Part 2 – Gratitude for Many Voices

As we reach the first milestone in our organization-wide strategic planning, we want to share a brief update. In April we wrapped up the first phase of this work, which involved conversations with those closest to the Foundation’s work – our board and staff – about past accomplishments and future aspirations, strengths, as well as growth opportunities. Now in May, we have entered a new strategic planning phase in which we are widening our lens, looking outward to explore needs and priorities in Greater Denver, and soliciting external feedback about Rose Community Foundation and our work.

As part of this external information gathering, a broad and diverse range of community members joined us for focus group conversations to share their insights into current and anticipated needs and opportunities in our region, and to provide feedback on the Foundation and its role in strengthening the community. Seeing people come and go from our offices for these conversations filled us with excitement and gratitude. While we cannot directly engage the voices of all our current and future stakeholders in this process, we are hearing from people of diverse identities and backgrounds, across different sectors and geographies, and with varying degrees of connection to us and our work. They range from longstanding grantees, fundholders, and peer foundations – to those with whom we have not worked closely in the past but whose knowledge and vantage points we are eager to hear to help inform our future direction. The opportunity to have our future strategies be informed by so many people who so generously shared their time and insights is a gift we value highly.

So, what comes next? In the coming months we will add three additional dimensions to our external learning: community interviews, a survey specific to our work in the Jewish community, and a scan of existing quantitative data related to trends and needs in the Greater Denver region.

The third phase of our work will subsequently involve our board’s exploration of future strategic pathways, and our fourth and final phase – which we are still on track to complete by the end of 2019 – will be to produce a strategic plan to guide Rose Community Foundation’s next chapter. There is much work ahead, but for now, we are simply thankful to be part of a community of supportive and engaged people who are willing to participate in conversations about how we can work to strengthen the place we all call home.