It’s been an extraordinary week. I’ve been working on a community project since January and I am very pleased to have seen the effort come to a close this week as the ribbon was cut on a new neighborhood entrance sign. In short this project was really about removing a large pillar that had become a hiding place for negative activity, and in turn beautifying a neighborhood entrance.
If you want to understand what we did a bit more and how we did it, feel free to watch the video below of the ribbon cutting ceremony, and make sure to check out my friend Andy Gee’s photos of the event. It’s great to see residents come together to solve an issue and I’m very proud to have been a part of a team of doers to bring results where they were needed.
Improving a neighborhood happens when we get intentional together. It’s about placing our focus on solving problems and building relationships instead of fences. It’s about recapturing a mindset to be available to other residents in the community. So when we begin to do small things like wave to passersby, get stuck in conversation with neighbors, introduce ourselves to someone who just moved in, BBQ in the front yard, or even hang up lights during the holidays, we are adding life to the community. Sure, there will be a time and place for big projects, but most of the strength of a community is not found in big events, but in the small daily interactions we all have.
Why do you think many neighborhoods have grown more isolated over the years?
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You asked: “Why do you think many neighborhoods have grown more isolated over the years?”
and I will answer: “It’s not in a corporate-controlled government’s best interests to educate, energize, unite and empower its citizens.
Every problem in this world can be fixed but very little of it is fixed and there’s a reason for that. The purpose of everything they do to is to keep us from getting together and figuring out how screwed up things are, and to stop us from making a change out from the status quo.
Continue to “fight the power” and share the good news that the majority of people are really awesome, that people can get together work to create a positive change. Even if we can’t change the whole world, what we can do is change our little corner of it… and if everyone did that…
Interesting thoughts, Anne. Many times it seems we expect for government or corporate organizations to be the leade. The book “Bowling Alone” definitely hits on this topic. In my opinion, residents are the ones to make or break a neighborhood. They need to step up to shape the community. When residents believe in the future of a community, they will make decisions today to impact that future. Sure, we need effective code enforcement, PD and services offered by City Hall, but most of all residents need to be engaged and carry a sense of personal responsibility for the community. When that is lost, governmental vision is bound to not carry much weight. There is certainly a place for that though. As always, thanks for sharing your thoughts. You’re never short on opinions, Anne. 🙂