Email: Mason Finn Kennedy
Title: Destination Services Coordinator
Organization: Travel Oregon
Community: Multnomah County
Population: 790,000
County Served: Statewide

Meet Mason Finn Kennedy (he/him):

Mason comes from a background in journalism and media production. He spent the summer writing for Public News Service, a national writing outlet that elevates stories from rural communities. Before that, he worked at Camp Fire Columbia, directing their rental programs on-site at the summer camp he grew up attending.

Mason was born and raised in Portland (more like Hillsboro) and has spent most of his life in the Willamette Valley. He attended the University of Oregon and received degrees in Journalism and Cinema Studies. He found his way back to the UO through the Resource Assistance for Rural Environments AmeriCorps program, which placed him here at Travel Oregon.

Outside work, Mason snowboards on Mt. Hood and swims in the Bull Run River. This past year, he traveled the coast of Ireland and spent two weeks working at a surf shop in Mexico. In town, he loves watching movies at Portland’s many historic theaters. Mason recently combined his love for film and writing when he had a scholarly essay published on cinematography.

Community and Organization:

Mason has been placed with Travel Oregon, the semi-independent state agency tasked with inspiring travel that uplifts Oregon communities. As a state agency, Travel Oregon works with communities across Oregon to ensure every community receives the attention and protection they need.

Mason’s work is explicitly focused on Outdoor Recreation and works with recreationists as a community in and of themselves. Oregon is full of outdoor recreation, and the people who participate in it are as passionate as they are varied. Mason works with the team in charge of supporting and building that community.

Projects:

Mason will be helping with two significant projects this year: Recreation Ready and the Tour Operators, Guides, and Outfitters program. The Tour Operators, Guides, and Outfitters program aims to connect the workforce that runs Oregon’s outdoor recreation attractions with resources, expert advice, and a network to communicate with their peers. Mason will work to develop scholarship applications and run events and summits with the community.

Recreation Ready is a recently announced program that will take up most of Mason’s time. Recreation Ready aims to support communities in developing novel outdoor recreation opportunities in their communities. The program will guide communities from brainstorming to groundbreaking. Mason will help interface with the public, build applications, and develop media assets for presentations and publications.