The Village of Arts and Humanities

“The children and the families. That’s what I’ll miss the most about The Village.”- Brenda Toler And we will all miss her enormously! It is with bittersweet emotion that we share that Village Guardian Ms. Brenda is retiring after nearly 30 years at the organization. Ms. Brenda has been a mother figure to many, bringing warmth, care, and hugs to The Village.💙 Today, we celebrate her incredible legacy in a new blog post, where you can learn what brought her to The Village, the impact this community has had on her life, and what’s next in retirement. We want Ms. Brenda to know how much she means to us all. Please leave a tribute in the comments. Congratulations on your retirement, Brenda! https://lnkd.in/eVt2quAd

We want you to meet Corrien Elmore-Stratton, The Village’s new Executive Director! Born in Philadelphia, Corrien brings over 20 years of experience in nonprofit management and youth development to the role. “I am proud to join an organization as beloved as The Village of Arts and Humanities, which has served as a sacred space for countless artists, young people, and the Fairhill-Hartranft neighborhood for decades.” In this role, Corrien will guide the organization into its next phase, deepening and accelerating our critical work that blends art and culture with social justice, youth leadership, and equitable neighborhood revitalization. We are thrilled to welcome Corrien to The Village community and look forward to you getting to know her. To learn more about Corrien, check out our blog post.

As The Village emerges from a reimagining period, we want to celebrate our growing team! We want to introduce you to two leaders who recently came on board: Eli Plenk, The Village’s inaugural Community Safety Project Director, and Julie Rainbow, our Senior Social Worker. We’re thrilled to have these respected and compassionate leaders here at The Village, and we look forward to sharing more about the initiatives they’re stewarding in the coming months. To learn more about Julie, Eli, and the rest of our incredible team, visit https://lnkd.in/eH5V8n5z

#ICYMI: The Village has entered a reimagining period to prepare for our organization’s next chapter. We take our role as a sanctuary for artists, neighbors, activists, young people, and so many others seriously and want to ensure that we can continue to show up for this incredible community for years to come. To do so, we have created a plan for reflection, regeneration, and restoration that will allow us to sustain our work and prioritize our collective well-being into the future. Now, through the end of the year, we are implementing a reduced schedule to provide our team with the time and space to assess and refine our programs and operations, plan strategically for our next phase, invest in professional development, and rest and re-energize. Read our blog post detailing our intentions for this fall so we can move forward with love and trust.

Thank you, Philadelphia Health Partnership, for spotlighting us! We are so grateful for your support.