Street roots., November 24, 2017, Image 7

Street Roots
celebrates a
year of
growth and
looks toward
the future
BY BRAD TAYLOR
S T R E E T R O O T S B O A R D C H A IR
s the year winds down, we at Street
As the year ends, we will say
farewell to Israel Bayer, who for the last 15
Roots are finding ourselves enjoying
years has masterfully led our organization as
the success within our present
our executive director, participating in
moments and celebrating an inspiring past.
advocacy efforts across our community
We are also looking forward to a future that
is full of promise.
effectively and justly. He has touched our
community deeply.
Street Roots is a driving force for positive
Although Israel is moving on to future
change in our community. We share
projects, Street Roots will continue to be a
empowering stories, partner with social
leading voice in advocating and defending
justice leaders and organizations, and
the civil and human rights of all people in
provide income opportunities for individuals
our community.
struggling with homelessness and poverty.
We are excited to begin a new chapter
Looking ahead, we will begin our next
with Kaia Sand as our executive director.
chapter with a new executive director and
Kaia is a deep and curious listener, a skilled
we will find additional ways to add value to
storyteller and a strong advocate who has a
the lives of our readers and our vendors
history of using her voice to strengthen the
while continuing to work to strengthen our
voices of others. We enthusiastically
local and global communities.
welcome her leadership and her sense of
Our editorial department, led by our
purpose to Street Roots, and we look
outstanding Executive Editor Joanne Zuhl,
forward to her enriching and inspiring our
delivers some of the best journalism in the
community of vendors, staff and donors. Her
city. With her leadership, we will continue
experiences from the frontlines of local
to develop and tell the stories that our
social-justice movements and the
community wants and needs to read in ways
relationships she has developed and
that give depth to the issues and to the lives
nurtured throughout her career will serve
of those engaged on the frontlines.
us well as she guides Street Roots’ advocacy
In the coming year, we will continue to
voice and efforts.
not only inform, but also to empower
Our vendor program continues to grow in
readers and to celebrate the innovators and
strength and numbers. Creating income
opportunities for change that surround us.
opportunities for vendors remains at the
For instance, as we recognize that our
housing crisis is not just a Portland problem. heart of Street Roots’ mission, and currently
we have more than 160 vendors who are
We are embarking on a statewide, two-year
experiencing homelessness and poverty.
project to tell the story of our rural
communities as they struggle with their own They sell the newspaper, every single day,
at more than 70 locations throughout
challenges around housing and
Portland.
homelessness.
A
The vendors themselves are the
hubs that connect us. The vendors’ lives
embody many of the stories that the paper
highlights. And the vendors literally bring
those stories from the pens of the writers to
the hearts of the readers. They express the
humanity of our organization as they make
human contact with you and with me, at a
time in our world when human contact is
becoming more and more precious.
Expanding our vendor program and
expanding our vendor locations are the main
focus for next year’s efforts. Not only will
more vendors have the ability to sell more
papers, as we expand our locations farther
out from the city core, but more readers will
be exposed to the award-winning journalism
and the effective advocacy that Street Roots
offers. These new readers will find not only
a new paper for sale in their neighborhood,
but also a new voice to express the stories
and struggles and dreams that are most
pressing in their lives.
We will continue working to strengthen
the role that vendors play within the
organization through their engagement in
the vendor committee and representation
on our Board of Directors. We will continue
to support vendors’ engagement with the
public in ways that allow them to
demonstrate their complexity as thinkers,
advocates, storytellers and individuals who
have skills and perspectives to add to our
movement toward greater social justice.
Street Roots is now actively partnering
with the faith-based community to support a
vendor outside houses of worship, and to
date, more than a dozen participants have
signed on. We hope to see this number
continue to grow.
As we look back at the success we have
enjoyed in the past and the bright future we
see from today, we also think of you - the
reader. You who help provide income
opportunities to individuals experiencing
homelessness. You who support the paper
that brings the stories that fuel the
advocacy that shapes the policies that
improves the lives of our most vulnerable
community members. You are helping to
improve our city and the lives of those of us
who live here.
As we move into a new era at Street
Roots, our organization is stronger than
ever. Our paper and our programs are solid.
We are partnering with Marigold Coffee to
roll out a selection of Street Roots’ inspired
blends - Street Roast - that will give us
more financial stability while expanding our
name and our mission to people who have
not yet heard of us. We have a great team of
vendors, staff, volunteers and board
members who will continue to work
together with our readers to carry the
organization’s mission forward.