Dear Resolve Community,
A new fiscal year begins! In July, the Staff and Board of Directors gather plans for what’s ahead in 2023-24. It’s going to be a big year at Resolve, and the winds of change are blowing.
Exciting news! The annual Resolve fundraiser will be re-emerging on October 19th. So save the date to “re-imagine community” with Resolve as we gather for a lovely evening together at the Rogue Valley Country Club.
More exciting news! The Resolve office, in fact the entire building at Cobblestone Village, has been purchased by On-Track to house families in recovery from addiction. What a great use for this complex! Hooray! But that also means Resolve is on the lookout for a new location.
I want to reach out to all of you, our community, to help with this search. We have engaged the help of a realtor, and we have a year to find our new home. Please email me or call us if you hear of any location, or a co-location arrangement with other partner organizations that might work.
This year, new restorative justice staff will be welcomed and on-boarded. Resolve (and before that Mediation Works) has served as the stable base for delivery of restorative justice services and programs for southern Oregon with consistent facilitation from staff and community volunteers. That’s the role of the community and the core of restorative justice.
A report this year from the Annie E. Casey Foundation named restorative justice as a best practice for working with justice involved youth. On one hand this is terrific news! Institutions in schools, universities, youth justice, are beginning to absorb and integrate restorative justice practices.
On the other hand, this evolution in recognizing of value of restorative justice, coupled with Resolve’s reputation for good work, has resulted in RJ staff advancing, and moving on to new positions within state government and institutions. While it is somewhat gratifying that Resolve is the training ground for a sought-after skill and service, this has also created is also a very challenging hiring and retention environment. We’ll get through it—and Resolve will just keep hiring and developing more and more terrific new practitioners!
And finally, this year begins a process of finding a new Executive Director for Resolve. I will be your Resolve Executive Director throughout 2023-24 and I will actively support this transition of leadership. Our very capable Board of Directors has formed a transition committee that is laying the foundation for a smooth and smart “changing of the guard”. It is so exciting as I ponder what a new, passionate leader will bring!
My contribution to Resolve grew from the beloved community that gave it life in the late 1980’s and sustains Resolve to this day. So, stay connected dear friends, as the winds of change blow Resolve to a future full of the good work of community building and peace-making in southern Oregon.
Deltra Ferguson, Executive Director
