Soapstone is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.

Administrator: Ruth Gundle

Board President: Patricia Bollin

Board Members: Judith Barrington, Patricia Bollin, Ann Dudley, Janice Gould, Nancy LaPaglia, Maureen Michelson, Katy Riker, Elizabeth Woody, Kathleen Worley

Past Presidents: Ursula K. Le Guin, Judith Barrington, Ann Dudley, and Rebecca Shine


The people and the organization:

Soapstone is a grassroots organization formed in 1992 to provide a writing retreat for women in Oregon's Coast Range, which ran for twelve years.

Judith Barrington and Ruth Gundle were honored with the Stuart H. Holbrook Award from Literary Arts for this and other work. In 2006 Willamette Writers honored Soapstone with their Humanitarian Award.

While in transition until the property is sold, Soapstone continues to perform a key service for the Northwest Oregon and Southwest Washington writing community by sending out email community announcements of events, readings, workshops, grant opportunities, lectures and other writing-related news to over 1800 people weekly.

Former board members:

Judith Arcana, Leslie Bevan, Mary Clare, Eva Gold, Elissa Goldberg, Noel Hanlon, Shirley Kishiyama, Ursula K. Le Guin, Mimi Maduro, Madeline Moore, Sharon Morgan, Joanne Mulcahy, Monza Naff, Gloria Olds, Phyllis Oster, Gerry Pearson, Sandy Polishuk, Holly Pruett, Lee Schore, Rebecca Shine, Evelyn C. White

Credits: Illustration on homepage by Angelina Marino; photographs of Soapstone by Martha Andrews, Judith Barrington, and Sage Cohen; website design by Marcia Barrentine, www.barrentinedesign.com