Our mission, vision, and values

  • We are guided by the mission to foster resilience and strengthen the community by honoring people’s wisdom, skills, and culture.

  • We envision a Latinx community that is resilient, with strong networks of mutual support, actively engaged in local and regional level planning and decision making, knowledgeable, well-connected to organizations and institutions, and economically sustainable.

  • We value the assets, wisdom, skills, and cultures of Latinx communities in Oregon.

    We value the capacity of Latinx communities to produce change.

    We value collaboration and partnership building.

    We value an inclusive and equitable system in which Latinx communities can access opportunities for well-being and have a place in decision making.

Why ‘ANDARES’?

The ‘Andares’ word is an inflection of the verb ‘Andar’, which means ‘walking’. It denotes an ongoing journey across geographic borders as well as metaphorically.

Once settled in Oregon, immigrants from Latin America journey through a new culture, using their creativity and innate resilience to establish a space for themselves, learn a new language, deal with adversity, find jobs and start businesses, educate their families, share their traditions, and ultimately give their best to society. We are here to accompany and support Latinx communities in their journeys.