Welcome New Living Cully Staff

You may have noticed some new names/faces at online meetings or in emails recently. Living Cully has recently added two new staff members. Please help us welcome Maddie Norman (they/them), Community Engagement and Research Coordinator, and Brian Garcia (he/him), Living Cully Coalition Coordinator! We asked them both to introduce themselves to the community and to share some of their backgrounds. Read more below to get to know our newest staff members a little better.

 

Maddie Norman (they/them) 

I’m Maddie Norman and I’m the Community Engagement and Research Coordinator for a project exploring the creation of a community-led development district in Cully. The purpose of the project is to make sure people of color and low income Cully residents can still live and work in Cully as long as they want to. It’s also about making sure these same people get to decide how Cully grows and changes in the future, rather than outside developers making those decisions. As a former Cully resident, I care deeply about Cully and the people who live in the neighborhood.

I grew up in Southern California but came to Oregon for college in 2007 and never left. After graduating from the University of Oregon, where I studied neuroscience, I worked in Eugene as a case manager for survivors of brain injuries in a supported housing program. In 2016 I moved to Portland to get my Masters of Social Work at PSU. As a graduate student, I participated in student organizing, taking leadership from students of color to advance racial justice in the School of Social Work. While in Portland, I’ve also gained experience in affordable housing and environmental justice work led by people of color.

Through all of this, I have come to learn that I love collaborative problem solving and thinking strategically. I believe the core of both of those things is all about building authentic relationships. So I’m excited to build more relationships with Cully residents and work together to plan for the future of the neighborhood.

Feel free to reach out at maddienorman@livingcully.org or call/text at 971-716-4770. I’m always happy to chat.

 

Brian Garcia (he/him)

Hi, my name is Brian Garcia and I am extremely excited to join the Living Cully team as the new Coalition Coordinator! I am originally from Las Vegas, NV, and moved to Portland with my partner in January of 2018. In Las Vegas, I became interested in the impacts that government decisions have on communities and how communities can advocate for themselves. I learned about Living Cully and Verde during my internship at Ecotrust and was inspired by the advocacy work that Living Cully does for the people who are currently living in the neighborhood.

Since moving to Portland, I have been an intern at Ecotrust, worked on the inventory team at Powell’s City of Books, and was the Grants and Outreach Manager at Lloyd EcoDistrict. In my short time here I have met many amazing people and learned about the great things that community organizations are doing to improve the lives of communities of color and low-income people. In my role as the Coalition Coordinator, I look forward to strengthening the relationships between the four coalition organizations, building relationships, and working with community members to make Cully a place where residents can live and thrive. I look forward to getting to know the Cully neighborhood and the people who call it home.

Feel free to email me at briangarcia@livingcully.org or call/text me at (503) 395-7424 if you’d like to introduce yourself, have any questions, or just want to chat. I look forward to getting to know everyone!