At In The Works (ITW), we build belonging. We do this through facilitation that brings group together in care. Through coaching that brings clarity. And through summaries that document the way you’ve come and the journey ahead.
We built In The Works as our way to bring intentional story, space, and solace to our communities of healers, educators, artists, activists, and change makers. We know the real work is always “in the works” and needs stewardship and time.
ITW supports Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)organizations, spaces, and collaborations that are shaping social change. Our clients are entrepreneurs, funders, non-profit leaders, educators, artists, and community leaders on the front-lines of transformational change in education, politics, the arts, design, and social relationships. Our approach is Black-liberative (centering Black and Indigenous wisdom & practices), anti-racist (disrupting, repairing, and taking action to end racist practices & behaviors), and trauma-informed (understanding how trauma impacts us due to the conditions of colonization, oppression, & capitalism we are surviving).
KHT. I am a dreamer who believes we all can build a present and future that is joyful and liberating. As a Black queer woman and mom, I move through the world with care and compassion. I have dedicated my career to making change with neighbors, whether marching in the streets, writing policy, or building an organization – it has been about people, passion, and power-building. I am a catalyst, often seeing what is possible and lighting a spark that helps others see it too. This has led me through a unique career in social change non-profits, philanthropy, and as a legislator serving as Washington State Representative and as a Seattle City Council Member.
For me, facilitation is a way of holding space for feeling our way forward as a collective. I know my life has been shaped and held by the relationships and care of others. I grew up in rural Missouri, where people didn’t have much but what they had they gave you. The oldest of four kids, we were raised by our mom and circle of strong women. And now, I get to pay some of that forward in holding space for reflection, repair, and reimagining through In The Works. I love time to connect, to sing a karaoke duet, or to pull some tarot cards.
TMW. I grew up in upstate NY on a small section of the Hudson River in lands traditionally stewarded by the Esopus and Iroquois. By that time, General Electric had been pouring polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)into it for over 30 years and it had been deemed unsafe for swimming. In an effort to deal with that devastation, there was a plan to dredge the Hudson to get all the PCBs off the floor. I remember attending protests about cleaning up the river and though we were only sitting on this small portion, we were in the streets and a part of something much bigger. This is what I know, no matter if you don’t have the power to right an entire wrong, you still have a responsibility to tend to your little piece. Your piece of time and place and relationship because your piece is also a part of something much bigger.
I am a social worker by training and a facilitator by practice/purpose. I love to get with groups and help them be who they need to be to get where they are going. Though my early career was dedicated to working directly with young people, over the past fifteen years I have focused on working with organizations, typically run by and/or for folks with rich trauma histories. in city government, non-profits, universities, in community, and now through In The Works.
Why belonging and why now? Othering is going out with a roar, not a whimper and whatever comes next needs to be rooted in a recognition of collective wholeness and wellness. Belonging is a crucial way to get there. Humans are also herd animals, we thrive on and in belonging. And we suffer without it. From the Surgeon General’s call to action on the epidemic of loneliness to the ongoing warnings about political extremism and polarization, we understand belonging as a cornerstone for our individual and collective wellbeing. Counterfeit belonging, what we often experience as ‘fitting in,’ is not going to do it for us - not within our organizations, our communities, or our neighborhoods. We have to connect to one another. We have to belong to one another. And we have to build repair together. When people belong, they are more authentic, more creative, and healthier.
Art by Såhi Velasco. Check them out on instagram at @tendervirgo and @tendervirgofarts. You can also see their work on their website TenderVirgo.com.