OWFP mourns the loss of Kevin Davenport-Rackham

It is with heavy hearts that we at the Oregon Working Families Party share the news that Kevin Davenport-Rackham (they/he), our Communications Director for the past two plus years, and OWFP intern and activist since 2012, passed away at the age of only 29 on October 22, 2022. 

Kevin grew up in Albany, Oregon, and continued to live there with their partner Kaitlin and many lifelong friends.  When Kevin was a Junior at Portland State University in the Fall of 2012, they joined the University Capstone seminar on “Student Debt; Economics, Policy and Advocacy”, which evolved into a student led legislative proposal for a Pay It Forward program that would have essentially eliminated student debt in Oregon’s public colleges and universities. When the Working Families Party took that proposal to the Legislature and moved it through two legislative sessions, Kevin was right there with us, becoming more and more committed to advocacy and public policy work. 

Kevin was one of the most passionate and effective advocates against student debt, and as a result made a long term commitment to the Working Families Party and to advocacy for working families.  Kevin worked in communications and online campaigns for the OWFP until 2015 when they went on to work in communications in the private sector.   But the draw of activism and a commitment to making the world a better place for future generations brought them back to the Working Families Party as our Communications Director in 2020. 

Kevin was a generous, kind, competent and very intelligent human being.  It was always a pleasure to be in a room with them, even a zoom room, and we all depended on their steady willingness to do whatever needed doing and to do it well.  Kevin was deeply respected among those of us who knew them and worked with them over the years.  We are profoundly saddened by the loss of our friend and comrade.  The world was indeed made a better place by Kevin.

Kevin Davenport-Rackham Presente!