Kathryn Witherington grew up in the Nevada town of Elko and found herself moving all across the United States before she landed in Walla Walla.
In 2007, Witherington graduated from Gonzaga University and from there she moved to Denver where she started a career in facilities management. She met her husband on a website where users could share and comment on each other’s creative writing.
Across time and distance, as her husband was from a small town in Georgia, the couple fell in love and were married in 2012. Together, they moved from Colorado to Washington D.C. to Nevada to Olympia before they found their home in Walla Walla.
Witherington said she didn’t know much about the Valley before she moved here, and she expected it to be a short stop on the career ladder. Now, the Witheringtons have been living in the Walla Walla Valley for nine years.
She said when the job at the Downtown Walla Walla Foundation was open, she jumped at it.
“The job offered the opportunity to work in the areas I love most — community development, economic development, and neighborhood development,” Witherington said.
She has served as the executive director of the Downtown Walla Walla Foundation since February 2020. She answered some questions for a Community Q&A.
How does the foundation work to promote and revitalize downtown Walla Walla?
Some aspects of our work are super visible. If you’ve been to the Downtown Farmers Market, the Holiday Parade of Lights, or the Walla Walla BrewFest, you’ve seen our work firsthand. Some of it is focused to a specific group. For example, we offer a facade grant that downtown property owners can use to maintain and improve the exterior facade of their historic buildings.
Our efforts to support small businesses includes a very hands-on, personalized approach. We regularly visit with downtown business owners to hear their…
Read the full article here
