Radness Ensues: A place for youth to belong and become
Rebecca Brisbin found herself living in and out of homeless shelters around age 7, and lived on the streets of Salem regularly by age 15, eventually dropping out of McNary High School. She described walking past vacant industrial buildings in her teens, dreaming of what they could be—a place to learn, to express oneself, and to belong.
Years later, her new community center on River Road, Radness Ensues, brings that dream to life. This hub of creativity will provide a space for youth to explore the arts and learn transferable career skills, preparing them holistically for a life of thriving.
A ribbon cutting ceremony on July 26th at 11:00 a.m. kicked off their Grand Opening Extravaganza, a weekend full of arts, crafts, ice cream, and live music. Brisbin invited the community to join the festivities at 3837 River Road N.
The website sums up the community center’s purpose: “Young families, in particular, really need accessible and affordable options for creative expression, community engagement, and mental health support.” One of the main ways Radness Ensues seeks to provide those things is through the Rad Youth Internship, a two-year program that prepares youth for the career world with marketable skills.
The internship will include working at the button shop, learning screen printing, serving coffee and other beverages, developing art skills, and planning community events. Copy Cats, a local printing company, generously donated over $10,000 worth of screen printing equipment for interns to use.
Before her life in shelters and on the streets, Brisbin lived with her mother, a single parent struggling to make ends meet. “I really believe that if my mother had had the support she needed when I was a child, our lives would’ve looked a lot different,” Brisbin said. Ever since then, she dreamed of creating an inclusive space where youth could express themselves, knowing they will be accepted and loved. She started collecting bottles after moving back to Salem in 2021, thinking she could collect enough in five years to launch something. “But things moved a lot faster than I was expecting,” she said.
Her business, Becka Makes Buttons, became increasingly popular and was already starting to act as a community center, hosting a three-month youth internship program. She also developed a network of community leaders that has proved invaluable. Now, just three years later, Brisbin opens the doors for her passion project. She described that the road has been full of holes and bumps, requiring patience, diligence, and flexibility. But each challenge pushed her closer to a reality even better than what she dreamed of.
After closing the Button Shoppe on Commercial Street last year, Brisbin said that her “button buddies” helped her raise $11,600 to kickstart the nonprofit community center, Radness Ensues. The money was used to hire the Center for Nonprofit Law to help them establish a solid foundation, a move that numerous community leaders recommended.
Radness Ensues will serve as a welcoming space for youth to explore a world of creative expression, with jam sessions, mural painting, button creation, and screen printing. Brisbin’s excitement continues to grow as her community center dream officially becomes a reality this month.