McKenzie Valley Wellness Newsletter

McKenzie Valley Wellness Newsletter

December, 2022

Dear member of McKenzie Valley Wellness,
Important updates for all members of McKenzie Valley Wellness (MVW).

Oregon Department of Justice inquiry
The DOJ’s inquiry launched last May was extensive and thorough, into all aspects of our finances, our membership policies, and our nonprofit governance.

  • The DOJ concluded their inquiry in October.
  • They did not find any financial wrongdoing or any misuse of funds.
    • The DOJ asked MVW:
      o To clarify the membership policy.
      • Completed; bylaw change passed at MVW August 30, 2022 Annual Meeting.
    • To adopt a new board composition policy that prevents conflict of interest.
      • At the next membership meeting you will be asked to approve a policy that states a Board member (and their relatives) is completely independent of Orchid either through hire, consulting/contracting or in a non-employee director position.

Our current Board of Directors and Officers
Our current board, after the August 30, 2022 annual meeting, is:
Val Rapp President
Robin Roberts Vice President
Jane Wilson Secretary
Galen Phipps Treasurer
Steve Severin


The Board will be filling two additional Board positions after the holiday season, to reach the full number of seven directors approved by the members on August 30, 2022.

Progress on rebuilding the health clinic in Blue River
As the Board of the MVW, we are responsible for building a sustainable clinic building that meets the broader needs of the community and clinic providers. Our responsibility includes sound fiscal management of the state grant dollars.

  • November 15, 2022, after considerable discussion and consultation with outside experts, MVW Board of Directors made the difficult decision to terminate our agreement with PIVOT Architecture. This was not done lightly.
    o We adhered to the cancellation language of the contract and PIVOT’s design work will
    not be lost.
  • The decision was made with the best interest of the project and the community in mind. It will
    allow us to:
    o Control costs and design the right-sized clinic for now and the future.
    o Use as many local contractors as possible, keeping the dollars in the valley.
  • We will lose several months, but we are convinced that we will be better stewards of the money
    entrusted to us and we will be able to give the community the building they deserve.
    o We are in discussion with 3 different architecture firms.
    o We are looking into construction firms to get accurate costs, availability of supplies, and
    timelines.

Finances
The financial reports from the November 29th Board meeting show that the rebuild fund has:

State grant money:
$1,605,084.53

Of the original $1.8 million, $100,000 was spent to
convert the former Quilt Shop into a medical clinic, as
the state contract directed us to do. It can serve as
the clinic, until we build the new clinic in Blue River.
An additional $94,915.47 has been spent on architect
fees, site reports, and other prep work.

Fire insurance money:
$160,721.93

Of the original $210,571.75 lump sum, a total of
$49,849.82 has been spent on site cleanup and some
site reports. Up to an additional $177,888.74 of fire
insurance can be accessed once the first payout is
spent and receipts are submitted.

Outside the rebuild fund, MVW has very little money. Responding to the DOJ inquiry was extremely
expensive. The legal bills totaled $101,290.70. It was a huge setback to our ability to support the
community or begin any kind of wellness programs outside the rebuild.


Email addresses
Please consider sending us your email address as the best way to contact you. We can email
information quickly and at a lower cost than a stamped letter. Those updates can be emailed to:
janemcleodwilson@gmail.com.


Our thanks to our members
Thanks to all of you who have reached out to our Board Directors with your questions and interest in
McKenzie Valley Wellness. We are happy to talk with community members regarding our activities and
decisions.


We are also grateful for the donations we have received over the past months. Thank you for your
continued support of McKenzie Valley Wellness. I will continue to share updates with members over the
coming months.


Sincerely,


Valerie A. Rapp
Valerie Rapp
President of Board, McKenzie Valley Wellness

PO Box 381, Blue River, OR 97413. | Phone: 541-914-2370 | Email: valgeneskrine@earthlink.net