Changes are in the works at Flagstaff Family and Community Services (FFCS), but thanks to long-term planning, a smooth transition of power is expected with the coming retirement of Executive Director Lynne Jenkinson and hiring of Stacey McLennan as her replacement.
Jenkinson clearly communicated to her board that it was her intention to retire at age 60.
“Why 60? Because I’ve seen too many people hang on to 67 or 70, then they are tired and bitter, or they stay on, but just stop working. I’m not going to do that.
“That’s why we hand-picked a replacement and made the recent announcement. It takes a load off my shoulders, physically and mentally.
“Stacey is coming in to a very strong team supporting her.”
McLennan has been working at FIRST for the past 30 days, refamiliarizing herself with the organization. Jenkinson says, “Nobody really knows until they come here exactly what we do. We are FFCS, FIRST, and the Flagstaff Community Foundation.”
Jenkinson will have put in 16 years with the organization, 14 as director, on her retirement next February.
She says she was hired back then as part of a succession plan, working at FFCS for two years before transitioning to director.
With a loose transition plan in place, it changed when Jenkinson actually announced her retirement, and it fell to her to recruit her own replacement.
“We had contacted Stacey, and interviewed and hired her, but out of respect for her long-time employer and co-workers, wanted to wait before any announcement was made. We didn’t even leak it to our board.
“The board had extreme faith in us.”
It was a full-circle moment for McLennan, who’d applied for the job back when Jenkinson was hired.
Born and raised in Flagstaff, she still has deep connections to the community.
“In the end, I wanted to be respectful to my employer of the last 15 years, and work mates. A change like this doesn’t happen without a lot of thought, but I’m comfortable and secure in my decision.
“The work here will continue in the way it was intended.”
McLennan says that FFCS is a “catchment for a multitude of challenges, issues, support, and services. In a small rural community, FFCS becomes the place to ask questions.
“We are prevention, we are not crisis-based.”
The pair say that just like a food bank provides basic needs, FFCS provides system navigation. “We have 3.5 employees, and we do a lot for a lot of people. We try to advocate for them.”
Jenkinson and McLennan agree that the success of FFCS and FIRST in the Flagstaff region is partly because the organizations aren’t simply defined by their provincial mandate. “We’ve become what the community has asked for, and what the community needs. FFCS has evolved and changed through meeting the needs of the community,” McLennan says.
McLennan was a counsellor at FFCS when she worked in Flagstaff, then moved on to work with the Battle River School Division in the Family School Liaison Program for the past 15 years. She says she went from being at a different school every day of the week to having just two schools, Bashaw and New Norway, under her purview.
With over two decades of experience in social work, she’s dedicated her career to supporting individuals and families from diverse backgrounds.
That includes disability services, community child care, counselling, and most recently, coordinating mental health programs in schools.
“I’ve always been drawn to rural social work, where people help one another. The schools I worked with were very close and supportive communities.”
She says, “I’m looking forward to working in a community driven environment, over a system, that’s more responsive to needs as they arise. I can also follow my own passions, through bringing in speakers and presentations with new programs and partnerships.”
McLennan’s extensive background working with families within the school system and volunteering in the community underscores her commitment to fostering positive change and strengthening community ties.
She’s a wife and mom to four children ages 25, 20, 19, and 16.
“Don’t expect sweeping changes. As far as I can see, there’s nothing that needs to be fixed.
“But FFCS is always changing to meet the needs of the community, and I expect that to continue. I’m elated to combine forces with the community to continue the strong legacy of FFCS.”
Jenkinson added to McLennan’s statement, saying “Systems kill dreams.”
McLennan says, “I’ve always thought of what happens at FFCS as ‘collective effervescence,’ where something or someone can be affected in a positive manner by FFCS.”
Jenkinson recalls a quote from a previous board member, who said, “Flagstaff is an excellent community in which to work and to share. Our community supports each other and looks out for each other in a kind way when needed. While many communities can see division, we are experiencing the blossoming of action that represents wellness on the ground.” She has full confidence for McLennan to carry the organization into the future.
Leslie Cholowsky
Editor