Dear ACLU Members, Partners, Board, and Staff:
Two years has gone by in a blink. I remember my first week at the ACLU of Missouri in 2014 like it was yesterday – after the difficult decision to leave Montana, my mountains, and my people, I was nervous and excited to join an organization I have admired since I was a teenager. Part of me felt like I would wake up from a dream and be disappointed it wasn’t real. I knew as soon as I met the staff, started having meetings with partners, and stepped foot in the Missouri capitol that I had become a part of something special. And I was right. We have done a lot of great work in the last two years – from defeating SJR 39, to beating back countless anti-choice measures, to building a campaign to end racially biased policing in Missouri – we have strengthened coalitions, put egos aside, and made real progress toward equality and fairness. I am certain that work will continue and the successes will outweigh the defeats.
I never truly understood John Muir’s famous quote, “the mountains are calling, and I must go,” until I left Montana. Despite the community, both professional and personal, that my partner and I have built in Missouri, Montana was always in the back of our minds and the front of our hearts. When I accepted the Director of Advocacy and Policy position here in MO, I told our executive director, “the only thing that could make me leave is the same job, but in the mountains.” That opportunity has now presented itself and I’ve accepted a position at the ACLU of Montana. It breaks my heart to leave my team, but Kylie and I need to put our roots down in Montana, with our people and our mountains.
Thank you, all, for accepting me into your professional and personal networks. Working for the ACLU of Missouri has been nothing short of a perfect, sometimes hard, sometimes hilarious, but always inspiring adventure. I’ll keep an eye on all of you and miss you dearly. Keep up the fight.
Sincerely,
SK Rossi
Director of Advocacy and Policy
American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri