TechSpark Spotlight - My Community: Quincy, WA

I live in a small town of 7,000 that is located smack dab in the middle of Washington state. Spanning a little over five square miles, one can literally drive from one end of town to the other in just a few minutes. We live and breathe everything that embodies the definition of rural America - an ag town. The Quincy Valley is filled with down-to-earth people who wave at each other as we pass by, whether we know you or not. We’re sparsely populated, and those who live here actually look forward to grocery shopping and running errands, as it provides an opportunity to see a friendly face at every stop - the commitment to community runs deep in our veins.

I’ve lived here for over 30 years. I, like many of my peers, feel the magnetic pull of participating in solutions at every level, so that we can get through this pandemic. My longstanding commitment to this area, paired with the incredible devotion of my employer, puts me in a position of being a helpful hand wherever I’m able in my region. I am a TechSpark manager, tasked with connecting people and resources throughout my region and COVID-19 has not only amplified my work, but it’s demanded it. Thankfully, I’m not adverse to this role – but rather feel the incredible blessing of being able to help on the ground in whatever is needed at this time, especially as COVID-19 hit our community.

Our community put together a task force we’re humbly calling – the Better Together COVID-19 Crisis Team - made up of all who advocate for our Quincy/George community on a daily basis. It’s in these meetings that I’m seeing needs addressed and problems solved and its aw-inspiring every time. Some examples include:

• Grant County Health Department needed to borrow some additional computers – (20 to be exact) for their field investigators and for folks to be able to work from home. I was able to reach out to the North Central Regional Library and to the local WSU 4-H Changemakers who I knew had computers that might be of use. I was able to connect them to GCHD and within days the health department had the PC’s they so desperately needed. Community.
• Folks from our community and within our team stepped up to volunteer to deliver meals and groceries to our shut-ins, clean carts at grocery stores, and send cards and such to our seniors who live in our local assisted living center. Community.
• Our Quincy Valley Medical Center CEO commented during a meeting about how much extra it was costing them to buy PPE and other things required to be prepared for COVID-19 patients and they were unsure where the money would come from. I was able to help her cover their immediate PPE costs through a Microsoft philanthropy grant. Community.
• The Quincy School District needed more hotspots for students and reached out to see if we could help. I was able to connect them to the Columbia Basin Foundation to get a grant from the COVID-19 recovery fund. They were able to get 50 more for students. Community.
• The Food Bank had a chest freezer break and at one of our meetings mentioned that a new/used one would be needed and quick. By the end of the meeting, there were two freezers offered and connections made for a new one to be bought if needed. Community.
• The Columbia Basin Foundation was chosen as the beneficiary of $56K from the Microsoft Data Center Community Development team, as they would see that funds would be given out to those organizations around Grant County with the most needs and in the most efficient way. Community.
• In 2017 and 2018, Microsoft donated 3D printers to the Quincy School District for an afterschool STEM program and today the librarians are going in and making PPE shield masks for our healthcare workers. Never in my wildest dreams did I think these would be used in this way only three years later and yet here we are. Community.

These are just a few of the many incredible things going on around me. It takes a village and it’s been so great to see everyone stepping forward in my village -- even in their own time of need. 

I’m an extrovert and my natural tendency is to immediately jump in to fix what is broken or heal who is hurting, so my mind immediately went to that place of ‘how can we help our small businesses and farms’ -- the places that make our town unique. Together with seven other local leaders who felt the same, we created a COVID-19 Business Recovery team that is adopting businesses and checking in with them to see how they’re doing and what we can do to assist them. We are also working on a web portal that individuals and businesses alike can access for the most updated information around COVID-19 resources. (website to launch soon)

This has been both humbling and emotional as I hear firsthand the challenges businesses face over wondering when they can open, worries over finances and the health of their employees, let alone their own. Our small businesses rely heavily on our agriculture industry and they now have the worry about the plight of the farmers and ag-related businesses as they too have been hit hard. Businesses are now left to wonder how that will play into their revenue when they can open. At the end of the day, this has reinforced my belief in how truly connected and dependent we are on each other especially in a small rural community. My friend, Alex sums up best what we’re all feeling.

“At the conclusion of the legislative session in March, I returned home to a community wrestling with the unprecedented public health threat of COVID-19. The virus hit Quincy hard, with the first death in Eastern Washington. Rather than rolling over, community leaders, both civic and private, courageously came together to combat and mitigate the impact of the virus. I’m proud of the collaborative work we’ve accomplished together. I’m convinced that Quincy, my hometown, is filled with caring, highly motivated people who love their community and will do whatever it takes to keep its citizens safe.” - Rep. Alex Ybarra, R-Quincy, 13th District

As I look through my kitchen window - out towards acres of cherries and apples that my husband and his orchard crew are currently caring for, I can’t help but feel a bit overwhelmed and sad....yet I'm feeling so grateful too. Grateful to live around people that answer when called. Grateful for a community that creatively uses technology, brain power, love but most importantly compassion to create solutions. Grateful to work for a company who allows me to give of my time and who will also step up when needed. Grateful for my peers that continue to inspire and drive change for the good. Grateful to know that we are all better together.

More to come on all fronts, as my colleagues and I share out what is happening in the world around us - spotlighting rural America.

TechSpark Spotlight Series: Through the TechSpark program, Microsoft partners with communities to understand their unique regional challenges and to explore solutions, programs, and partnerships that will be most effective locally. This first-hand account is part of the new Microsoft TechSpark Spotlight series that will shine a light on each community we serve. From their own perspective, our TechSpark Managers will share how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting their community.