City of Bend seeks applications for Welcoming Week events
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Each year, the City of Bend joins and supports numerous community partners in celebrating Welcoming Week, a series of community-organized events that highlight the principles of inclusion to create communities that prosper because everyone feels welcome. This year, Welcoming Week is from September 9 to 18.
The City has opened its event application process for community groups that would like to host an event for Welcoming Week. Applications can be found in English and Spanish at www.bendoregon.gov/welcomingweek.
Groups that would like to host a Welcoming Week event and need financial support to do so can apply for funding. The deadline to apply is August 5. Applicants will be notified of how much financial assistance will be awarded by August 12.
Groups that wish to host an event but are not seeking funds do not need to apply to participate in Welcoming Week.
This year’s Welcoming Week theme is #WhereWeBelong and focuses on places and spaces that foster belonging, such as cities, workplaces, neighborhoods and more. “Where We Belong” aims to spark individual reflection on how and why belonging occurs and ways we can break barriers so that places can foster belonging for all, including immigrants and refugees. Cities, towns, counties, and nations — and the institutions within them — can lean into what makes their communities welcoming places and showcase how fostering belonging helps all people, especially immigrants.
By doing this, we demonstrate the scale and breadth of Welcoming Week spreading across the globe, cultivating the universal values of welcoming places and individuals by helping others belong and feel at home. A helpful toolkit with daily themes and other Welcoming Week resources can be found on the Welcoming Week website.
