I am typing and listening to what is left of one very ferocious wind storm while I contemplate the various things I might write about for this, my last Note from Jody for 2025.
Although I want to tell you how we’ve worked with, and on behalf of, rural communities this past year, including submitting over $12 million in grant applications, it seems not the right time given what’s happening across the state these past 8-10 days. So I am going to save that for a dazzling 2025 recap after the holidays.
I could write about how devastated we are over the flooding in the Nooksack Valley communities we work with as part of our ROAR program – Everson, Sumas and Nooksack – and over the wide-spread natural disasters happening across the state. But our distress seems trivial compared to what people in those areas are going through…many of them for a second time in less than five years. Our hearts and thoughts are with them, and we are offering our assistance to help the smallest rural communities with what will be a long recovery process.
Normally an end-of-year newsletter from a nonprofit contains an appeal for donations (something drilled into every good fundraiser ;). But I am going to use this space and timing to make a pitch for the many disaster-relief groups working around the clock right now to help people in our state whose holidays and entire lives have been so drastically altered. The Shared Earth Collective is one of those groups, working to provide food, clothing and other needed supplies to folks in the Everson area (contact Linda Hilton at sharedearthcollective@gmail.com). There are many more. Please consider reaching out and doing what you can to help.
Let’s hope that 2025 going out like a lion means a lamb-like entry for 2026. And on behalf of everyone at PRWA, we wish you all warm, safe and happy holiday gatherings with those nearest and dearest to you.
Take care,
Jody
