Rockbridge Community Profile Prepared by Jennifer Borman and Daniela Leon - Summer 2016

Preface

This guidebook was created to acquaint Washington and Lee University students, faculty, and staff with the Rockbridge area, with a particular focus on poverty-related issues. Through this guide, the Shepherd Program hopes to facilitate meaningful discussion surrounding these issues, raise awareness about the challenges our community face, and enable all readers to engage with Rockbridge in an informed manner.

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Kate LeMasters'15, who created an early draft of this report, which we used as a launching pad. To better understand our unique community, information was also obtained in part through interactions with local nonprofit organizations, community partners, and Washington and Lee University employees. We would like to thank everyone who shared their experiences, knowledge, and advice, specifically Laura Brown, Susan Bushnell, Katy Datz, Meredith Downey, Tammy Dunn, Jon Ellestad, Betsy Lee, Lai Lee, Buster Lewis, Bucky Miller, Sharon Patterson, BreAnne Rogers, Lyndon Sayers, Jeri Schaff, Haley Sigler, Melissa Tomlin, Angela Wilder, and Stephanie Wilkinson. Elena Diller '17 edited this document and meticulously checked all sources and citations.

We would also like to thank the Shepherd Program at Washington and Lee University for their guidance and support. This project would not have been possible without Alessandra Del Conte Dickovick, Kelly Brotzman, Howard Pickett, Jenny Davidson, and Marisa Charley.