By Melissa Wagoner
Unbeknownst to many, when Silverton Together closed its doors on June 30, 2022, the face of the organization, Program Coordinator Jan Holowati, stayed right where she was.
“We had all these programs and I said, I just can’t let this go away,” Holowati said of the duty she felt to find entities willing to take over the planning of the numerous annual community events Silverton Together had organized for nearly 30 years.
And so, in the final editions of the Community Calendar, Holowati posted a request for interested parties to please step forward.
“And Anthony Hoke did,” Holowati recalled, referring to the founder of the Elizabeth Ashley Hoke Memorial Trust – a community-focused nonprofit with goals similar to those of Silverton Together. “He decided what would work for them is the Apple Tree School Supply Drive, the Coat Drive and the Christmas Festival.”
But they needed someone to show them the ropes – they needed Holowati to stay.
“When we closed [last] June I was already into the Apple Tree School Supply Drive,” Holowati said of the timing, which allowed her to oversee, first the supply drive, then the Coats for Kids Drive and finally the Silverton Community Christmas Fest – all from the comfort of her former desk.
“I worked it out so I could keep my office and my telephone number,” Holowati said. “So it wasn’t confusing.”
The time extension also allowed her to find final placements for the rest of Silverton Together’s programs.
“I’m just thrilled that the events and our programs are going forward,” she said. “The Community Picnic in August – the Senior Center had been working with us – so that was easy. And Free Fish Day we did with the Lions… so I am training them. And we got SACA to take on the parenting program.”
In other words, it was finally time to retire.
“Yes, I’m officially retired,” she said when Our Town visited her in her cozy Silverton home.
But that doesn’t mean she’s no longer involved.
A volunteer for both the Silverton Zenith Women’s Club and the Senior Center, Holowati is also continuing to share community events whenever they appear in her inbox because, after 17 years spent working for Silverton Together, distributing them is second nature.
“If it needs to be done and there’s no one else to do it, I’ll step up and do it,” Holowati laughed.
Or, to quote an old saying, “Find a job you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.” Or, in Holowati’s case, ever need to fully retire.
