Event Information

Join the Embrace Bend team at COCC's Coats Campus Center, Room 116 to learn all about some recent changes with Embrace.

About this Event

Embrace Bend is Changing

Over the last year, Embrace Bend has grown and changed very quickly. If you have been a part of this group since the beginning or if you are new to Embrace, we would appreciate a chance to share our story with you and all of the new changes we are making in order to be a more responsive, effective and supportive group for us all!

We hope that our new structure and mission will better serve you and our community here in Bend. We can't wait to hear from you and tell you about our new affinity groups, book club and community talks!

Embrace Bend: Community Meeting: AgendaThursday, December 19, 2019 @ 5:30pm-6:30pm @ COCC’s Coats Campus Center, Room 116

Land Acknowledgement: A Land Acknowledgement is a formal statement that recognizes and respects Indigenous Peoples as traditional stewards of this land and the enduring relationship that exists between Indigenous Peoples and their traditional territories. We are currently standing on the land of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. The land is also important to the Klamath Tribes, as this region acted as a site for trade.

Share Healthy Guidelines for Meetings:

Healthy Guidelines:

(Adapted from the East Bay Meditation Center)

Try it on: Be willing to “try on” new ideas, or ways of doing things that might not be what you prefer or are familiar with.

Practice self-focus: Attend to and speak about your own experiences and responses. Do not speak for a whole group or express assumptions about the experiences of others.

Understand the difference between intent and impact: Try to understand and acknowledge impact. Denying the impact of something said by focusing on intent is often more destructive than the initial interaction.

Practice “Both/And”: When speaking, substitute “and” for “but.” This practice acknowledges and honors multiple realities.

Refrain from blaming or shaming self & others: Practice giving skillful feedback.

Move up/Move back: Encourage full participation by all present. Take note of who is speaking and who is not. If you tend to speak often, consider moving back and vice versa.

Practice mindful listening: Try to avoid planning what you’ll say as you listen to others. Be willing to be surprised, to learn something new. Listen with your whole self.

Confidentiality: Take home learnings but don’t identify anyone other than yourself, now or later. If you want to follow-up with anyone regarding something they said in this session, ask first and respect their wishes.

Right to pass: You can say “I pass” if you don’t wish to speak.

Introductions: We encourage attendees to share their pronouns, but, if a member is not comfortable sharing their pronouns, we will not shame them or pressure them. If we cultivate trust in the group, then hopefully we can earn that trust to share pronouns. Also, we acknowledge that gender shifts and changes over time. If you share he/him pronouns one month and then the next month, your pronouns are they/them, that is welcome and valid.

In our introductions, we will also encourage folks to share any needs that they might have. We all have needs in order to learn, grow, and feel that our dignity is being respected. Some needs must be addressed prior to our meetings so that arrangements can be made to meet those needs. But other needs may pop up sporadically and can be honored on an as-needed basis.

Embrace Bend’s New Mission and Structure Presentation & Discussion: Embrace’s board members will share our group’s new structure and mission, and we will then open up the floor for dialogue, feedback, and idea-sharing.

Closing: General Feedback on the meeting and how we can improve: We want to close each meeting by extending folks the space and opportunity to share feedback about the meeting. Were there things you liked? Were there things we could do better? How can we build community to support you?