Honoring Ira Wallace

One of the perks for me as the Fellowship for Intentional Community's main administrator, is that occasionally I get to do something really nice to honor a friend and compatriot in the community business. I enjoyed one of those opportunities Friday evening, during the opening session of this year's annual Twin Oaks Communities Conference, when I got to publicly award the 2014 Kozeny Communitarian Award to Ira Wallace. 

Here is the citation I read to the audience of 100, as Ira sat in front of me:

The FIC hereby recognizes Ira Wallace as the 2014 recipient of the Kozeny Communitarian Award, honoring the indomitable spirit of Geoph Kozeny, who devoted his adult life to creating community in the world.

Over the course of nearly 40 years Ira has been a significant contributor to the North American Communities Movement, most notably in the field of income-sharing communities. In succession, she was a founding member of Aloe in North Carolina (now defunct), a member of Dandelion in Ontario, of Twin Oaks in Virginia, and then a founder of Acorn, a neighboring community that Twin Oaks started 20 years ago. All of these groups have been members of the Federation of Egalitarian Communities (FEC), a network organization that has been around since 1976—almost as long as Ira has been living in community.

In particular, we note that Ira was an FEC delegate in 1987, when that network played a crucial role in the revitalization of the Fellowship for Intentional Community. It is quite possible that the FIC would not exist to give her this award today if Ira had not been such a strong voice in support of its launch 26 years ago.

Ira is an indefatigable networker and a tireless promoter of joint ventures. She is that rare animal, a successful businessperson who has thrived in a milieu that is deeply suspicious of moneymaking motives (isn’t capitalism the enemy?). She is an expert at enrolling others in projects and endeavors designed to benefit all—whether they know it or not.

Ira’s genius is found at the intersection of entrepreneurial insight, a ward heeler’s understanding of community politics, the discipline to never ask anyone to work harder than she does, and an infectious appetite for laughter and enjoying life. She’s incredibly difficult to say “no” to—just ask the good folks at Monticello, who think they’re running the Heritage Harvest Festival instead of her.

While Ira’s early community years included the development of a successful house cleaning service and a tinnery business that relied principally on recycled tin cans as raw material (a pioneering example of upcycling), the unquestioned capstone of her business career has been the development of Southern Exposure Seed Exchange (SESE)—that specializes in heirloom, non-GMO, open-pollinated vegetable seeds. Acorn bought this business in 1999 and Ira has been at the heart of the management team that’s built it into a spectacularly successful community business today. It’s a perfect fit for Ira’s love of gardening, her love of food, her love of growing community businesses, and her natural talent for wheeling and dealing such that everyone comes out a winner.

In addition, SESE is perhaps the ideal community business: there’s minimal environmental impact; there’s plenty of room for community members to plug into the business; the work can be readily extended to include partners anywhere who are interested in growing seeds for income, and it’s a terrific values match—everyone eats, after all, and what could be more basic than providing seeds for growing wholesome food, and what could be more inspiring than protecting genetic diversity for future generations of organic gardeners?

While Ira has done much over the course of her life that is worthy of celebrating, in bestowing on her this lifetime achievement award, we are highlighting five qualities:

A. Networker

Since her early days at Aloe, Ira has had close ties with the Federation of Egalitarian Communities. Her work with FEC has included serving as a delegate from her various home communities, being a mainstay in support of events such as the Twin Oaks Communities Conference, and a steady backer of FIC initiatives.

Influenced by her deep understanding of cooperative dynamics, Ira has gone well beyond community networking to become a respected player among heirloom seed companies and organic gardeners.

B. Media Relations

Ira has developed into a respected author and public speaker, who is just as likely to be a spokesperson for organic food production as intentional community; who can discuss as knowledgably how to cope with bad apples in fruit storage, as how to cope with bad apples in group dynamics.

C. Good Neighbor

Wherever Ira has lived, she has taken the time to build solid relationships with those living around her. Nowhere is that more apparent than in the good relations enjoyed today between Twin Oaks, the parent community, and Acorn, the offspring.

Ira became a dual member of Twin Oaks and Acorn right at the outset, when the new community got started in 1993. For the first half of its life Acorn was strongly dependent on Twin Oaks for financial support. Then, however, there was an unexpected reversal of fortunes: SESE took off for Acorn, and at about the same time Twin Oaks lost the Pier One hammock account, which had been the mainstay of its income stream for decades.

Suddenly Acorn was in a position to repay Twin Oaks for all those years of child support by making available major components of its burgeoning seed business. What a delightful story of mutual support between communities, and Ira was there throughout the last two decades—with a dual member foot in each community—to see that compassion prevailed to the benefit of all.

D. Community Builder

Twice now Ira has been a founding member of an income sharing community: first at Aloe and then at Acorn. She has seen communities succeed financially only to fail socially; and she has seen financial success help to solidify groups that were otherwise on shaky ground. Ira knows that community is more about relationships than paychecks; yet she also knows the value to morale of regular paychecks earned by doing work where your walk is in line with your talk.

