Meet Krissy & Stephanie
Introductions/PAR Info Webinar
Whilst we’ve been serving you recipes and stories about soup from different members of our community, Rē has been doing a lot of internal work behind the scenes.
One of our exciting dynamics has been bringing in two new staff people: Krissy and Stephanie.
Both of these dynamic women bring a tremendous amount of experience in education, nonprofits, and work in their respective communities. Both have been part of the Rē community for quite some time before coming in as core staff. Not only are we excited to have them with us, but this is the first time the organization has had three staff people, in addition to a number of key and committed people who work with us via contracts and our amazing partners. Our co-founder and Director, Ashlei, is now based much more firmly in Tennessee, meaning that Rē’s Tennessee network has turned back online in relationality. The organization intends to continue to be involved in nurturing the relationships/garden project in Amesbury, MA/the northeast, and, hopefully, strengthening the north-south relationships along key questions of regeneration.
During the last two months of this team working together in this new way, the staff has had the opportunity to re-examine organizational questions and build how they will work together as a team. Key to this process has been the question of how to ensure the internal workings of the organization have a strong regenerative dimension. Sometimes we think of this as a "Life First" approach - recognizing that this work is really big - and so is life. Life, not work, needs to come first. That is after all the major point of regeneration: to recenter Life!
The experiences that these staff members have in educational, nonprofit, and justice-orientated spaces means that they are well aware of the responsibility that staff carry in crafting a strong organizational structure that watches out and holds accountable the tricky waters of known and unknown harms and inequities that can easily rear up. They are looking to build a different approach to organizational dynamics, one that offers space and time for a process that takes careful study of Rē’s internal pieces. Together, the staff has been taking time to think carefully about the fundamentals, work that is too often hurried past: shaping the organizational calendar (including how to approach time off and cultural holidays), calendar management, internal staff dynamics, communications systems, methods of doing remote and in-person support, and more. Each of these small things holds the potential to create - or to not create - regenerative space. This intentional process is a rich and exciting time of thinking about what will work well for the team (both now and in the future), so that we can be of greater service to you and to our mission.
We’ll say more about some of our key contractors who are working closely with us in a future missive. For now, we would like to formally introduce Stephanie and Krissy. Both women were working alongside and directly with Rē prior to coming in as staff.
Ashlei met Stephanie through work at Growing Roots, where she is the Director. Growing Roots is a grassroots, Grundy County, Tennessee-based organization engaged in many forms of regenerative community care. Growing Roots has a mission to increase food access and community wellness on and around the South Cumberland Plateau.
Stephanie finds joy in community building, horizontal collaboration, and strategy design. She interprets these intricacies to establish strong foundations and direction for more equitable, accessible, and just systems. Stephanie holds over a decade of experience in director roles for nonprofits of varying size and scope in Tennessee and Kentucky and has experience serving within higher education institutions. She submits to the understanding that the work we do on this earth has the ability to contribute to humanity's greater good. On her journey to find meaning and peace in the everyday, you might stumble upon Stephanie as she writes, hikes, gazes at the stars, experiments with unusual culinary ingredients, or studies the science of the brain.
With Rē, you’ll find Stephanie in the admin inbox supporting administrative communications and tasks, at our programming events (especially in Tennessee), and building and supporting community relationships.
Ashlei met Krissy through her relationship with Sequoia Samanvaya. In December, Krissy, along with Sara Jolena from Sequoia Samanvaya, have participated in and co-lead the last three community retreats that Re has offered, two of which were in New Hampshire and one of which was in Tennessee
Krissy is a member of the Beaver Clan, Tuscarora Nation, Haudenosaunee confederacy. She has worked in education, administration, financial management, and restorative justice both on and off the Tuscarora Nation in western New York for over 20 years. Recently, she founded Collective Wisdoms, wherein she has been working as an indigenous peacemaker and restorative practitioner with national and international religious, educational, and corporate institutions. She often participates in national and international gatherings of indigenous peoples, and enjoys sharing stories with children. She is the mother of four adult children and two grandchildren. Her family lives both on and off the Tuscarora reservation, including in Canada. She currently lives on the historical eastern door of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, in Mohican/Mahican homelands, in what is now called the Hudson Valley in New York.
With Rē, Krissy is engaging with finance, strategy, and program development.
Everyone is excited about this new arrangement, and we look forward to working in collaboration with you towards regenerative presents and futures!
Including our next PAR workshop in Tennessee! Please do come to our online informational webinar on March 26!
UPCOMING EVENTS
Participatory Action Research Info Webinar
Info Webinar: March 25, 1 pm to 2 pm ET
Via zoom