Welcoming Dream Mooney, RUACH's New Director of Operations

"What I love about operations work is that it forces you to think critically about interconnectedness… How can we build structures collaboratively when we have different priorities or values?"

RUACH is thrilled to announce that Dream Mooney (they/them) has joined our staff team as Director of Operations. Most recently, Dream served for four years as Program Coordinator at the Office of Student Services for the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University. They came on board the RUACH ship in August and are efficiently taking the helm of RUACH's nonprofit business operations, from budget management to studio administration to legal filings to marketing. And if you're appreciating the new plant friends in the studio — we can thank Dream for them, too!

Reflecting on their first month at RUACH, Dream shares a bit about their vision, their passion for operations, their approach to disability justice, and more:

How would you describe your first month at RUACH and the Newton Collaborative Jewish Campus?

It has been a very exciting ride so far! I have been gifted a wonderful and rare opportunity to learn deeply from a culture and community I have had minimal personal experience with. Joining this campus has reinvigorated my passion for history, spirituality, and reflection. Not to mention how welcoming folks have been, and how supportive they are of the joys of learning and growth. It’s a special space, and I’m happy to be here. 

What excites you about organizational operations? What's an operational challenge you've learned from?

The relationship between systems and the individual is something that has always fascinated me. It’s especially interesting in America, where our focus on individualism means that the interconnectedness inherent in our world is overlooked, ignored, or even deliberately hidden. What I love about operations work is that it forces you to think critically about interconnectedness… How can we build structures collaboratively when we have different priorities or values? How can we build them to be consistent and resilient, but responsive to the varied needs of our communities? Ops is a careful balancing act between the forest and the trees. The challenge is to simultaneously hold space for the ideals of the big-picture mission and the nitty-gritty logistics of reality.

What is your vision for an intercultural future?

For me, an intercultural future centers community without requiring individual sacrifice. It is a world where we are not just surviving and working to meet basic needs, but are provided for by systems we create and maintain together. In turn, we have more freedom to celebrate - our selves, our cultures, our unique heritages. Our focus can shift from tradition as a method of preservation to tradition as a form of connection, celebration, and invitation. 

How has Type 1 Diabetes — and a disability advocacy lens more broadly — informed your approach to health/spirituality/community?

My disabled identity is the strongest current in the river of my life. Because I was diagnosed so young, at an early age I was very critical of the hierarchies of power and omniscience that seemed core to the spaces I was being raised in. If there was some important lesson I could only learn through endless finger pricks and shots and medications… perhaps God wasn’t a very good spiritual teacher after all! And he certainly wasn’t empathetic! Those early experiences ultimately led to me establishing empathy as one of my core values, with a belief in the unalienable right to community care coming close behind. Over my own spiritual journey I have come to feel that pain is integral to growth and a valuable teacher, but this is coupled with a dedication to creating structures and systems that do not require pain in order to learn and thrive. 

Is there anything else you'd like to share about yourself or joining the team?

As a mixed media artist, it is such a pleasure to be in a building with incredible works shared on almost every wall. It’s a really wonderful visual representation of the vibrancy I see in the people here, and I am so excited to settle in.

Interested in plugging into RUACH as we build a movement for peace of mind, body, and spirit? Feel free to reach out to dreamm@ruachhealth.org to talk shop. Welcome aboard, Dream!