Velkommen! Tervetuloa! Velkominn! Velkommen! Välkommen,
In the last newsletter I introduced the challenge the Nordic Northwest Board of Directors addressed in its annual planning retreat in January. We must remain relevant as social, cultural, and demographic changes impact our community while retaining our commitment to the Nordic heart of our mission and our sense of community.
Our vision of Nordic Northwest is not change for change’s sake: it is driven by our mission within the context of evolving beliefs, values, preferences, and behaviors amongst our members and the communities in which we live.
Organizations that do not evolve to meet these shifts are at risk of failure and of being left behind. The Board believes strongly that we must retain our focus on and commitment to our cultural mission, while listening, evaluating, and adapting to new realities to ensure continued relevance while also engaging with new opportunities.
We want to better the expectations, trends, and motivations of those we serve in this time of transition, growth and adaptation. We need to gather and analyze data about our current and potential members as well as other stakeholders including our key partners, our expanding membership base and other constituents.
We will continue to improve our operations and activities by adding new members to the Board to include diverse perspectives and experiences. We will seek the optimal balance of staff and volunteer energy to deliver exceptional and broad experiences. We will broaden our base of financial support to ensure we have the resources for our future. And we will define a long-range plan for the Nordic Northwest campus that will enhance everything we do.
Most importantly, we will communicate effectively with you, the members and supporters of Nordic Northwest. We will conduct Town Halls, focus groups and other listening sessions to hear the voices of our communities. We will also compare ourselves to similar Nordic and cultural organizations to learn from their strengths and opportunities.
The Board and our founders and builders are united in the belief that our future must be informed by our past, and we will begin a series of newsletter features to explore the development of Nordic Northwest over the past four decades. While our past is a guide to our future, this respect should not be a constraint. The Board is the steward of this organization, and it is our duty to pass it on to future generations as a strong and vibrant center for Nordic culture.
So, there is a short summary of the retreat. I hope it gives you some insight into the thinking of the Board. We will continue to communicate with you in future updates and we look forward to open dialog. Thank you for supporting Nordic Northwest.
Med venlig hilsen | Ystävällisin terveisin | Með kveðju | Med vennlig hilsen | Med vänliga hälsningar
Peter Loop
Board President