When the pandemic began, I was deeply worried by the decrease in volunteers, donations, and overall involvement in the local community. However, as the months unfold, I have hope we will persevere in the most turbulent of times. There will always be someone pushing to care for their community.
The Holden Center for Leadership and Community Engagement is honored to still offer the Service Grant Program formed by the Kilkenny Service and Leadership Fund during the Covid-19 Pandemic. The projects created by this fund during the pandemic have been a large source of my hope.
One project I was fortunate enough to work alongside was titled “The City as a House”. The team behind the project was a collaboration between the UO School of Architecture’s Spatial Justice’ program and the ‘American Institute of Architecture Students’ Freedom by Design’ group. Applying their skills as architecture students to give back to their community, the team of students, led by Joshua Fox, Amicia Nametka, and Adam Abu-Sukheila, partnered with The Dining Room, a Food for Lane County center, to design and build a wash station for their outdoor dining area.
While a sink sounds simple, it is crucial for keeping the community safe during the Covid-19 pandemic, especially for the unhoused community of Lane County. The unhoused population has been the most disproportionately impacted demographic by the pandemic. The team of students aimed to design and build a wash station to provide a greater sense of safety and care via improved sanitation for the unhoused community who go to The Dining Room.
The team faced unprecedented obstacles completing their mission. The inability to meet in person. The limited bandwidth of nonprofits during the pandemic. The fires of the summer which halted outdoor work. Most challenging of all, the ability to stay motivated during a global pandemic. Despite all the challenges, The Dining Room now has a new wash station that is keeping the community healthy and safe.
Walking away from the experience, the “City as a House” team learned the importance of connecting with the local community and persevering even in the most unstable of times. I challenge you to reach out and start conversations with your community. Adam puts it best,
“These conversations were the tools to break down the social divide and to simply connect with people we never imagined connecting with. I believe long-term sustainable solutions begin with changemakers having direct exposure. And from reducing the physical distance and creating trusted spaces for different social groups to come together” (Adam Abu-Sukheila).
If you are looking for some hope today, look toward this team of architecture students.
For more information about Food for Lane County and their programs, including The Dining Room, check out their website: https://foodforlanecounty.org
If you are interested in applying for a service grant of your own or becoming more engaged with your community, check out our website: https://holden.uoregon.edu/service
by Ellie Cairns, Junior, CliftonStrengths Consultant
