Would you like to be part of a truly grass roots effort to prove that crisis-derived and generational poverty can be eliminated? Then join us as we celebrate over 50 years of Okanogan County Community Action Council. Community leaders came together in 1965 as part of the Lyndon Johnson War on Poverty to develop community-driven solutions to our county’s poverty and formed our agency as an important vehicle for change.

In 2018 our board revised our mission statement to read:

LEADING A REVOLT ON POVERTY THROUGH EDUCATION, EMPOWERMENT AND ENGAGEMENT

Over the next 50 years we propose to set the standard for how very rural communities can reject poverty as a component of rural life. We are educating the community about the importance of financial skills, empowering clients to plan and complete the move out of poverty, and we are engaging our community and our community leaders about the challenges of poverty. We are a resource for people living in poverty to learn the opportunities available as they set goals and implement a strategy for getting ahead.

Grass roots empowerment means EVERYONE in the county needs to be welcome engage and to seek information that will better their lives. In the next three to five years, we will see a new facility that provides classrooms, meeting spaces, community kitchens, gardens, and regular access to education and advocacy opportunities via telecommunications infrastructure.

We started as a few people dedicated to change. We are now a movement dedicated to the idea that each of us has something to give to our community and in turn each of us will be enriched in the process.

Our vision for the future does not include people living in poverty but rather communities where people are housed, have their needs met, and they are giving back to their community. Won’t you join us?