Charmane Braxton: Our Volunteer Sunshine
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Healthcare worker, Mom, Daughter, cancer survivor, and an inspiration – Charmane Braxton is the epitome of giving back.
Born and raised in West Philadelphia, that is where her passion for philanthropy began. Charmane lived near a hospital and recalls seeing the nurses in their Florence Nightingale uniforms and was immediately drawn to that line of work. From the age of nine years old, Charmane would “run away” from home just to go help. She was there so much that the staff considered her a Junior Candy Striper. Since she was too young to be a nurse, she drove around a little cart passing out books and acted as a companion to the patients.
Charmane has been at CHOP for 25 years. She is the Lead Asthma Navigator for CHOP’s Community Asthma Prevention Program (CAPP). One in four children in West Philadelphia struggle with asthma. CAPP assures the children and their families quality care by sending people like Charmane to teach and provide families information on how to combat asthma triggers. She is also a member of the Multicultural Professional Network (MPN). This network is a CHOP employee-based resource group, representing multiple racial, cultural and ethnic groups, that seeks to foster a positive work environment that supports employees, patients and families of all ethnicities.
At CHOP, she spends her times volunteering in various places with different organizations. Internally, she volunteers her time passing out coffee and books to patients and their families with WAWA Volunteering services. During the start of the pandemic, on her own time, she delivered groceries and medicines to the elderly community throughout her neighborhood. This fall, she volunteered with the West Philadelphia Healthy Kids Running Series, which is run by CHOP's Healthy Weight Program, where children from pre-K through twelfth grade run age-appropriate races. She joins her passion of running and combines it while spending time with kids. Other organizations that Charmane has volunteered for through CHOP’s Office of Community Impact Community Volunteer Program includes; MANNA, Feed the People Philly, SEAMAAC, Everybody Eats Philly, My Independence at Home, Philadelphia Juneteenth Celebration and many more.
Outside of her passion for work, Charmane loves running. At first, it was for her overall wellness, but now she calls it her haven! She belongs to a club called Black Girls Run (BGR) and has religiously started running since then as well as other activities (races, swimming, hot yoga etc.)! Charmane’s mom sadly passed from COVID-19 on February 12, 2021. She started using the number 12 as her purpose to change her narrative. She will run in 12 different states/countries for 12 miles in honor of her mom. She has five more places to go! Charmane describes herself as spontaneous. She plans to go skydiving, participate in a triathlon and duathlon, go on a cruise and so much more!
Throughout her tough times she turns to giving back. She stated something her dad used to tell her.
“Everybody has a story. Your story is only bad because you’re in it. You can find five with a story like yours, five that are worse and five that are better.”
She sees everything with silver linings with underlying blessings.
Charmane Braxton is a reminder of the kindness we need in the world. She is pure love and care. Thank you, Charmane, for all you do! We appreciate your endless care, love and commitment to the community.
Learn more about CHOP in the community here!
Contact the Office of Community Impact here.