Dearest RARE Family,
I sure hope this message finds each and every one of you fabulous humans faring well. As we work through the grey days of Winter, well, I can’t help but shed a little light on what we have going on here in Eugene and across rural Oregon. We are a service-learning program on the move, in transition, and there is rarely a dull moment around these parts!
Embarking on our 28th year of service offered another round of change as we moved back to some of our old ways of serving, training, and adventuring in-person. Making this move back to an in-person setting hasn’t come easy, especially with member and host site safety being paramount. We have risen to the occasion every step of the way, requesting all members are vaccinated, testing before and after trainings, and following the most up-to-date safety protocols coming from the CDC. I am so darn proud of the team, our members, supervisors, and community partners for working through these challenging times with such grace.
Speaking of big change, I am happy report the RARE AmeriCorps Team is continuing to grow! Finally, this capacity building program has the capacity we need to be the best we can be for our members and community partners. Not only have we hired a new Program Assistant, Kate Coenen, we also have brought on a second Program Coordinator, Elizabeth Gronert, who has been really upping our game within the realms of alumni engagement, member support, and social media management. It’s hard to explain how rewarding it is to have a legit team of amazing humans backing the RARE AmeriCorps Program. Onward and upward!
As you know, we also have been actively engaged in an equity planning process that is being led by Capacity Building Partnerships. This process has been long overdue and is sure to result in significant modifications to our processes and procedures in the months and years ahead. I can’t help but acknowledge all who have been involved in our equity planning process; it’s been an eye-opening experience and one that has resulted in an array of much needed, yet very difficult conversations. The work isn’t easy, it’s not meant to be, and now it’s time for us to step it up and move towards implementing the array of recommendations we will soon be receiving.
This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to all that we have at play here at RARE HQ. Other noteworthy items include further development of our RARE Mentorship Program (thanks to all who are involved!); improved engagement with our community partners via delivery of hybrid trainings; and, gearing up to receive the Oregon Tourism Industry Partnership Award at this year’s Governor’s Conference on Tourism. Again, never a dull moment around these parts.
Lastly, I can’t help but note that we are back to recruitment season here at RARE HQ. We are in the midst of looking for new community partners and the best and brightest to follow in your footsteps. If you know of a community in need of capacity or someone looking for a life changing experience in rural Oregon… send them our way!
Titus Tomlinson, Years 13 & 16
RARE Program Director