How to Get Connected in the Palouse Region

Tony Anderson

Samantha Martinet, the executive director of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce + Visitor Center, moved to the Palouse region in 2017 from North Carolina when her then-husband got a job at the University of Idaho. The Palouse region comprises Moscow, Idaho, and Pullman, Washington. Livability chatted with Martinet about how how to get connected in Moscow and Pullman. 

Moving to a new area can be challenging. How did you get connected in Moscow? 
When I got here, getting plugged into the Moscow Chamber was huge for me because participating in Leadership Moscow [a program through the chamber that works to cultivate leaders] really got me to understand the community in a way that I probably wouldn’t have otherwise. As a participant in Leadership Moscow, you meet city and county government officials, work with business owners, and learn about the dynamics of your community.

The community connection aspect was the biggest takeaway from my experience. One unique aspect of our community is that a lot of our recreational spaces are created and managed by local nonprofits that help create a good quality of life for us.

Can you give an example of what those nonprofits might do to help the community?
One of our local nonprofits is called the Moscow Area Mountain Bike Association. Moscow Mountain is all privately owned land, so they work with the property owners to negotiate which parts of the property they’d be willing to open up to the public for trails and things like that. Then the Moscow Area Mountain Bike Association builds and maintains all of the trails we have access to on the mountain. Which to date includes over 60 miles of hiking and biking trails. They clean them up, build new ones, and continually find new opportunities and resources to continue enhancing  those spaces.

Another is the Palouse Land Trust. They work with landowners throughout our  region to make sure that the land is designated and stays public beyond the owners’ lifetime. We have a nature conservatory that is one of the few ADA accessible recreation spaces in the region called Idler’s Rest Nature Preserve. It’s one of the properties they now own and maintain.

When you first moved there, what were some of the things that you did to explore your community? 
For me it was helpful that I had small children at the time because I was able to plug into play groups or mom groups. For example, the Moscow Food Co-op has a kid’s program that does weekly things for moms with small children. 

What do you love most about Moscow? 
One of the things I love most about Moscow is that it’s a very well-connected community, and I think that people here are so welcoming and inclusive. I appreciate the way our community comes together to celebrate diversity, cultivate inclusion and honor our shared sense of place. 

What’s the best way to get connected through volunteer opportunities? 
There are tons of volunteer opportunities that you can find directly through any one of our local nonprofits. I also recommend a stop by the Moscow Chamber of Commerce + Visitor Center. My team and I spend the day sharing stories that highlight the vibrancy and diversity of our city. As the official “Front door to our community,” we never get tired of welcoming folks from all over and helping them find their place. You can enjoy the great outdoors, get a taste of our unique culinary culture, enjoy a shopping tour of downtown, or find your next community workshop. 

What are some of the recurring events you have throughout the year? 
We think that Moscow is the Fest City in Idaho. We have festivals going on year-round, especially in the spring and summer months. We just had the third annual Moscowberfest, which drew over 6,000 people downtown coming from communities everywhere. We have our annual Renaissance Fair that lasts three days in May, and we have Rendezvous in the Park in the summer, a three-day concert series in East City Park.