2023 Annual Report

Dear Friends,

At Window Seat, we’re interested in learning from the experiences of our neighbors, friends, and family. Oral history and storytelling help us connect and elevate local knowledge - the things we’ve learned just by living. We’re particularly concerned with stories that institutions have overlooked or discarded. Sometimes stories are ignored on purpose by those in power. Sometimes an overemphasis on innovation and “newness” results in a disregard of the wisdom of elders. Sometimes communities are unable preserve the stories that matter most to them. Persevering and elevating underrepresented histories takes a lot of intention, labor, and collective care. We can build community capacity to do this work in our local community.

In 2023, we served over 700 adults and 70 youth participants across 32 events, with 38 partner organizations. Our efforts are focused on the long-term work of expanding our historical record. Equally importantly, we are also finding ways to engage with each other through facilitating opportunities to share stories, whether through exhibits, Playback Theatre performances, or offering workshops and services so our community has the tools to tell their own stories. We hope that we not only grow our understanding of where we’ve been, but we also create opportunities to learn from others as we make our way forward.

Our oral history and storytelling work is community-driven, participatory, and collaborative. We invite involvement in all aspects of a project - from conducting recorded interviews to audio editing to curating exhibits and other public programming to learning performance skills with Brave Practice. There are so many people engaged in our work, from creative collaborators and organizational partners, to funders and donors, to Board members and community advisors, to oral history contributors, to workshop and event participants. The breadth and depth of our engagement reflect a primary goal of our work - to share and engage in stories that focus on interdependence, collaboration, and learning through interacting with each other. Thank you for joining us as we learn and grow by sharing our stories.

With gratitude,

Elaine Vradenburgh,
Memory Activist, Co-Director

Meg Rosenberg,
Community Weaver, Co-Director