Cascade Alliance

One Good Thing: Cascade Alliance Convening

Last week we hosted our 4^th Cascade Alliance Convening here in Eugene, OR.  Members from 13 different states attended, with two of our groups not present.

Our visitors just missed some rare area flooding, but since our venue was right alongside the Willamette River they had some irregular views of an extremely swollen and flooded river! Thankfully we were also treated to some sunshine.

To kick off our highly collaborative event, we took all of the first time visitors along with some seasoned ones on a tour of the St. Vincent de Paul facilities to gain greater knowledge into just how expansive our social service arm is. From waltzing alongside bales of foam in our mattress recycling operations, experiencing our upcycle workshop, viewing our thrift central processing, and ending with an inspiring tour of our First Place Family Center, our members were able to experience the vast scale of SVDP.

The first day of the conference, Thursday, began with presentations on leadership development and personnel, Point of Sale Systems, collaborative social media strategy suggestions, and more.  Friday included presentations on learning when to expand your store space and operations, safety guidelines, and continuing the talks around the theme of collaboration.

We love highlighting collaboration in our blogs, and isn’t that what a network is all about?  During each of our sessions, our members were able to ask questions, give feedback, share their own experiences and learn from one another.

We’re so glad to our members again and a huge thank you to all who took the time to present!

*Photos below are from the conference.