Dear Neighbor Project
6 counties, 2 states, 1 place - connecting the Gorge through letters.
It’s pretty simple – write a letter, receive a letter. Dear Neighbor is a Gorge-wide letter exchange for anyone who calls this place home. It’s one small way to keep us connected and sharing our stories, in spite of pandemic restrictions. Letters can be written in English or Spanish and we’ve offered some writing prompts if you need a little help getting started. So put down that hand sanitizer, pick up a pen (or pencil, or crayon, or…) and go write a letter!
How it works. . .
- Write a letter. Address it “Dear Neighbor.” Fill a page or two; more if you’d like. Consider using these writing prompts to get you started.
- Sign the Dear Neighbor release form here. We cannot exchange letters without a release.
- Mail your letter and signed release form to:
Dear Neighbor c/o Sense of Place
Mt. Adams Institute
2453 Highway 141
Trout Lake, WA 98650
What happens after I mail my letter?
When you write to Dear Neighbor, your letter will be swapped with one from another writer. They will get your letter; you will get theirs.
In order to maintain your privacy, when your letter arrives at Mt. Adams Institute, we remove letters from their original envelopes and place them in new envelopes along with instructions for how to reply to your Neighbor (if you choose to do so.)
Letters will be mailed to participants on a rolling basis beginning in October 2020. We will continue exchanging letters received through April 31, 2021.
Who Can Participate?
Dear Neighbor is open to everyone living in the Gorge, though writers under the age of 18 must have parental consent to participate. (Click here to download the consent form.)
(With approval from the writer) some Dear Neighbor letters might be included on an episode of the Hear in the Gorge podcast or as part of Season 11 of the Sense of Place lectures.