The past year has been a dramatic time for us all, with many positive changes and most recently with the global economic crisis. Through all these changes, AWB-Seattle continues to gain momentum, and we want to send out a huge THANK YOU to all of you who continue to provide financial and moral support – and to the many volunteers who have donated so much of their time on projects and on the behind-the-scenes work building our organization. In light of the current economic crisis, our mission to provide effective, ecologically sensitive and culturally appropriate design assistance to communities in need is more pressing than ever. Thanks to your contributions, we are better prepared than ever to help underserved communities.

During the past year, AWB-Seattle has accomplished a great deal: our first major project, the Kalapuwa Sri Orphanage, opened in May and is now serving 200 students; we completed design for the Rabour Village Community Resource Center in Kenya; and we initiated exciting new projects in Peru, Ghana, and Seattle. We have developed a 2009-2012 Strategic Plan and taken preliminary steps towards hiring a development director. We have elected new officers, and our capacity to engage volunteers in meaningful design work continues to grow.

As we look towards the coming year, our resolve and organizational capacity will evolve in response to the continuing economic, environmental and social challenges. We will let you know about upcoming AWB events and as new project opportunities arise. We hope you will continue to join us in our efforts, and if you can support us with a financial contribution, please do so today on-line at awb-seattle.

We have several major events coming up soon: first up is a great exhibit at AIA Seattle “Design Making Change” which features projects by AWB and others committed to activist design in the public interest – please see the event news below for details.

Thanks again from the Board and Staff of AWB-Seattle: we look forward to seeing you at the upcoming events or at the next project meeting!

President: Ben Spencer
Vice President: Bray Hayden
Secretary: David Helton
Treasurer: Vorn Willis
Chairman of the Board: Brian Gerich:
Past-President: Owen Richards
Board Members: Robert Humble, Jerry Lutz, Rachael Meyer, Marc Pevoto, Jim Seeks, Carter Woollen, and Paul Wu

Staff: Michael Gilbride and Bambi Chavez

Advisory Board: Rachel Minnery, Roger Stocker, Steve Badanes, Samantha Beadel, and Chris Doerr.

Design Making Change Exhibition:  March 17th to April 30th, AIA Seattle (1911 1st Ave.)

Come Join us for the opening of this Exhibit on April 2nd from 5 to 7pm at the AIA Seattle. AWB-Seattle projects are featured.  For more more information, please see the poster. Spread the word.

Open Meeting: April 23rd. More details coming -  mark your calendar.

Annual Volunteer and Donor Appreciation: June 18. Ouch My Eye (1022 1st Ave S, Seattle).  Come start the Summer with a celebration of all of your efforts over the last year.

Ventarron, Peru
The Project Team is in the midst of design development and hope to complete construction documents later this spring. The team plans to travel to Peru in July and August to initiate the construction of the roofs and work with the community to develop a master plan, a community based tourism industry and several other building projects including a public plaza a museum, a community center, schools a clinic, sanitation infrastructure and water supply.

Rabuor Village Community Resource Center, Kenya
AWB completed construction drawings in January 2009; permits have been issued; and construction is scheduled to start this summer! We started working with Rabuor Village Partners in summer 2007, and it’s exciting to see the project move into construction. Thanks to AWB project team Kate Cudney, Tom Mulica, Lara Normand, Morgan Elliott, Sony Purba, Owen Richards, Ron Turner; Engineers without Borders’ Michael Chamberlain, Ondrej Sklenar, and Alexander White; and Kenya consulting architect Collins Atego.

Village By Village, Ghana
Thanks to all that donated to the Village by Village Ghana project!  We sent two volunteers, Morgan Elliott and Alexander “Ziggy” White, to Ghana in November of 2008 to help London-based NGO, Village by Village, assess erosion damage to the village of Gobloo Kofi. They returned to compile their suggestions of simple architectural and civil engineering strategies into a short video for the village and others to use. Thanks to the entire team that helped along the way: Morgan and Ziggy along with Brian Johnson, Hill Pierce, Heather Hull, Kiki Gram, Dave Helton, Michael Chamberlain and Bray Hayden. And a big thanks to Belt Collins for hosting the event!

Community Activism Initiative
We are presently developing a significant new local initiative providing satisfying volunteer opportunities benefiting our local non-profits. More news on this in the near future.

Hurricane Katrina Relief Work, Ninth Ward, New Orleans
AIA Seattle and Kevin Daniels invite you to join a group of fellow architects, engineers, developers, contractors and preservationists as they head down to the New Orleans to work on damaged historic home in the Holy Cross neighborhood of New Orleans through the Preservation Resource Center. All experience levels are welcome!
When: April 13th – 19th
Where: New Orleans
Why: Hurricane Relief

For more information, please contact Kevin Daniels at:
Kevin.daniels@danielsdev.com