Each year, Justice + Joy closes for one week at the end of August for an annual summer break. It is a chance for the whole team to step away from the work at the same time—to rest, experience joy, and take a collective breath.
This practice began in 2020, during a time when so much in the world felt uncertain and heavy. Like many organizations, we had shifted to working from home. Although remote work offered new flexibility, we quickly noticed that it also removed many of the natural boundaries that once marked the end of the workday. There was no commute to beat, child to pick up, or clear moment that said: work is over for today. In many cases, people were working longer—not shorter—days.
We wanted to acknowledge the weight of that period of uncertainty and adjustment and give staff room to step away. What began as a response to extraordinary circumstances also taught us something important: there is a meaningful difference between one person taking time off and an entire organization pausing together.
An Organizational Pause
When I take personal time off, the organization continues moving. Slack conversations still ding on my phone. I may be tempted to join a “quick call” because something feels important, someone needs a decision, or I do not want to be the reason a colleague cannot move forward with their work.
The summer break feels different. It is quieter. There is less worry about what we are missing, fewer tasks to coordinate while we are away, and no line of people waiting for one person to return. It truly feels like an organizational pause.
Of course, that shared time away requires preparation. Staff review upcoming deadlines, reschedule recurring meetings, communicate with partners, and set out-of-office replies. Timesheets, credit card documentation, and other administrative responsibilities must be completed on time so the Operations team—whose monthly deadlines do not simply disappear—can take the break, too. We prepare together so that everyone can truly step away together.
Making Room for Rest—and Joy
Rest looks different for everyone. For one person, a nature hike may be deeply restorative; for another, it may feel more like exercise than rest.
Rest does not require one particular activity. It is about putting yourself first and choosing something that brings your heart joy and your mind rest.
Joy matters deeply at Justice + Joy. The organization’s vision is that all girls, young women, and gender-expansive young people of color can achieve their potential, enjoying abundant, unapologetic, joyful lives without fear of violence or injustice.
Justice + Joy wants staff to experience joyful lives, too.
If the vision includes abundant and joyful lives, organizational practices should make room for those lives—not only for the people at the center of the mission, but also for the people who carry that mission forward every day.
The summer break reflects two of Justice + Joy’s organizational values: collective power and liberatory healing and restoration. It reminds us that rest should not be another individual responsibility staff must somehow fit into an already demanding workplace. Organizations also have a responsibility to create and protect opportunities for people to step away.
Returning Together
When we return, we collectively ease back into the work. Everyone is catching up at the same time. No one comes back to find the rest of the organization waiting impatiently for answers and decisions.
There is a little more lightness. People are rested and rejuvenated, but they are also focused, inspired, and ready to advance the work together.
It is encouraging to see nonprofit partners creating their own opportunities for collective rest. The practice may look different from one organization to another, but we hope intentionally making room for staff to step away together becomes increasingly common across the sector.
We call on funders to invest in rest and restoration as essential parts of organizational sustainability. Flexible, unrestricted funding gives nonprofits the ability to build collective time away into their plans without compromising staff compensation or organizational stability. Supporting the people delivering services, organizing communities, advancing research, and advocating for change is an investment in the strength and longevity of movements.
Rest is not separate from sustaining the work. It is part of what makes the work sustainable.
There will always be more to do. For one week, we choose to step away together—and make room for the joyful lives everyone deserves.
