Category: Announcement

‘Safe driving during COVID-19’ PSA graphics

‘Safe driving during COVID-19’ PSA graphics

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Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, lower traffic volumes have led to dangerous driving speeds in communities across the Commonwealth. High driving speeds contributed to a doubled roadway fatality rate in the month of April in Massachusetts. Driver speeding affects all road users by making walking and rolling conditions unsafe and uncomfortable.

With the safer-at-home advisory still in place, increased numbers of people are walking, rolling, and running in their communities. To make roadways safe for all users, drivers must take responsibility to not exceed the posted speed limit and to yield to walkers and rollers who are using street space to maintain physical distance in areas with narrow sidewalks.

To support communities who are seeing dangerously high traffic speeds and unsafe driving behavior, WalkBoston partnered with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health Mass in Motion (MiM) and MORE Advertising to develop a social media campaign that MiM coordinators can use to raise awareness about safer pandemic driving behavior.

To broaden the reach of this important message, we invite all communities and individuals to use these graphics on your social media or other town communication platforms.

These graphics are set up for Facebook. Consider adding the following language as a comment to your social media post:

  • Keep our roads safe for everyone!
  • Safe driving is still important. Keep our roads safe for all.

Please consider every street a shared street and stay safe!

4 PSA graphic options (click for full size, and then right click to “save image as”):

 

Come join our fundraising and communications team! We’re hiring!

Come join our fundraising and communications team! We’re hiring!

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The Development Director will help develop and implement a comprehensive fundraising strategy for WalkBoston with the help of Board members and staff.  Reporting to the Executive Director, the Development Director will build on and reinforce individual and corporate fundraising programs, and assist in developing fundraising strategies for virtual and live WalkBoston events.

We are looking for someone who excels at writing campaign content and can help grow our donor base beyond our current audience. Two upcoming scheduled events provide immediate opportunities to showcase fundraising campaign skills including WalkBoston’s first virtual Annual Meeting celebrating our 30th anniversary, and our first 5K/1-mile Run/Walk along the Charles River.

The Development Director would also be part of the Staff and Board examination of WalkBoston’s policies, approach and strategic plan to elevate racial equity as an explicit, intentional part of WalkBoston’s mission.

Interested applicants possessing the above experience and skills are encouraged to apply by sending a resume and cover letter with salary expectations to jobs@walkboston.org by July 17.

Responsibilities:

Communications & Development Administration

  • Lead the design, development, and production of annual appeals, event collateral, and other communications materials in collaboration with graphic designer.
  • Develop digital campaign strategies and manage virtual events.
  • Identify and research new prospects.
  • Manage and maintain the Salesforce database.
  • Provide administrative and operational support to Executive Director and Board members for ongoing relationships and solicitation strategies.
  • Lead and oversee the Board Development Committee.
  • Manage fundraising administrative tasks including gift processing and donor acknowledgements.

Corporate & Individual Giving

  • Identify and cultivate relationships with potential corporate and foundation funders.
  • Steward existing relationships with corporate, foundation, and individuals donors.
  • Develop and execute a major donor strategy in partnership with the Executive Director and the Board Development Committee.

 Event Support & Management

  • Support the execution of at least one fundraising event per year.
  • Help to identify, solicit, and steward corporate sponsorship for events and for maximizing individual sponsorship and ticket purchases.
  • Support the planning of WalkBoston’s Annual Meeting.

Grant-writing

  • Manage all aspects of the grant research, writing, and reporting process.
  • Identify potential grant opportunities and coordinate strategy.
  • Draft and edit grant applications and reports.
  • Maintain calendar of grant proposal and reporting deadlines.

Qualifications:

  • College degree with at least five years of professional development experience, preferably at a nonprofit organization.
  • Commitment to WalkBoston’s mission to create more walkable communities across the state.
  • Superior communication skills. Ability to write and speak clearly and persuasively in diverse settings to articulate the impacts of WalkBoston’s work and the benefits of walkable communities.
  • Knowledge of local giving/fundraising landscape preferred.
  • Advanced working knowledge of Salesforce or similar fundraising database.
  • Ability to work independently and collaboratively with WalkBoston staff, board of directors, donors, program participants and volunteers
  • Self-starter, entrepreneurial, flexible, and well organized

Benefits:

  • Full-time position (37.5 hours/week)
  • Annual salary range: $55,000 – $60,000 based on prior work experience
  • Standard benefits include: holiday compensation, paid time off, and flexible scheduling including possible partial remote work option

Interested applicants possessing the above experience and skills are encouraged to apply by sending a resume and cover letter with salary expectations to jobs@walkboston.org by July 17.

WalkBoston is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Road Race: the Alarming Increase in Speeding on Massachusetts Roadways

Road Race: the Alarming Increase in Speeding on Massachusetts Roadways

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Join WalkBoston tomorrow, June 4th, for a virtual AAA Northeast Town Hall to discuss the increase in speeding during the COVID-19 pandemic, making the roads more dangerous for all users at a time when walking outside is especially important for health.

Take part in the conversation tomorrow, June 4th from 11am-noon ET.

Register for the webinar here.

Learn more about the event and the panelists:

Excessive speeds have grave implications for motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians. We’ll discuss this alarming trend and consider approaches for getting people to slow down and prioritize safety.

Moderators: Mary Maguire and Mark Schieldrop

Panelists:

Colonel Christopher Mason, MA State Police

Jonathan Gulliver, MassDOT Highway Administrator

Jeff Larason, MA Director of Highway Safety

Galen Mook, Executive Director, MA Bicycle Coalition

Stacey Beuttell, Executive Director, WalkBoston

 

We’re hiring!