Many groups have failed because they were unable to establish value-based businesses that were robust enough to satisfy their membership’s income needs. That has not been a problem at communities where Ira has lived.

E. Cooperative Leadership

Over the years, Ira has accrued a tremendous amount of social capital. Essentially, she has accomplished this through doing two things consistently well: delivering successful results, and doing what she says she’ll do. Today, when Ira makes a commitment, people believe her. This is leadership by example.

Ira is also a coalition builder—the type of person who can bring together individuals who are able to function effectively as a team, without anyone knowing Ira’s key role as catalyst. In this she is more interested in results than credit. This is quiet leadership, yet no less valuable than the kind that gets the leader’s picture in the paper.

Finally, as someone who can approach leadership either way, she’s aware of the need to develop all-season successors—for leadership is needed in all its forms. While this work proceeds quietly and behind the scenes, it’s a relief to us all to know that she’s on it. This is leadership through foresight.

For all of these reasons, Ira, it is a pleasure that you are within our sight today, and we salute you.

Springing Back & Forth

I'm in Springfield MO, midway through representing Sandhill Farm at the Baker Creek Spring Planting Festival, held today and tomorrow (that's right, a rare Sunday/Monday gig) at the home of Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds in Mansfield MO—about 60 crow miles east of the motel room where I'm typing this blog.

Oddly enough, though I've been a resident of the Show-Me State for 39 years, and Springfield is our third largest city, this is the first time I've ever done more than drive through it at 60 mph. It's 300 miles from home and I hardly ever come this way.

While the calendar says it's May (happy Cinco de Mayo!), the weather was stuck in the 50s today with everyone strolling by our booth in windbreakers, earmuffs, and woolen caps. Friday, for the first time in living memory, they had a May snow shower in Joplin, which is in extreme southwest Missouri. Ufda. Last year it was warmer than this in March, and I have the eerie sensation that the seasons are running backwards.

[While I was only home about 13 hours between my recent East Coast consulting foray and this trip as a purveyor of Sandhill's organic food products, it was long enough to poke around in the woods for two-and-a-half hours wildcrafting morels (I was able to snag nearly three pounds of these delicate little beauties). While spring's emergence seems delayed this year, the mushrooms are making their appearance in line with historical averages. I'm keenly interested to see what's still out there when I return home Wed. I'll be ecstatic if this unseasonably cool weather translates into a prolonged morel season.]

Here in Springfield we've been promised (by the weather gurus) temperatures tomorrow "soaring" into the upper 60s, with occasional glimpses of sunshine. We can hardly wait.

While it's always good for Sandhill to experiment with different fairs to see which ones are good for our product mix, sales were desultory today ($285 in gross intake doesn't justify driving 300 miles one way) and I doubt we'll be back next year. I was persuaded to try this mainly because it was an excuse to hang out with my good friend, Ira Wallace, who I've known since my very first community conference 34 years ago.

Ira was selected as the 2014 recipient of the FIC's Kozeny Communitarian Award, which honors someone's lifetime achievements as a community builder. In addition to peddling sorghum this weekend (and catching up on inter-community gossip), it's my pleasure to spend time collecting sufficient details about Ira's life that I can craft the citation for her award. Some tasks are more pleasurable than others, and this assignment is one I'm genuinely looking forward to.

Among other things, Ira & I have each:
o  Lived in community for about four decades (though never in the same one, we've always lived in secular income-sharing communities that have been affiliated with the Federation of Egalitarian Communities.

o  Been involved deeply in community networking, often enough at the same time.

o  Been entrepreneurial and have helped start successful community businesses.

o  Developed a capacity for public speaking and blogging.

o  Developed a fondness for playing bridge.

[For more on Ira and her amazing life, see this interview from in the current issue of Communities magazine.]

So it's always fun to hang out with Ira an find out what she's been up to. A conversation with her can warm me even on a blustery day when the outdoor temperatures are running well south of our ages. It represents both a springing back (to any number of stimulating conversations we've shared over the years), and a springing ahead where we grizzled community veterans can dispassionately discuss what it will take to replace us, and the key role we can play in greasing the skids for our successors.

It turns out that busy people never really run out of work; we just run out of time.

Celebrating Fred Lanphear's Life

Two days ago, we lost Fred Lanphear. He had been diagnosed more than two years ago with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease) and Thursday he lost the battle. Fred was an FIC Board member from 2003-2009, and, more importantly, a friend since I first met him in 1993, when his community, Songaia (Bothell WA), hosted the fall Fellowship's organizational meetings immediately following our six-day Celebration of Community held on the campus of The Evergreen State College in Olympia.

Despite his deteriorating health in recent years, he maintained a positive attitude throughout his final months and was an inspiration to all around him. He died at home, surrounded by his wife, Nancy, and myriad friends. He had lived a full life and went out with grace.

