MEDFORD, Ore. – Rogue Valley Transportation District General Manager Julie Brown has joined the ACCESS Inc. Board of Directors. Brown’s goals in joining the ACCESS board are to help the agency find new funding sources within the community. She hopes her leadership, belief in serving people in the community, and ability to build partnerships with other organizations will be an important asset to ACCESS and the clients it serves.
ACCESS is the Community Action Agency of Jackson County and has helped residents break the cycle of poverty since 1976. With a focus on education, ACCESS helps low-income families and seniors through economic crisis by guiding them through changes in the habits that help them become self-sustaining. ACCESS currently serves one in four Jackson County residents through 25 programs designed to address issues from one-time emergencies to longer-term issues.
Brown has worked at RVTD for 14 years and was named general manager in 2007. She has served on numerous local boards and committees, including board member for the Advocates for the Developmentally Disabled, ARC of Jackson County, in-house chair for United Way Campaign, and board member of the Oregon Transit Association.
“I believe that people can make a change in their community and that the change starts with oneself,†Brown said. “Without organizations like ACCESS, our community would be unlivable. It’s a wonderful agency that provides essential services in our valley that can’t be covered by the government. The struggling economy makes it difficult to rely on foundation funding, which is a lot of what ACCESS receives. I want to get community members to step up and fund the agency on an individual basis.â€
The ACCESS Board of Directors is made up of 15 members of the local community, including business community representatives, elected public officials, and representatives for low income. Other ACCESS Board members include: Ken Williams, chair; Bruce Cartmel, chair-elect; John Watt, vice chair; Pat Huycke, secretary/treasurer; Grady Singletary, past chair; Cathie Davis; Leigh Johnson; Jim Kuntz; Ed Miller; James L. Patterson; Steve Shapiro; Bob Strosser; and Hank Williams.
For more information, please contact Gary Miller, ACCESS Inc. Executive Director, at (541) 774-4322 or gmiller@access-inc.org.