We’re hiring!

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We’re hiring a Development Manager – come join our team! Full description and application details are below. Please apply by emailing a resume and cover letter with salary expectations to jobs@walkboston.org

Development Manager for WalkBoston

WalkBoston, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) advocacy organization, makes walking safer and easier in Massachusetts to encourage better health, a cleaner environment and more vibrant communities. We know that walking improves personal, economic, environmental and civic health. Working on walking takes us across Massachusetts to empower people with knowledge and proven strategies to make their own communities more walkable.

The Development Director will help develop and implement a comprehensive fundraising strategy for WalkBoston with the help of Board members and staff. Reporting to the Executive Director, the Development Director will build on and reinforce individual and corporate fundraising programs, and assist in developing fundraising strategies for virtual and live WalkBoston events.

We are looking for someone who excels at writing campaign content and can help grow our donor base beyond our current audience. Two upcoming scheduled events provide immediate opportunities to showcase development campaign skills including WalkBoston’s first virtual Annual Meeting celebrating our 30th anniversary, and our first 5K/1-mile Run/Walk along the Charles River.

The Development Director would also be part of the Staff and Board examination of WalkBoston’s policies, approach and strategic plan to elevate racial equity as an explicit, intentional part of WalkBoston’s mission.

Responsibilities:

Communications & Development Administration

  • Lead the design, development, and production of annual appeals, event collateral, and other communications materials in collaboration with graphic designer.
  • Develop digital campaign strategies and manage virtual events.
  • Identify and research new prospects.
  • Manage and maintain the Salesforce database.
  • Provide administrative and operational support to Executive Director and Board members for ongoing relationships and solicitation strategies.
  • Lead and oversee the Board Development Committee.
  • Manage fundraising administrative tasks including gift processing and donor acknowledgements.

Corporate & Individual Giving

  • Identify and cultivate relationships with potential corporate and foundation funders.
  • Steward existing relationships with corporate, foundation, and individuals donors.
  • Develop and execute a major donor strategy in partnership with the Executive Director and the Board Development Committee.

Event Support & Management

  • Support the execution of at least one fundraising event per year.
  • Help to identify, solicit, and steward corporate sponsorship for events and for maximizing individual sponsorship and ticket purchases.
  • Support the planning of WalkBoston’s Annual Meeting.

Grant-writing

  • Manage all aspects of the grant research, writing, and reporting process.
  • Identify potential grant opportunities and coordinate strategy.
  • Draft and edit grant applications and reports.
  • Maintain calendar of grant proposal and reporting deadlines.

Qualifications:

  • College degree with at least five years of professional development experience, preferably at a nonprofit organization.
  • Commitment to WalkBoston’s mission to create more walkable communities across the state.
  • Superior communication skills. Ability to write and speak clearly and persuasively in diverse settings to articulate the impacts of WalkBoston’s work and the benefits of walkable communities.
  • Knowledge of local giving/fundraising landscape preferred.
  • Advanced working knowledge of Salesforce or similar fundraising database.
  • Ability to work independently and collaboratively with WalkBoston staff, board of directors, donors, program participants and volunteers
  • Self-starter, entrepreneurial, flexible, and well organized

Benefits:

  • Full-time position (37.5 hours/week)
  • Annual salary range: $55,000 – $60,000 based on prior work experience
  • Standard benefits include: holiday compensation, paid time off, and flexible scheduling including possible partial remote work option

Interested applicants possessing the above experience and skills are encouraged to apply by sending a resume and cover letter with salary expectations to jobs@walkboston.org. WalkBoston is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Stacey Beuttell, Executive Director

jobs@walkboston.org

“Walkability and Main Street Resilience” Virtual Event

“Walkability and Main Street Resilience” Virtual Event

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This panel already happened, but you can view the recording of it here!

One of the hallmarks of a successful walkable community is a thriving town center or downtown district. These districts are where people can shop, eat, get a haircut, mail a letter, or just sit with a friend on a bench. When these nearby destinations and people-focused places suffer economically, the walkability of the community can also decline. Without a destination to walk to, fewer people will venture out. WalkBoston recognizes how important local businesses are to its core mission – making Massachusetts more walkable – and is concerned about the devastating effects of COVID-19 on local business’ resilience. 

Join WalkBoston, main streets and municipal representatives on June 24th at 1pm EST to discuss how small, local businesses influence walkability. Through the panel, you will also learn how you can support local businesses to secure long-term neighborhood walkability during and after COVID-19. 

This virtual panel discussion will: 

  1. Illustrate the importance of vital business districts for walkable communities
  2. Elevate creative strategies in which individual businesses, their host municipalities, and customer communities can collaborate to help mitigate the impacts of COVID.

Meet our speakers: 

Che Anderson, Deputy Cultural Development Officer, City of Worcester

Che Anderson is the Deputy Cultural Development Officer for the City of Worcester, and has worked in city government for over 6 years. He founded POW! WOW! Worcester, part of a global mural festival. He is passionate about supporting local businesses and special events programming in the Greater Worcester region. In recognition of his work, Anderson was named a member of the Power 50 by the Worcester Business Journal in 2019.

Alia Hamada Forrest, Executive Director, Roslindale Village Main Street 

Alia Hamada Forrest is the Executive Director of Roslindale Village Main Street and has lived in Boston since 2003. She grew up in a family that values hospitality, food, and the restaurant industry — her dad was an executive chef at several restaurants in Phoenix, Arizona and her mom manages banquets and events at a resort in Scottsdale. A first-generation American, Alia brings compassion to the immigrant experience and small business.