South Lane
Cottage Grove, Creswell, and Surrounding Areas
Coordinator: Forest Rolnick-Wihtol
Co-Chairs: Linzy Jones and Mary Nisewander
South Lane has always been the first team out of the gate at 90by30. As the first to finish its prevention plan and the first to debut a strategy (the Welcome Baby Bundle), it continues to pave the way with its passion for prevention. When the West and East Lane teams launched their own Welcome Baby programs, they drew on the lessons learned in South Lane, where team members have delivered the most Baby Bundles of any region.
The team’s close relationship with the area’s Family Resource Center has been a major strength, and the South Lane prevention plan focuses on making the center a community hub for parents as well as volunteers who want to give back. Partner organizations like the Family Relief Nursery and PeaceHealth’s Cottage Grove Community Medical Center have also helped the team get the word out about the Baby Bundle and amplified its efforts.
South Lane truly puts its all into Child Abuse Prevention Month, decorating Cottage Grove’s Main Street every year with blue pinwheels and ribbons.
Get in Touch with South Lane
Strategies in South Lane
Welcome Baby
This gift to the newest members of the South Lane community provides carefully selected items, as well as a binder with local resources – all delivered by a caring community member. A safety kit, a book and toy, organic clothing, a handmade “tummy time” quilt, and a hand-knitted infant cap are just some of the items in the Welcome Baby Bundle. Also included is the Period of PURPLE Crying, a training program shown to reduce Shaken Baby Syndrome by normalizing the intense crying experienced by some babies. The Bundle not only offers concrete resources but connects families with neighbors who can provide a support system for new parents.
Roots of Empathy
This classroom-based program cultivates empathy in children in order to build more caring, peaceful, and civil societies. Through interactions with an infant and caregiver, and with the guidance of a Roots of Empathy Instructor, children learn to identify and understand the feelings of the baby, then themselves, and the feelings of others. 90by30 has partnered with Roots of Empathy to bring this program to 50 first- and second-grade classrooms in Lane County.
What’s Next
The next steps of South Lane’s prevention plan include exciting strategies like an expansion of the local Family Resource Center, Parent Cafés, the Triple Parenting Program, and Foster Grandparents, and Safe Families for Children.
How You Can Get Involved in South Lane
- Donate to the Welcome Baby Bundle
- Volunteer as a Roots of Empathy Instructor or Family
- Join the Regional Leadership Team
- Raise awareness during Child Abuse Prevention Month
- Commit to be a member of 5,000 Strong
Thank You to Our South Lane Supporters
Cottage Grove Lodge 1904
Jesse Garcia
