Help Welcome Two New People to the Strong Towns Staff!
From left: Alexa Mendieta, Jay Stange, Rachel Quednau, Chuck Marohn, and Grace Whatley. The photo was taken last week in Celebration, Florida.
The movement to build stronger and more financially resilient cities is gathering momentum. This year, Strong Towns articles and podcasts will reach more than 2 million people. From the block level all the way to the halls of Congress, Strong Towns advocates are changing the conversation about how we build towns and cities. And literally every day we hear about people who are putting the Strong Towns approach into action in their own place.
In order to serve this growing movement, we are thrilled to introduce two new members of the Strong Towns staff: Grace Whatley and Jay Stange. The rest of the staff were able to meet Grace and Jay in person last week, at a staff retreat that included several days of meetings as well as a visit to Celebration, Florida. If you think Grace and Jay are brave to spend a week in an Airbnb with people they just met…you’re right! We had a great time though!
We feel fortunate to have Grace and Jay as colleagues. Will you help us welcome them to the Strong Towns team?
Grace Whatley
Grace Whatley is a Development Associate at Strong Towns, focusing on grants and major donors. Growing up in small-town New England, she is a proponent of strong rural communities and the wilderness around them. Prior to joining the Strong Towns team, Grace lived and worked in the remote community of Green River, Utah, where she facilitated an artist residency, managed small-scale downtown revitalization projects, and secured grant funding from private and public sources. She is also an artist herself, working in various printmaking, drawing, and painting mediums. Grace is now relocating from Utah to East Texas with her cat, Winnie, and is eager to explore a new region through the Strong Towns lens.
Jay Stange
Jay Stange is the new Content Manager for Strong Towns. He takes over from John Pattison who will be moving into a full-time community builder role for Strong Towns in 2022. Jay is an experienced community development consultant, journalist, grassroots organizer, musician, teacher, and off-grid project manager. Raised in Alaska, his passions include transforming transportation systems and making it easier to live closer to where we work, play, and do our daily rounds. Find him shopping for groceries on his cargo bike, gardening, and coaching soccer in West Hartford, Connecticut, where he lives with his family. You can also connect with him on Twitter at @corvidity.