Dedicating Campbell House to mentorship

The Circle of Friends board of directors sat — appropriately — in a circle last week out in the yard of their clubhouse, called Campbell House, located at 164 N. Elm St. They gathered to officially dedicate their new facility and thank Duncan and Cindy Campbell for making the purchase of the former church, Chamber of Commerce office, and yoga studio possible. The name Campbell House was chosen to honor the Campbells and their years of dedication and support for at-risk children (see story, page?6).

Board Chair Cheryl Olson presented the Campbells with a Kathy Deggendorfer print of the clubhouse. The Campbells received sincere thanks from all the board members. The term “extraordinary human being” was used to describe Duncan. Another board member praised him for being “a major contributor in so many ways to make Sisters a wonderful place for people, for kids.”

Mentor representative Terry Buchholz relayed how the children’s eyes light up when they walk into the clubhouse. They laugh and are so excited to be there. Campbell House provides a wonderful place for mentors and kids to meet, hang out, do fun projects, and have meaningful interactions.

“Your generous gift made this all possible,” Buchholz told the Campbells.

The organization conducted a capital campaign to raise money for the purchase and remodel of the building, but everyone agreed the Campbell Foundation made it all possible.

If not for COVID-19, the dedication would have happened a year ago, with children playing in the yard and clubhouse and donors viewing the results of their support. Just as they teach the children to be resilient, so too did the board want to model resilience and make do with a small gathering.

There are currently 47 children being served by Circle of Friends, 27 in one-to-one mentorships and the rest participating in a program at the middle school in partnership with Caldera Arts. Nicole Swisher Woodson is the executive director of Circle of Friends, assisted by Kellie Scholl, youth program coordinator, and Karen Isberg, office assistant. A new youth program lead has just been hired, University of Oregon graduate Taylor Campbell (no relation).

For information about the Circle of Friends programs or to inquire about being a mentor, call the office at 541-588-6445. At any given time, there are at least seven children waiting for a mentor.