Pathfinder News: September 2026
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To our Pathfinder Community:
September is National Recovery Month, a time to honor the resilience of every individual on their recovery journey.
At The Pathfinder Network, we know that recovery doesn’t happen in isolation—it thrives in community. That’s why we prioritize peer support through our Resilience & Recovery Project, hosting community peer support events, facilitating recovery-focused activities, and sharing stories that amplify the real, inspiring voices behind our work.
📖 Read Our Latest Blog Post: Discover powerful stories written by members of The Pathfinder Network team about the what peer support means to them.
🎥 Watch & Share on Social: Head over to our social media channels (Facebook and Instagram) for short video features spotlighting the lived experiences and triumphs of our peers and participants.
🎉 Celebrate Recovery: Our End-of-Summer Peer Bash events in September were a huge success, reaching a total of 423 peers, partners, and community members. Our community came together across three Oregon counties to celebrate resilience, share resources, enjoy lunch, and build strong community connections.
Thank you for walking alongside our community and celebrating recovery with us!
The Pathfinder Network
Watch the Video: What’s it like to be published in A Secret Chord? PATHfinder Club members share their stories!
Our 11th release, A Secret Chord: Poetry, Stories & Art, transforms pain into poetry, silence into song, sorrow into art, and isolation into community. Watch this video to hear PATHfinder Club members Shay, Darrione, and Yules reflect on what it means to be published and read their powerful work!
See Us, Support Us Begins October 1st!
See Us, Support Us (SUSU) creates a community for and raises awareness about the 1 in 14 children who experience parental incarceration. October is SUSU month, and this year SUSU focuses on ensuring children have access to their incarcerated parents. Having access to an incarcerated parent supports healing and wellbeing, but limited visiting hours, pricey phone calls, and other barriers make it difficult for children to build and maintain relationships with an incarcerated parent.
Sign up for the SUSU newsletter, follow SUSU on social media, and visit the SUSU website to connect with resources, hear tips from young people, and advocate for family-friendly visiting practices in jails and prisons. Encourage children and families to follow SUSU to connect with resources and to be in community with others experiencing parental incarceration.
Partner Spotlight: Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office
Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office has partnered with Parenting Inside Out (PIO) since 2019. Through an enhanced visitation model in conjunction with the PIO curriculum, these partners are making big impacts with participants and their families.
"I’ll admit I was skeptical at first. It’s easy for people to promise change while they’re incarcerated. But over time, I saw genuine growth in [Dad]. [Parenting Inside Out] helped him recognize the weight of his choices and how much responsibility I had been carrying alone." —A co-parent’s perspective
Check out the full story in our latest blog post on Parenting Inside Out’s website!
Advancing Youth Justice
The Pathfinder Network is proud to stand alongside several community partners as part of the Transforming Justice Coalition (TJC), led by Partnership for Safety & Justice. Two of our staff recently joined TJC and are members of the coalition’s Youth Justice Subcommittee.
Recently, the subcommittee presented a new education and empowerment tool to Multnomah County’s Juvenile Justice Steering Committee. Designed to bring awareness to Senate Bill 1008 reforms to juvenile justice, this resource translates complex jargon into accessible language and offers a clear roadmap of what to expect during legal proceedings for youth and families.
This work builds on crucial reforms in Senate Bill 1008 (passed in 2019), which brought forward important youth justice pathways, such as ending the automatic waiver of 15-, 16-, and 17-year-olds to adult court for certain offenses, ensuring judges retain the authority to decide if a case moves to adult court.
“The justice system is overwhelming, and youth and families deserve support to navigate it. Policy reform is only meaningful when the people most impacted understand their rights, can ask informed questions, and feel equipped to advocate for themselves.”
—Partnership for Safety & Justice
Donor Spotlight: Madge Woods
Meet our incredible long-time supporter, Madge Woods! A generous donor and supporter of The PATHfinder Club, as well as the sponsor of our annual anthology, her passion for empowering youth through writing and community is truly inspiring. We are immensely grateful to Madge for her dedication to The Pathfinder Network all these years and the positive impact she makes on countless young people’s lives!
“When I first walked into the doors of [The Pathfinder Network] and saw everything they were doing, I knew this place was for me. I see that they encourage people to thrive, whatever that looks like for them. It’s a system of caring that I hadn’t seen before; this is my first exposure to a group of people who really have service in mind and are so helpful in the communities they serve.” —Madge Woods
We’re in! Join The Pathfinder Network for Willamette Week’s Give!Guide 🎉
The Pathfinder Network is thrilled to announce our inclusion in this year’s Willamette Week Give!Guide!
Running from November 1 through December 31, this community-wide effort makes supporting local causes simple and exciting, featuring unique weekly giving incentives throughout the season. Every donation helps us deliver tools, resources, and support to individuals and families impacted by the justice system so they can be safe and thrive in our communities.
Keep an eye on your inbox: We’ll share special giving days, incentive updates, and campaign highlights as November approaches.
Become a business partner: If your business would like to sponsor or partner on a giving incentive, please reach out to Kristian at khochreiter@thepathfindernetwork.org.
Thank you for standing with us—we can’t wait to celebrate this season of giving together!
Join The Pathfinder Network’s Board of Directors
Want to use your expertise for real-world impact? We’re looking for passionate leaders, entrepreneurs, and individuals with lived experience to help guide our mission supporting justice-impacted individuals and families. We are specifically seeking visionary minds with experience in Legal, Human Resources, Social Entrepreneurship, and Systems Involvement.
Get Involved with The Pathfinder Network
🤝 Interested in partnership, becoming a program sponsor, or volunteering? Please get in touch with us—we’d love to hear from you! ➔ info@thepathfindernetwork.org
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