👋🏾 Hi, I'm Wilfred Stephen Anfield, MSW, MPH (most folks call me Stephen 🙂)—a Washington, D.C.-based advocate and systems thinker working at the intersection of community care, public & population health, and digital strategy. Rooted in Black Southern resilience, I believe in systems that reflect the people they serve—and in a world where y'all means all: inclusive, welcoming, and built for everyone.
Mason jar values in a complex world: Clear, grounded, holding care. Trying to do my best to preserve what matters most, even in hard seasons.
Grits-fed, purpose-led, let's break bread. 🫙🌎🧡
🌱 Where It All Began 🔗
My journey into community care work began in a place close to my heart—my Grandma's first-grade classroom in South Carolina. There, seated criss-cross applesauce on a rug, I first experienced the joy of helping her first-graders find their words.
I'd spend time with her students each spring break, sitting alongside them as they sounded out words from their favorite books, counted (and ate) jellybeans for math lessons, and shared stories from their lives. That was my first glimpse into the beauty of presence, encouragement, and patience—of being part of someone's journey rather than directing it. Those classroom moments shaped how I approach relationships to this day.
💡 What I Do 🔗
- Support older folks and caregivers, informed by my lived experience as a court-appointed guardian/conservator and advocate for my Mom
- Uplift community voices, especially across Black Southern communities, rural areas, and historically underserved systems
- Bridge tech, care, and policy, bridging my digital strategy background into public & population health, aging justice, and disability justice
- Advance digital health equity, addressing both access and trust through the lens of sociodigital status (SDS)
- Build accessible, dignity-centered tools and narratives, integrating human-centered design with public & population health systems thinking
🔄 How I Got Here 🔗
For years, I worked in communications, social media, and digital strategy, crafting narratives, designing accessible content, and consulting organizations on how to present themselves online with clarity and authenticity.
Behind every click and scroll are real people with real needs. My digital work was always about creativity at the speed of trust—crafting messages, tools, and systems that meet people in real-time, on real screens, with real needs.
Now, I bring that lens to care-centered work, where public & population health, social work, and digital inclusion intersect. Earning my Master of Social Work (MSW) and Master of Public Health (MPH) from the University of Michigan (Go Blue!) gave me the foundation to connect systems thinking with lived experience—and to co-create environments that reflect and honor lived wisdom over institutional logic.
✨ Why I Do It 🔗
Care is infrastructure, and systems work best when they reflect the communities they serve, creating pathways to support rather than obstacles to overcome.
My work as a court-appointed guardian and conservator for my Mom keeps me grounded. More than a caregiver, I'm her son, supporting her through this chapter with love, advocacy, and resolve. It's taught me that the barriers people face aren't just technical—they're emotional, relational, and often systemic.
In my emerging professional practice and my role as a real-time advocate, I lead with curiosity, clarity, and compassion.
🎓 My Path So Far 🔗
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 🔗
School of Public Health
- Master of Public Health (MPH) (expected Aug. 2025)
Population and Health Sciences
School of Social Work
- Master of Social Work (MSW)
Interpersonal Practice
University of Tennessee, Knoxville 🔗
College of Communication and Information
- Bachelor of Arts (BA)
Speech Communication and Rhetoric
City Year AmeriCorps, Washington, D.C. 🔗
- Senior Corps Member
🤝🏾 Affiliations 🔗
American Public Health Association (APHA)
Member
Project Management Institute (PMI)
Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)
Member
International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP)
Member
🔎 Focus Areas 🔗
- Digital health equity
- Digital and Social Determinants of Health
- Sociodigital status
- Accessibility & inclusive design
- Aging & caregiving justice
- Community engagement & narrative power
- Rural and Southern health systems
- Strengths-based, care-centered, person-centered design
📍 Where I'm From, Where I'm Rooted 🔗
Carolina clay in my bones, my Southern upbringing shows up in everything I do.
Pecan trees taught me patience; porches taught me how to listen.
Rooted in Black Southern care, nourished by collard greens and front-porch wisdom.
Still sounding things out like I did on that classroom rug. Still believing in what's possible when we center people and care and design with community. 🫙🌎🧡