Nathaniel Siggers is a busy man. In addition to working for a health center, volunteering his time to multiple causes, and coaching basketball, he was a 2017 mayoral candidate in Williamson, and stars on his own TV show. The 42-year-old is also an event planner for two annual events, appeared in Choices, a 2018 film about substance abuse, and works with the Global Public Service Academy. It’s hard to imagine how he finds the time to do all of these things, but when asked, he says it’s worth it. “It’s hard (to balance all of the work) but if I can make a change or help someone, it’s worth the sacrifice.”
Nathaniel spent months volunteering for the Williamson Health and Wellness Center. The Williamson Health and Wellness Center is a health center with two clinics in the region, offering a variety of medical services. His volunteer work helped him to discover a passion for helping his community. Dr. Dino Beckett, a healthcare provider at the center, saw his passion and appointed Nathaniel the Community Outreach Coordinator for the center.
Giving People the Tools to Succeed
Nathaniel also volunteers with Amizade, a nonprofit that works to connect people around the world with volunteer opportunities. Nathaniel has worked with volunteers to build more than 20 community gardens for low-income communities in and around Williamson. He feels that the positive impact of the work they do extends beyond the volunteer work. He describes how volunteers have come to Williamson with a negative, stereotypical view of the community. By the time their work is done, their prejudice has faded, and they have a high opinion of the folks in Williamson.
Nathaniel’s passion for helping his community seems nearly unlimited. He’s on the West Virginia Behavioral Health Council, which helps to write bills for the mentally disabled people of West Virginia. He’s also an instructor for the West Virginia Leadership Academy. Nathaniel describes the academy as a program that “teaches people...how to become a leader and advocate for their community” and “gives people the tools to be successful.” He became an instructor after going through the program himself.
It’s time to Relate With Nate!
In addition to his volunteer work, Nathaniel is also the host of his own TV show, Relate With Nate. The show covers a variety of topics, and their most popular videos include a series on racism, episodes on substance abuse, and a two-part episode detailing a paranormal investigation of a local tunnel. With Relate With Nate, Nathaniel wants to show people different sides to the issues that they’ve heard of, but don’t know much about. When asked what his favorite thing about the show is, he replies “The thing I like most about the show is when people come up to me and tell me they actually learned from the show.” The show is available on YouTube and Facebook, as well as a local TV station. In addition to hosting his own TV show, Nathaniel co-hosts the podcast Expand With Durand. Like Relate With Nate, the podcast tackles serious topics that affect the people of Williamson.
Life Lessons
Nathaniel is the head coach of the girl’s basketball team at Mingo Central High School. This makes him “the first black head coach in any major sport at Mingo Central”, he proudly explains. Of everything that he does for the community, Nathaniel says that coaching is most important to him. “Instilling character and teaching lessons of life to someone who is trying to figure themselves out or just starting life could be very influential to who or what they become,” says Nathaniel.
Hard Work Pays Off
Though Nathaniel stays busy, he has no plans to stop. His passion for helping the community is as strong as ever, and seeing the effects of his hard work is a reward. “For me, there is no better feeling than helping someone for the right reasons and getting a genuine thank you, or seeing the positive effect it has on their lives,” says Nathaniel.
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