The Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow (WCDH) is pleased to present its revised mission and vision statements.
“The mission of the Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow (WCDH) is to nurture writers of all backgrounds, genres, and levels of experience in a supportive environment that builds community, stimulates new thinking, energizes creative expression, and optimizes productivity.”
“The vision of the Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow is to create a lasting contribution to the literary arts by providing a sanctuary where writing is nurtured, honored, and shared.”
With recent growth at WCDH, the staff and board of directors decided to create a vision and mission that reflected that growth. Board president Peggy Kjelgaard, reflecting on her experience in corporate management, said, “Long-term goals are derived directly from the mission statement. This comes from the top down and strategy and implementation plans are built from those goals.”
Executive director Michelle Hannon agreed. “The reason we have mission and vision statements is to guide our planning and fundraising initiatives. My primary goal as executive director is to bring us to a point where we are fiscally sustainable. Literature doesn’t keep the lights on, dollars do. That’s why it’s so important to have a mission and vision. Otherwise, you chase the dollar and risk losing focus. We need concise, powerful mission and vision statements that exemplify our commitment to the literary arts and our writers.”
Hannon continued, “Our old mission and vision didn’t capture all we currently strive to do. Our vision has grown to include new, creative ways to support and promote our writers and build community. We’ve developed a depth of literary programming that includes readings, workshops, retreats, a podcast series, a Goodreads group, virtual Poetlucks, and eMerge, our online literary magazine. The old mission statement focused primarily on residency time, but what we offer has broadened to include other ways to support writers and the literary arts. Our mission statement should reflect that.”
Board member, Allyn Lord, was instrumental in crafting the wording of the vision and mission statements. She said, “I believe that mission statements should be fairly short so that they're memorable and repeatable. So, for example, if you meet a funder or corporation officer, you could pause, tell them the organization’s mission (from memory), and continue your discussion.”
The Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides uninterrupted residency time for writers of all genres, including culinary, composers, and artists, without discrimination. We foster an environment that allows writers to work, interact with the wider community, stimulate new thinking, and energize creative expression. Since opening its doors to writers in 2000, the Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow has made a lasting impact on the arts and literary communities hosting over 1,600 writers from 48 states and 13 countries. For more information, please visit www.writerscolony.org or call Michelle Hannon at (479)253-7444.
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