My Community, My World

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
Confucius

This is part 1 of a serial post.  In later parts of the series I will discuss the actual strategies discussed by the neighbors, and the various events and projects we implemented to try to help increase participation in the community.

Not too long ago I attended an excellent neighborhood association (NA) meeting.  I’ve been attending meetings in the Colonial Manor neighborhood for about 5 months.  I’m working to help connect them to some senior support services provided by nonprofits and by the city and county.  The meetings usually have 5-15 members, and almost every time the president tells me apologetically that she wishes there were more people.  I think she’s embarrassed that Senator Steinberg is sending a representative all the way out to the NA for only a handful of neighbors.  I feel sorry for her; I’d be embarrassed too, and in fact have been in the same situation when I’ve organized events with low turnout.  I feel I’ve let everyone down.

This meeting, while the community police officers were presenting, one neighbor, Lary, asked how CMNA meetings compared with other NA meetings they regularly attended.  She said that CMNA meetings were fairly well-attended, actually, which surprised most of us there – it’s a pitiful reflection on the state of NAs.  Or at least on the state of NAs in the part of Sacramento that these officers patrolled.

At the end of the meeting, Lary spoke up again and asked how we could get more people to come.  What followed was a 20-minute discussion about strategies the NA could use to bring out more people.  There were a lot of great ideas, many of them immediately actionable, and several people stepped up to get some of the started.  I was extremely heartened by the prospect of helping the NA reach more people, and I’ll be helping with several of the actions.  I had proposed, earlier in the meeting, to coordinate a neighborhood walkabout to talk to neighbors about what neighborhood issues interested them, and talk to them about how the NA could be more relevant to them.  I’m excited – this is a great way to get to know the neighborhood and pull it together some.

By focusing more on neighborhood projects, I’m forcing myself to go out and get to know the community more.  That’s a big part of why I’m so excited about this NA meeting taking such a promising move.