On August 14, Western Colorado Alliance celebrated its 41st Annual Conference!

Organized around a theme of “Connecting the Dots,” this year’s conference included a series of workshops focusing on story-sharing, understanding power, and the art of deep listening. Our August 14 business meeting concluded with a keynote address from Steve Deline of the New Conversation Initiative, teaching us about the powerful technique of “deep canvassing.” Our Alliance will be using this technique in our work in 2022, as we reach out to more people across the Western Slope to learn and understand what people’s lived experiences are in this rapidly changing world.

The Annual Conference is when our Alliance elects officers to the Board of Directors. This year, Kevin Kuns of Montrose was elected to serve another term as Vice President. Brenda Bafus-Williams, who had been acting as Secretary during the previous year, has stepped down and we continue to look for new candidates for that position.

Western Colorado Alliance’s 2022 Platform was ratified during the business meeting. In 2016, it was resolved that our Alliance would transition from a resolution-based process to a platform-based one. This year’s platform brought some updates on climate change and added a sub-plank clarifying our support for cleaning up “legacy” pollution sources. However, the biggest change to the platform came in the form of a new plank in support of Homegrown Prosperity. (You can read the 2022 platform in its entirety here.)

One annual ceremony during our business meetings each year is the bestowing of the Worley Award, established in 1999 and given to one or more volunteers who have made an outstanding contribution to our Alliance and/or its affiliated community groups. This year, the Worley Award went to Betsy Leonard of Garfield County and Al Lowande of Ouray, for their years of action for our Alliance.

Also awarded every year is the Rising Star Award, to honor new volunteers who have shown admirable commitment to our Alliance. This year, that award went to both Erica Kitzman of Grand Junction, for her inestimable help with our youth group, West Slope Youth Voice, and Rachael Balerio of Montrose, who has taken on great responsibilities this past year helping to shepherd Uncompahgre Valley Alliance’s recent childcare needs assessment process. Congratulations to all of our awardees. You are shining examples of our Alliance at its best!