Telling Our Stories: Faith Lamb

At Vigor, we are working to elevate the voices and experiences of our employees. Recognizing the unique and personal pathways each person has traveled is part of building understanding and better connections between one another. This series of interviews with Vigor employees reflects our Love and Evolution values and the ongoing work we undertake to live up to these values.

Faith Lamb
Commodity Manager
Swan Island

Describe your journey that brought you to Vigor.

I grew up in a small suburb of Boston, Mass. I attended University of Massachusetts Amherst and after college moved to New Hampshire where I started my first buyer role for an Aerospace company. Four years ago, I moved to Gresham, Oregon and continued working as a buyer in the semi-conductor industry before accepting a buyer role with Vigor about three years ago.

What was your experience in the Race Forums and how do you see the ongoing work?

I was a bit skeptical when I agreed to join the Race Forums because I wasn’t sure how meaningful the conversations were going to be or could be, and what if anything was going to come out of it. Instead, what I found was the people who did participate all shared an eagerness and a passion about wanting to have these long overdue conversations about race and racism.

One thing that I noticed about myself while participating in the Forums was that even though I participate in these conversations in my private life quite often, I was incredibly anxious to have the same types of conversations with my colleagues. This gave me a lot to reflect on and ultimately highlighted some areas for myself that I needed to work on.

I don't expect that holding race forums will lead to major change or solve anything, but what they can do is maintain a consistent space and time where these conversations can take place. Ultimately, those who participate will get out what they put in.

What is your vision for a Beloved Community and/or a fully inclusive workplace?

To me, a fully inclusive workplace is one where everyone regardless of their personal characteristics or titles is heard, seen and their input is valued and taken seriously.

How do we best educate our own communities about the challenges many people face due to historic injustices?

Before attempting to educate others, I think it’s really important to interrogate yourself and your own motives and biases. It’s much easier to look at others and what we perceive to be their gaps in understanding than it is to recognize or admit that we too have gaps.

Ideally, this type of education starts with children. As adults, I believe we have a responsibility to have conversations with our children about race and racism from a very early age -- probably a lot younger than what a white parent might be comfortable with. If we’re talking about educating fellow adults then the approach of having a conversation is the same but of course the way you would go about it is quite different. I don’t think anyone should try to force education or a specific way of thinking onto others because that is hardly ever effective. I believe it’s much more impactful to meet someone where they’re at, listen to them and try to understand their perspective before you explain yourself. When people feel listened to I think they’re more receptive to new ideas or challenges to their ideas.