Vasquez appointed to SPRD board

Local resident Rosemary Vasquez has been appointed by the Sisters Park and Recreation District (SPRD) board to fill a vacancy due to the resignation of Jayne Simmons.

Vasquez was one of five applicants for the position who answered questions from the board during an open interview process. She will serve out the remainder of Simmons’ term, which ends in 2021.

Since moving to Sisters in 2008, Vasquez has been a regular participant in a number of the classes offered at SPRD. One of the things she hopes to see happen during her board tenure is the development of a method or mechanism to facilitate two-way communication between the class participants and the SPRD staff and board. She believes that because of her participation in SPRD classes, she may be able to act as a conduit in representing the interests of participants, whom she thinks don’t have much of a voice in what happens in the organization or the classes that are offered.

Vasquez looks forward to seeing the results of a needs assessment conducted to give participants and community members the opportunity to express their needs and wishes for recreation and social activities. She is especially interested in exploratory outreach to the local Latino community to encourage their participation in SPRD activities and to determine what their interests are.

The times that classes are held is something else she would like to explore.

“Do we need to be offering more late-afternoon and evening classes, so people who work or have other responsibilities during the day can come?” she queried.

The new board member plans to spend her first few months listening and learning. She has extensive previous board involvement, including serving on the boards of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts in California (appointed by a judge), the Youth Soccer League, Language League, and Hawaii Big Sisters.

Vasquez is a longtime social worker, writer, music lover, world traveler, and hiker, as well as a mother and grandmother.