The last time I saw Fred was in June 2009 when I was in Seattle to attend the national cohousing conference held on the University of Washington campus. It was my pleasure to use that occasion to make a public presentation to Fred at his home as the first recipient of the Geoph Kozeny Communitarian Award, given to someone whose life's work promoted community in the spirit of our compatriot who died of pancreatic cancer in October 2007.

The last communication I had with Fred and his partner Nancy was just a week before he died. Nancy assured me that Fred was still reading email messages and they'd just ordered a copy of Rise Up Singing, the best songbook in the universe. Not surprisingly, Songaia (song of the Earth) is a name selected to celebrate both singing and Earth stewardship. Fred loved both and when he was in better health he regularly led songs as part of the opening ritual at Board meetings. When he could no longer attend meetings, we sang for him instead. At the spring 2009 meetings at Kimberton PA, we recorded our rendition of the Shaker classic, Simple Gifts and sent it to him on a CD. What we lacked as virtuoso singers we more than made up for in heart.

Fred always saw the best in people, and it's only fitting that I close this eulogy by posting the good we saw in him. Here is the citation for the award we gave him last year:

The Fellowship for Intentional Community (FIC) hereby recognizes Fred Lanphear as the 2009 recipient of the Geoph Kozeny Communitarian Award, honoring the indomitable spirit of our fallen comrade, who devoted his adult life to creating community in the world.

FIC conceived of this award in October 2008, just one year after we lost Geoph to pancreatic cancer, at age 57. Fred is our inaugural recipient of this honor.

For the last four decades Fred has lived a life that was remarkably parallel to Geoph's, having devoted a substantial portion of those years to building community in a world that is fragmented and in desperate need of models of cooperative lifestyles, and of the hope that these models inspire.

Fred's community journey started in 1968 with the Institute for Cultural Affairs (ICA), when his interest in ameliorating suffering led him and his wife Nancy to volunteer to do community development work. Over a two-decade period with ICA the Lanphears did stints in the US, Kenya, and India.

Ready for new adventures, Fred & Nancy left ICA in 1989, and helped launch Songaia, an intentional community which continues to be the Lanphears home today, and has proven to be a successful cohousing community in Bothell, WA. Using Songaia as a base, Fred devoted much of the last 20 years to the integration of community with wholistic thinking, alternative medicine, and spirituality.

Simultaneous with the founding of Songaia, Fred became centrally involved with the Seattle-based Northwest Institute for Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine (NIAOM), where he served as a top administrator for the period 1989-1999. Fred's tenure there was noteworthy for his nurturing a sense of community among students, faculty, alumni, and patients.

Also in 1989, Fred began an association with the Institute of Noetic Sciences, serving as a group leader and Northwest Board member until stepping back in 2008.

Expanding on his years residing in ICA communities and his early experience with Songaia, Fred helped create the Northwest Intentional Communities Association (NICA) in 1992. This ongoing regional network fosters connections and mutual support for intentional communities in Washington and Oregon. He has been a Board member since its inception and twice served as President.

Taking the challenge of integrative thinking one step further, soon after leaving NIAOM, Fred was inspired to create One Sky Medicine in 2000. The concept was to offer a health clinic that brought together several healing disciplines into one location, offering patients a first-of-its-kind menu of comprehensive options for wellness and health care. Fred served as the One Sky administrator for four years.

Fred first appeared on FIC's radar in 1993, when Songaia hosted the Fellowship's fall organizational meeting, immediately following our successful six-day Celebration of Community in Olympia that August. Because of the post-Celebration buzz, it was one of the highest attended meetings FIC ever had, and Fred and his community did yeoman service in making everyone feel at home, even though our surging numbers strained their capacity.

Though Fred remained active as a community organizer with NICA throughout that time, he didn't join the FIC Board until 10 years later, in 2003. He served two three-year terms on our Board, during which he distinguished himself as convener of the Regional Networking Committee, and as the author of several articles about community living. Of particular note are recent pieces he's written about the opportunities and challenges of aging in community.

In recent years, Fred has gotten increasingly involved in efforts to integrate religion, ecology, and eldering. In 2005 he started a three-year connection with the Greenbriar Seniors, residential care facility where he served in the unique capacity of maintenance man, horticultural "therapist," and song leader. His responsibilities afforded him an entree to regularly meet with residents and combine his passions for connection, gardening, and singing.

As part of the Kirkland Congregational Church since 2006, Fred has been active in the choir and as a deacon. Not content there, he pioneered the role of Earth Keeper, which has included such initiatives as Greening of the Congregation, and Earth Ministries in the Seattle area, where people explore the bridges possible between traditional Christianity and Earth-centered spirituality.

While these are only some of the highlights of a lifetime of service, they amply demonstrate Fred's core commitment to connection, curiosity, celebration, and community. At times he has been an initiator; at other times he has been an implementer. At all times he has focused on what was needed to enhance connections, to bring people together authentically and joyously.

Fred has led an exemplary life in developing and serving a variety of networks, in creating celebration and ritual among groups and individuals, and in uniting spirit and ecology. The FIC salutes Fred on his multi-faceted lifetime achievements.
Goodbye Fred.