Townshend, Vermont, October 4, 2018
Change is in the air – you can see it in the leaves, smell it in the air, and feel it in your bones as we start to pull out our sweaters and wool stockings. Despite how much I love the warmth and flowers of summer and how quickly they seemed to pass this year, I always welcome the change of seasons, autumn in Vermont in particular.
Speaking of change, the start of the new school year also ushers in change for our programs, what we choose to do and how we choose to deliver them. This summer, WRVT staff and board members held a one-day strategic planning retreat in July. Among a packed agenda, we reflected on our successes and shortcomings, examined lessons learned, and planned our approach for the new year. The many creative suggestions we received from students, parents, colleagues, our community members, and partners were a large part of that formula. As an organization, we consider ourselves listeners and learners as essential ingredients of our role as practitioners.
Following our retreat, we provided fully paid scholarships for five Leland & Gray (L&G) middle and high school youth to participate in the four-day Eastern States Youth to Youth Leadership conference in Rhode Island. We jump started the school year with two school-wide presentations – the first was a presentation/discussion on Marijuana and its effects on the developing youth brain; the second, an enthusiastic, inspirational and interactive presentation by Eddie Slowikowski (eddiespeak.com) to over 150 L&G students and parents. His central message: To empower youth with the life skills, education, inspiration and hope they need to survive and grow amidst the spectrum of negative influences they face each day. Eddie’s message pretty much sums up our own. There is so much we do and advocate for not only for our youth but also for the health of the seven communities we support in the upper West River Valley – Brookline, Jamaica, Marlboro, Newfane, Townshend, Wardsboro, and Windham. I could go on for paragraphs about what we are currently doing and all we have planned but I am going to point you to the newsletters our project coordinator, Nick Plante does such a wonderful job producing, as well as our photo gallery, which provides an insightful visual perspective at our work with students, the schools, community partners, volunteers, and coalition members. Please reach out to us with questions, comments, and suggestions. We crave your thoughts and feedback!
In Partnership,
Steve Tavella / WRVT Director