An End of Summer Celebration with Journeys
Nevada McNamara, Journeys 2009 - 2010 Americorps Volunteer, shares the story of a wonderful Journeys Celebration and the awarding of the first ever "Stan Crow Outstanding Service Award" to Edith Kusnic who has been volunteering and working with Journeys since the 1990's.
By Nevada McNamara, 2009-10 Americorps Volunteer
 Journeys Staff and Volunteers get ready for the event to begin on a beautiful September day. |
As the new Americorps volunteer with Journeys, this year’s End of Summer celebration was one of my first encounters with the Journeys community. It was a big, festive occasion held at a park in Woodinville near the end of September. To celebrate everyone who made their own passages this summer during our trips, we brought participants and their families together to share stories as well as enjoy food from the grill. There was a slideshow of photographs from the summer’s trips, and later on participants were called forward to share some of the highlights and challenges from their own adventures. It was easy to see how much the youth in particular got out of their time with Journeys; some of the youth were overflowing with stories they wanted to tell. |
Participants get a chance to share their adventures from the summer with Journeys Staff, Friends and Family. |
While we were all eating hamburgers, veggie burgers, and chips I had a chance to talk more one-on-one with some of the families. One very proud mother told me how her son roasted coffee beans at home in the family popcorn popper, then sold the beans door-to-door in order to fund his summer trip. Another mother told me how thrilled her daughter is at the prospect of following in her older brother’s footsteps, even though she’s still too young to go on any of the Journeys trips herself. She was already bursting with plans about how she was going to raise the money to go on her trip; as she was telling me about them, she was practically dancing with excitement. Through interactions like these, I got a clear impression of how important these trips must be to the youth, in order for them to show such motivation and for their enthusiasm to be infectious. Clearly, the young girl’s brother must have had a phenomenal experience if she showed so much initiative. |
During the celebration, I had a chance to be welcomed to Journeys by many of the board and volunteers. During part of the ceremonies, the Journeys staff presented a small gift to one volunteer, Brent Stuart, who had contributed time and energy far above and beyond what Journeys could have expected anyone would give; to recognize the time he gave to Journeys, and thus to everyone who participated in Journeys programs, he was to be presented with a gift certificate. There was one problem, however: he wasn’t able to make it. Yet even though he couldn’t come to the cookout and picnic (the fun part), he had called to say he would be there for the cleanup. Stories like these demonstrated to me from the beginning just how much Journeys is a community effort.
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Apart from the jokes and the food and the pickup basketball game, there was one more momentous happening. This year, Journeys inaugurated the first Stan Crow Outstanding Service Award. This award is meant to honor people whose service has become a core part of Journeys’ work, people who have really stepped up to the call and made rites of passage part of their life work. After joking about how Stan has been such a good sport with Journeys using his name so often without his permission, Stan was invited to present the award himself. He stood in front of the gathered families and kept the suspense high while he said some words. Then he finally tore the tape off the engraved plaque and revealed the name of Edith Kusnic. |
 The first Stan Crow Outstanding Service Award was awarded to Edith Kusnic for her hard work and positive impact on Journeys. Thanks Edith! |
Edith has been leading rites of passage with Journeys since the 1990s, and has been instrumental in developing the Coming of Age for Communities curriculum as well as the Stepping into Elderhood program. She also happens to raised (and brought into the world) Darcy Ottey, Journeys’ current Executive Director. To honor her work and the tremendous positive impact she has had on others’ lives, Journeys presented her with the gift of a beautifully patterned Pendleton blanket.
 Participants, Parents, Friends, Staff, Board Members and Volunteers gather together to stomp and clap for a fun song, "My Spirit's in the Sky."
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It was a good introduction for me into the world of Journeys, as I got to see the camaraderie and dedication at the root of everything Journeys accomplishes. I got to meet many new faces, and I got to see firsthand the impact the programs have had on people. And, as so many mourn Stan’s passing, I think it is wonderful he was able to see his legacy passed on, through Edith and future recipients of the Outstanding Service Award, in such an appropriate and meaningful way.
Visit our Flickr Photo Gallery for more images from this wonderful day! |
