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The Future of Pillsbury United Communities
Pillsbury United Communities has spent significant time examining key trends in our neighborhoods and our society in general. We have spoken with staff, participants, government officials, neighborhood leaders, church groups, corporate leaders, and peer agencies about where they think we ought to be headed. In these discussions, we have learned that economic, social, racial divisions continue to be critical issues in our city. The movement of political power from urban areas to the suburbs has left many city residents feeling abandoned. There is a sense that the poor are responsible for their own fate – Minnesota’s long tradition as a progressive state feels threatened. People in the core city are feeling increasingly isolated. In this time of growing need, there also seems to be a general dissatisfaction with large organizations that should be addressing these needs – including government, schools, medical, and social services. Instead of working together, these organizations are often fragmented and uncoordinated. Funding preferences toward smaller and more entrepreneurial organizations means that creating these partnerships and alliances is ever more difficult. In a recent article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Jim Boyd wrote:
“A movement is afoot to undo most of the reforms that sprang from the settlement house movement. Its proponents don’t seek to tweak the social-welfare system or curb its excesses. They seek to obliterate it . . . to return us to the individualism of the frontier days and the robber-baron era, when the poor and the newly arrived were looked down upon and when where was a quite small middle class.”
How are organizations like Pillsbury United Communities to survive and thrive in this environment, and more importantly, how are the people who live in our communities to survive and thrive? Pillsbury United Communities is working on a number of strategies to address these concerns. Our goal is to vitalize healthy communities by creating, innovating and collaborating with diverse individuals and groups; providing open, attractive, welcoming and safe spaces for people to participate, connect, and organize; and bridging the gaps between those who are affected by decisions and those who make them. At Pillsbury United Communities, we are taking an approach that is challenging yet critical: we are big and small at the same time. “Big” when it comes to community impact and organizational efficiency, but “small” when it comes to relationships and people. As we look to the future, we find that the basic tenets of the settlement way are still central to our mission: We will continue to show dignity and respect toward our neighbors by developing top-rate facilities, programs, services and staff. We will promote social reform and democracy by providing training, mentorship and resources to our neighbors. We will vitalize healthy communities by bringing people from diverse backgrounds together to share their talents and create an environment of reciprocity and solidarity. The Settlement Way is alive and well, and continues to create healthier communities throughout the world. Pillsbury United Communities will continue to honor the three “Rs” – respect, reform and reciprocity – to create choice, change, and connection – one person at a time.
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