Mission 

We serve individuals and communities by creating opportunities for lifelong, experiential learning that cultivates personal transformation, deep relationship, and regenerative community.  

Description

The Goodenough Community is a 50 year old, decentralized community of practice in the Seattle region, focused on personal and relational development. It includes a land-based intentional community and event space, the Sahale Learning Center, on the Kitsap Peninsula, which the community has operated for almost 25 years, and which is the community’s primary vehicle for fulfilling its mission. 

We have been in a major transition phase for several years. This has included deep healing from trauma experienced under the now-deceased founders, moving from central leadership to cooperative governance, inviting new people to engage more deeply in leadership, and redeveloping key community systems. It has involved a deep inquiry into the essence of what this community is about, and what needs to be cleared to allow for new growth.

The 16 current members of the Goodenough Community (4 of whom live at Sahale) are seeking new members, as part of the extended community and/or as residents of Sahale.

What we're about

The essence of this community can be summed up in this inquiry: What does it mean to be relational? We seek to understand ourselves and grow through our relationships.  This work has fostered relationships of deep care, and a culture practiced in showing up for each other and staying constant through conflict. Our stewardship of Sahale has been a powerful vehicle for that work, and has expanded our understanding of what it means to be relational to include the natural world. And as the world around us changes, our exploration of relationship is expanding to include our relationship to other communities, movements, and larger society. 

What we do

Our mission is expressed through a handful of online and on-land programs, support groups, and events that fulfill this mission, and through events by other groups hosted at Sahale. Sahale supports our mission by being a space to host, a place to practice relationship with the land, and through the residential community that is a transformative learning experience in itself. Similarly, the operations and administration of our community governance system supports the activities that fulfill our mission, and is a way to practice our values.

All of these have been more robust in the past, and are currently more minimal. We are seeking new energy to expand our activities and practices.

There are a lot of systems in place that new people will need to get familiar with. There is also a lot of room for things to change and expand, and for new people to bring in their interests and gifts. 

The community operates a 501c3 nonprofit, which holds title to the land, and utilizes a sociocracy-inspired governance system.