and I am honored by their recognition.”
Lucy’s Hearth is a 24-hour emergency and transitional shelter serving homeless children and their families. Working to ensure that all families have a place to call home, Lucy’s believes that homeless families can overcome barriers to self-sufficiency through the combination of holistic programs and services offered in a hopeful, safe and nurturing environment.
Lucy’s is affiliated with Family Service of Rhode Island (FSRI), whose mission is to advance equity, opportunity, and hope in our communities and has been a pillar of support in the community since 1892. FSRI’s programs meet the diverse needs of Rhode Islanders and address the gaps in social services because they believe that all children and families have limitless potential. Mac’s involvement with the FSRI spans more than two decades and he is currently Chairperson Emeritus after serving as president of the board from 2002 to 2016.
Mac has dedicated his life to serving his community and his country. In the mid-1960s, Mac served as a staff attorney for the Lawyers’ Constitutional Defense Committee in Jackson, Mississippi where he represented civil rights workers and organizations, as well as local African American citizens. Returning to Rhode Island in 1967, he was the executive director of the Governor’s Commission on Crime Delinquency and Criminal Administration and a member of the Providence City Council from 1979-1991. In 2007, Mac was inducted into Providence’s Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Hall of Fame. FSRI previously awarded Mac the Brighter Futures Award in 2015.