The Call of the Future: 2021 Gratitude Report

Resilience & Hope A Message from the Leadership Team Thanks to your support, we sustained our staff and were ready to reopen in May of 2021 after a profoundly disrupted 14 months. Your gifts made so much possible: restful and renewing experiences, forest exploration, transformative programming, and the medicine of nature, beauty and connection. These are the healing and learning experiences that many are hungry for now in a world fraught with challenges.

You gave generously in 2021, making a total of 944 donations from 415 donors and families.

Your gifts went further with the addition of vital financial support from foundations and state and local governments. Donors, your generosity helped us bridge a 26-week long pandemic pause at the start of 2021, during which our team worked reduced hours to care for the land and buildings. We were able to prepare for the return of programming thanks to your support.

Among the donor-funded projects of 2021, we reached a milestone with the completion of Cabin Village Commons construction, as well as launching construction of a new donor-funded maintenance shed below the upper parking lot. Watch for that evolving story, and your opportunity to help name the new shed, in the months ahead!

As an example of some of those served in the nearly two dozen programs we hosted in 2021, we welcomed nurses, BIPOC community organizers, children’s book authors and illustrators, sexual abuse survivors, and others in profound need of rest and connection. Our first experiences of hosting after the long disruption were tearful, joyful, and deeply meaningful.

We received the loving support of 69 volunteers in 2021, with many of you adopting trails to help keep our four-mile forest trail system safe, clear, and open to the public. This was an essential service in a year when many families had limited access to indoor activities, our staff hours were constrained, and the solace of nature was needed more than ever.

We are grateful for the program leaders who bring their communities and programs to the Whidbey Institute. You have navigated wave after wave of pandemic impact with adaptive grace and have found a way forward, together. Thank you for the work to balance meaningful programming with public health and safety, reduce barriers to entry, and navigate the new logistical challenges of hosting during COVID-19.

We also thank our dedicated board members for their pivotal support as key members of our leadership team. Throughout these years of pandemic disruption, they have been unwavering in their capacities and care. Their dedication is matched by the skill, integrity and commitment of our staff, including newcomers Lety Hopper, Yadi Narvaez-Martinez, and Nick Jackman.

We have accomplished big work together, in community with you, as part of the fabric of a 50-year journey. We are enthusiastic for what is happening and what is planned for the years to come. Donors, volunteers, program leaders, program participants, neighbors, and team members— thank you for all that you make possible!

With appreciation, from the Whidbey Institute Staff and Board Team 4