HREI involves community in countering prejudice

By Kaye Hult

Jeanette Laster believes her commitment to servant leadership has influenced the direction of the Human Rights Education Institute (HREI) in Coeur d'Alene in her nearly six years as executive director.

"When I serve, I am working to achieve not only the most valuable life I want, but that life for all others," she said.

Because her goal is to invite others to share in HREI's work, she shared some of the many ways community people are and can be involved.

Jeanette said the internship program mentoring high school and college students is her greatest accomplishment. She works with 51 students as interns.

Student interns work on projects in marketing, educational outreach, legal research, preparing Human Rights Business Consortium brochures, and offering Human Library presentations.

Under Jeanette, HREI has also done more than 15,000 hours of court appointed juvenile and adult community service supervision a year.

"District attorneys refer people to me for community service supervision because juveniles and adults referred here have a good experience, so much so that they often come back as volunteers," she said. "Students in our diversion program also come back."

She and the institute's bookkeeper are the only two staff people.

While some positions there are funded by grants for particular projects, most of the work is done by the 55 volunteers who provide about 5,000 hours of service per year.

They carry out HREI's mission "to celebrate diversity and human rights by educating, raising awareness and recognizing the value of all humanity."

The organization seeks to promote human rights for every person in the Pacific Northwest—primarily Eastern Washington, Northern Idaho and Western Montana.

Jeanette explained that the HREI addresses diversity issues including race, ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic class, age, sexual orientation, religion, disability, and job and life circumstances.

She began her involvement with HREI as a volunteer, helping with the nonprofit's golf tournament and grant writing.

"When the program coordinator position came up, I took that," she said.

"I had been volunteering at HREI for about two years when the executive director position opened up, and HREI hired me."

Jeanette has become a community mentor for other nonprofits. She helps them both with grant writing and understanding about the HREI framework.

"Here, we do not ask them to fit into a particular spot with exact expectations," she explained. "We interview prospective interns to learn what they are good at and what their schedule is. We fit our needs around the volunteers."

In about 2018, HREI developed a program called Love Lives Here, a kindness project. By the time Love Lives Here grew enough to go out on its own earlier this year, 350 businesses and community members had signed on to the project to commit to welcoming all people.

Its goal is to raise awareness about hate groups spreading discrimination in the local area. The project gives the community tools to report incidents and build a culture of inclusivity to strengthen the area's economy and reputation.

Several HREI programs support the schools in the area, she continued.

They put on a Teen Human Rights Symposium, an Advocacy Camp for middle school students, three elementary school break camps and many annual community, multicultural day celebrations, such as the Lakes Middle School Multicultural Fair.

Many higher education partners, such as North Idaho College, Lewis-Clark State College, University of Idaho, Boise State University, Eastern Washington University, Gonzaga University and Arizona State University, work with HREI to provide a learning environment for interns, while HREI creates partnerships with the community to match mentors with interns.

For more than five years, HREI has been a liaison to the North Idaho College Diversity Council.

It partners with the council to support its annual Diversity Symposium.

Other diversity activities include the Day of Dialogue and work with the American Indian Advisory Committee.

They have produced several Human Library educational events and shared personal stories through reading books.

HREI offers quarterly Community Conversations. A recent one considered flags, and another one discussed Juneteenth.

A secular homeschool has begun meeting in the HREI building.

Currently HREI is recruiting diverse people for its board. They strive for "representation from many sectors, such as LGBTQ (as an ally), disability, and broad religious and race and ethnicity representation," she said.

They also have committee openings in marketing, resource development, fundraising and events, building, safety and education.

They have Americorps/Vista positions to fill.

For the upcoming Resisting White Supremacy and Christian Nationalism Conference, to be held Wednesday and Thursday, Sept. 25 and 26, at the Spokane Public Library, Jeanette will be one of the presenters.

She cited her philosophy as expressed by English-American author and inspirational speaker Simon Sinek: "Don't show up to prove. Show up to improve."

Jeanette credits her upbringing with teaching her about servant leadership.

"My parents were in the Air Force. My dad was also in law enforcement," she recalled. "Through their influence, I have always served. I learned as I was growing up to take care of business and to be accountable.

"It was not uncommon for me to receive a page at school telling me that both my parents were being deployed overseas and leaving in 10 minutes," she continued, "and that I should make sure to take care of my siblings. They were deployed for eight months during Desert Storm.

"I was the first responder when my brother died at a young age," she said.

"I had expected to go into the Navy to become their first female pilot," Jeanette continued. "Instead, I went to California State University Northridge on a swimming and diving scholarship. I came out with a degree in physical therapy."

Soon after graduating from college, she changed to nonprofit work.

Jeanette was recruited to North Idaho in 2008 from a Special District municipality under the State of California to participate in the initial development of the Salvation Army Kroc Center Aquatic Department in Coeur d'Alene.

This was the third aquatic center she opened after guiding the group through the construction phase.

Jeanette then served three years with United Way as community impact coordinator to align resources and other support for local nonprofits.

After a short stint at the Community Action Partnership's food bank, she began volunteering at HREI.

Her service extends beyond her work at HREI. She has served for more than 35 years as an instructor for disaster management, aquatics, health and safety services for the American Red Cross. Currently, she is registered as a volunteer with the Greater Inland Northwest Chapter.

Since coming to North Idaho, she has taken several leadership training courses.

She serves on several business and education subcommittees in the region and has received recognition from organizations in the region. She is a certified emergency medical technician, Ventura County K9 Search and Rescue team member, and Boy Scouts merit badge instructor in emergency prep and aquatics.

In addition, Jeanette fosters an autistic youth in his last year in high school and a 26-year-old young man.

Recently, she answered an email asking about leadership: "If you are a leader, you know when you make mistakes and it's common to feel the need to prove yourself to others. However, leaders take ownership and hold themselves accountable.

"It's hard to stand in authenticity and uncomfortable to look inside, but the only one I have to prove anything to is myself," said Jeanette. "Then I seek to step out and lead by example, so others will follow."

For more information about HREI, call 208-292-2359 or email jlaster@hrei.org.