WRCP Weekly | Tribute to the Word, Part III: Where the Word Meets the Work
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just elLA
Oct 20, 2025, 3:45:41 PMOct 20
to West River Community Project/West Townshend Country Store
Dear West River Friends,
We’ve spent weeks exploring the word as connection—but what about the word as contract? The kind that keeps a kitchen running, a shift covered, a store open. It all starts with a word—but it only works when the word works. And right now, across Route 30, too many words are breaking down.
The common narrative says the hiring crisis is a housing crisis. That there just aren’t enough workers to fill the need. True—but incomplete. Up and down the valley, small businesses are cutting hours, closing days, and holding on by threadbare schedules. The shortage is real, but it may not be the root.
Michael Jensen defines integrity as “a matter of a person’s word—nothing more and nothing less.” It’s not moral or ethical—it’s structural. A matter of workability.
When integrity is present, things work. When it’s missing, they don’t. And integrity isn’t perfection—it’s honoring your word. Keeping it when you can, and when you can’t, communicating early, cleaning up, and restoring trust.
Think of the last time everything went right. People showed up. Deliveries landed. Work flowed. That was integrity at play—the invisible structure that makes the visible possible. The reverse is just as true: when word breaks, so does trust. Without trust, no system—business, family, or community—can function for long.
So perhaps the 80/20 fix for what’s breaking along Route 30 isn’t only housing or hiring—it’s the word. The quiet kind. The kept kind. The kind that, when honored, keeps everything else standing.
I’m pivoting my own work toward this challenge—exploring simple, integrity-first ways to help small businesses and communities work better together. If you’d like to be part of early conversations, email el...@westtownshend.org
We’ve spent weeks exploring the word as connection—but what about the word as contract? The kind that keeps a kitchen running, a shift covered, a store open. It all starts with a word—but it only works when the word works. And right now, across Route 30, too many words are breaking down.
The common narrative says the hiring crisis is a housing crisis. That there just aren’t enough workers to fill the need. True—but incomplete. Up and down the valley, small businesses are cutting hours, closing days, and holding on by threadbare schedules. The shortage is real, but it may not be the root.
Michael Jensen defines integrity as “a matter of a person’s word—nothing more and nothing less.” It’s not moral or ethical—it’s structural. A matter of workability.
When integrity is present, things work. When it’s missing, they don’t. And integrity isn’t perfection—it’s honoring your word. Keeping it when you can, and when you can’t, communicating early, cleaning up, and restoring trust.
Think of the last time everything went right. People showed up. Deliveries landed. Work flowed. That was integrity at play—the invisible structure that makes the visible possible. The reverse is just as true: when word breaks, so does trust. Without trust, no system—business, family, or community—can function for long.
So perhaps the 80/20 fix for what’s breaking along Route 30 isn’t only housing or hiring—it’s the word. The quiet kind. The kept kind. The kind that, when honored, keeps everything else standing.
I’m pivoting my own work toward this challenge—exploring simple, integrity-first ways to help small businesses and communities work better together. If you’d like to be part of early conversations, email el...@westtownshend.org
To the word that makes work possible,
The WRCProject
The WRCProject
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EVENT SPECIALS | WEEK of OCTOBER 20, 2025
FAMILY TUESDAY | 5-7PM
: Penne Pasta w/ sausage, red sauce, salad and garlic bread
: Grass-fed beef burgers with cheese and/or bacon optional and side of mac & cheese
: Veggie burger with sautéed mushrooms and baby spinach
🎶 Live music with The Buzzards
WOOD FIRED FRIDAY PIZZA | 5-7PM
: Tuscan Garden Pizza with mix of mozzarella and feta cheeses with artichokes, onions, peppers and mushrooms
🎶 Live music with The Newton Family
EVENT SPECIALS | WEEK of OCTOBER 20, 2025
FAMILY TUESDAY | 5-7PM
: Penne Pasta w/ sausage, red sauce, salad and garlic bread
: Grass-fed beef burgers with cheese and/or bacon optional and side of mac & cheese
: Veggie burger with sautéed mushrooms and baby spinach
🎶 Live music with The Buzzards
WOOD FIRED FRIDAY PIZZA | 5-7PM
: Tuscan Garden Pizza with mix of mozzarella and feta cheeses with artichokes, onions, peppers and mushrooms
🎶 Live music with The Newton Family
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