The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

In February 17, I was at the local YMCA listening to Rodney Outlaw, the Executive Director of Walla Walla Music Organization (WWMO), give a lecture to his students. What started out as a flow of technical information became a cogent narrative about how a sound engineer thinks and functions. WWMO is Outlaw's program for teaching digital audio production.

Then the tone of his words began to change. It became apparent to me that he was no longer lecturing but preaching. His words were now flowing not just from experience and knowledge, but from his heart and soul. Technological terms became words of purpose, passion and pro-action. He was thundering, and it was beautiful. Amid this flow of energy, I heard these words:

"When I walk into my space, I am thinking about the signal flow of my actions." He kept talking, but my thoughts were arrested. That elegant phrase hung in the air above me. I was instantly aware that these words were a metaphor for the skills he teaches. How to take electrical impulses and route them through digital code to produce musical arrangements, facilitate public address or amplify live sound. How to make your thoughts and intentions heard.

On March 6, 2020, The Times published an article titled The Speed of Sound by Brianna Wray, who introduced us to Mr. Outlaw and his program teaching audio engineering and live sound production to Walla Walla Valley youth. Outlaw started his WWMO in 2017 while working as a para-educator at Lincoln High School in Walla Walla. It turned out to be the proving ground for his concept and had an impact on scores of students. At the school Outlaw met students with talent in creating and performing music, none had the skills needed to record their work. Outlaw was able to successfully introduce after-school classes in his particular area of expertise.

Outlaw graduated from the Conservatory of Recording Arts and Science and worked professionally before moving with his wife to Walla Walla. His desire to teach kids is in constant connection to his past. Offering skills and knowledge in a field most kids know little about. A field that can allow students to create, build job skills and engage with their communities.

By 2020, his program was operating in the Walla Walla Public Library's well-equipped digital media lab until restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic suspended in-person classes. While Outlaw was thinking about his next moves to keep the program accessible, he received a call from Mary Campbell, Chairman of Walla Walla's Community Council. She introduced Outlaw to Karen Hedine, CEO of the local YMCA. On December 24, 2020, the YMCA issued a press release announcing the new partnership with WWMO. In it, Hedine spoke of "our shared commitment to finding ways to keep young people engaged and tapping their creativity and energy..." The two organizations would now share a signal flow, with WWMO remaining an independent program.

Unfortunately, COVID-19 has limited WWMO's offerings with temporarily limited access for adults. However, Outlaw has been able to continue working with six school-age students weekly, in two separate cohorts. There is a waiting list of folks of all ages ready to jump in when conditions allow. There is no fee to participate in the program. Outlaw spends hours each day meeting and talking with people and organizations to build more partnerships to keep the program up and running.

Already scheduled is a live sound production class at GESA Powerhouse Theater on March 5. Outlaw is also working to reintroduce the program at Walla Walla Community College. As COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, opportunities for students to enter the "field" of skilled community service will re-open as well. Until then, Outlaw is working to build connections with Dayton, Waitsburg and Milton-Freewater this year, and hopes to find funds for portable recording gear that students can use to serve these communities. He has already connected with Kate Hockersmith and the Touchet Valley Acoustic Music Project (TVAMP) in Waitsburg.

Last month I received a call from my friend Roger Garcia, Walla Walla School District music coordinator and teacher at Garrison Middle School. He explained that the WWMO was looking for a keyboard instructor, so I arranged a meeting with Rodney Outlaw for January 27. Arriving at the YMCA in Walla Walla, I found the program suitably set up on the second floor in the "Youth Department" room. It operates alongside the "Y CREW" program which serves young people with a variety of after school activities. The room is now divided into six digital audio workstations, each equipped with a computer with sound mixing software, and other gear students use to produce their digital music projects. At the end of our interview, I was ready to make WWMO a part of the signal flow of my actions, as a keyboard instructor and music theory coach.

This program will be increasingly important as it builds in the years to come. Contributing to this growth through my relationships with kids and my passion for the way music works, will be its own reward. With Blue Mountain Action Council (BMAC) as the financial partner, WWMO has been able to raise funds to hire three staff members for one year. The staff serve as student support partners and instructors, including Will Garcia as the guitar instructor. Outlaw does not take money for his work. For him, it is about building something sustainable.

"Everything else will take care of itself in due time," he says.

I am proud to join Rodney Outlaw as part of the creative collaboration that is WWMO. I am a student working to help students learn with a sense of proactive purpose. Sound and music are everywhere and have immeasurable meaning in our lives. On February 17, Outlaw reminded me of how all these things are connected. In all my spaces, I am thinking about the "signal flow of my actions."

Donations to the program may be made at http://www.bmacww.org. Hit the "Give Help" button and scroll down for Walla Walla Music Organization.