SPRINGFIELD – Whitney Hoshaw is usually the one sending out announcements about folks receiving awards or recognition, but last Wednesday, Willamalane Park and Recreation District’s marketing and communications manager was the one receiving the award.
Hoshaw had moved away from the Springfield area after college but returned a few years later because it was where she and her husband, Stephen Hoshaw, wanted to call home.
Because of her father’s work in the shoe industry, sourcing materials for tennis shoes at Avia, Reebok, and Adidas, Hoshaw spent her childhood overseas, living in Busan, South Korea, and Indonesia. She went to high school in Pacific City and graduated from the University of Oregon with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and public relations, with minors in nonprofit administration and geography.
“After moving around for so much of my whole life, it was so wonderful to find a place I could really call home,” Hoshaw said.
She spends time with her family, taking her daughter to Girl Scouts, writing, gardening, crocheting, walking, and reading. The 35-year-old has volunteered with her local neighborhood group for Sexual Assault Support Services, Springfield City Club, and other nonprofits.
Stephen, who is the senior director of tourism for Travel Lane County, was born and raised in Springfield, so the two were familiar with the District’s parks, tennis courts, and events. Hoshaw even used the pool at Willamalane for low-impact workouts after being diagnosed with a chronic illness.
“Which reinforced the idea that Willamalane did so many wonderful things for the community,” she said. “I’d seen firsthand how important parks and rec were.”
The perfect fit
When the opportunity presented itself, she said the job seemed like a great fit, combining marketing and public relations at a place that served the community, which is what she had been searching for.
Hoshaw has now spent almost seven years with Willamalane, navigating closures and communications during the Covid pandemic, helping design and relaunch the District’s website, submitting applications for national awards, and recently passing a local option levy. In 2023, she received the 20 Under 40 Award for Rising Business Stars.
“At Willamalane, I really get to serve the community every day,” she said.
In her role, Hoshaw oversees the marketing and communications team and leads media relations efforts. This includes overseeing the website, social media, branded items, publications, promotional campaigns, and more. She also supports public meetings. Her team consists of herself and four full-time team members, plus one part-timer.
An average day for Hoshaw at Willamalane might entail editing class descriptions, putting together board packets, developing a media release, creating a promotional plan, resolving a website issue, writing an internal newsletter, or scheduling a visit by Willamalane’s mascot, Springs the Squirrel.
“The work is always changing, and we’re always solving problems, trying to make things better, and learning more about what our community is interested in and what questions they may have. I think that’s a testament to the culture at Willamalane, always focused on solving problems and continuous improvement, which is an environment I thrive in,” Hoshaw said.
Hoshaw received an Employee of the Month award during Willamalane’s monthly board meeting. Marketing and communications specialist and a member of Hoshaw’s team, Bailee Gunderson, presented the award to Hoshaw.
“Whitney has created a safe space among our team where we all feel welcome and encouraged to share our thoughts and feelings and show up as our authentic selves,” Gunderson said. “While I know she is not actually superhuman, she leads with a steadiness that I never thought was possible in the world of marketing and communications.”
Managing challenges
Gunderson said she saw Hoshaw navigate several major projects, challenges, and changes over the past few months. These include district reorganization, which resulted in one of her team members leaving the team and her gaining several new responsibilities, planning and deploying her first-ever informational levy campaign, which was successful, and submitting an extensive national award application, which resulted in Willamalane being named a finalist, all while supporting major annual campaigns like summer registration, Megga Hunt, and 1Pass.
During the meeting, Willamalane’s executive director, Michael Wargo, shared a few words about having Hoshaw at Willamalane.
“I usually don’t do this, but Whitney is one of my high-performing members of the executive team, so I felt compelled to say something,” Wargo said. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate the fact that we are here sitting at an election that was very, very tight, but I can honestly say, if it wasn’t for the work and the guidance that Whitney provided, that levy would not have been passed.”
Gunderson said that thanks to Hoshaw’s public relations management, Willamalane had 55 mentions in news stories in the month of May alone, which means dozens of press releases sent out, a lot of coordinating with media, and recording information in the coverage log.
“This was my first time working on a tax levy, as it was for many of us,” Hoshaw said. “Willamalane pulled the levy together extraordinarily quickly as an option to bridge the gap in our current financial situation. There was just enough time to go to the voters and ask them what they wanted, and I love being part of the public process.”
“I can’t tell you how much that means to me as executive director, to have our public information officer always two steps ahead of me, and everyone else. Since day one, Whitney has made the district a better place, and I could not think of a better person to receive this employee of the month award,” Wargo said.
Hoshaw humbly accepted the award, saying, “It’s really kind and rewarding to be recognized like this, for sure. Being in the spotlight isn’t always my favorite thing, but I’m trying to take it as an opportunity to see how I contribute to all the wonderful things happening in the District.”
