Dear ROPnet,
We are so excited to introduce the newest member to the ROP staff team: Stephanie Hunter!
We are living in unprecedented times and rural community leaders are taking action right now at greater and greater scales. Our list of member groups has grown 40% in the last 5 years and rural folks across the state feel called to “raft up” as ants do to survive a flood. With the growth of our organization, we are thrilled to share that ROP is expanding our staff team of brilliant, experienced, dedicated, passionate people focused on building the rural movement for human dignity and justice! Many of you have already chatted with Stephanie about this year’s Rural Caucus and Strategy Session. She will be working with human dignity groups in the mid-Willamette Valley and Southwestern Oregon! Read on to learn more about Stephanie, and please join us in welcoming her to the team by sending her an email at stephanie@rop.org!
Stephanie joined the ROP team after serving on the Board of Directors since 2022. Her organizing experience began in 2005 when she navigated special education services in public schools as an advocate for her daughter. Through that lens, she gained a deeper understanding of systemic inequities in education and began organizing with families and community groups to influence district policies. She helped amplify the voices of those most impacted by exclusionary discipline practices that contribute to expulsion and the school-to-prison pipeline.
In 2020, inspired by an ROP workshop, Stephanie co-founded Redmond Collective Action, a community group focused on human dignity, mutual aid, and increasing civic engagement in the city and region. The group hosts a weekly street kitchen and mutual aid hub with their unhoused neighbors and advocates for building grassroots power in Central Oregon.
Prior to joining ROP, Stephanie focused on rural capacity-building and mentoring behavior specialists who support families and individuals served through county developmental disability programs. Disability justice is a core value in her life, and she is excited to bring that passion to her work at ROP.
A Gen X’er who grew up in the cornfields of rural Illinois, Stephanie moved to Oregon in 1999 and now lives in Redmond with her family and beloved dog, Christina. She loves coffee chats with local folks dreaming big, volunteering, karaoke, and traveling with her daughter.
Want to help us keep growing sustainably? Start a recurring monthly donation to ROP today to meet the needs of our network of 93 groups and counting for years to come!
Warmly,
Sam and the ROP Team
