Our yearly fund raising letter -- November 10, 2010
Dear Friends:
For the past 23 years, the Neahtawanta Center has been a steadfast voice for peace, justice and environmental stewardship. The issues haven't changed much in the years since 1987. What has changed is the increasing sense of urgency, of time running out to turn the path towards sustainability before significant thresholds are irreparably crossed.
This critical urgency has led us at the Center to embrace the concept of resilience and to join with others around the world to promote this way of thinking as a guideline for everything that we do. Resilience is a measure of a community's ability to recover, restore itself and regain balance from unpredicted changes. Like a forest that regenerates after a devastating fire, we must reorganize our lives around the principles of resilience, which include adaptation, diversity, flexibility, shorter feedback loops and more. Read about our Investigating Resilience project and other Center activities -- here.
Once a year we turn to our community of kindred spirits to ask for financial assistance. We have no paid staff, but use your donations only for the Center’s work. You can use the enclosed envelope for your check or you can make a donation online. Whether you are a longtime supporter or are new to our work, please consider making a tax deductible donation now for the work of the coming year, described in detail on the next page. There is much to do.
We will be convening some "fire pit conversations" during our slow season at the Neahtawanta Inn, where as innkeepers we earn our bread and butter. You will be invited to join us then as we continue to explore ways to create a more resilient community.
John Bailey, a local Bioneer voice has asked us, "What kind of an ancestor will you be?" Let's come together to create the world we want.
Peace,
--
Sally Van Vleck & Bob Russell