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New way to find the pulse of the people |
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By MaryHelen Swanson
The older you get you can be sure of one of two things: you go with the flow or you fight every new change. In talking to a number of centenarians over the years, I find that those who have successfully completed 100 years of living have opted to go with the flow. In other words, they have accepted the inevitable.
It was such advice that I received from one dear lady some years ago as she approached her 100th birthday. So while these wise older Americans have moved from decade to decade marveling at the wonder of inventions, they have taken in stride those changes about which they could do nothing.
The art of being older is being wiser - not smarter.
That is how I have come to grips with many of today’s challenges. And that includes the Internet with it’s multitude of avenues for growth and change. Here’s what I’m leading up to:
Last week, for the second time in the past nine years, the NB community was called together to look to the future. New people are living among us that were not here when we last talked about the goals for this town. Life has drastically changed from that time when people were begging for a halt in housing development, claiming that this city was growing too fast. Well, housing isn’t growing anymore.
But business is. All you have to do it take a look across the freeway. Wow, there’s change for you. In a year, someone who graduated from NBHS in 2005 could come back and not recognize his or her hometown. Perhaps that growth is good. At least it will provide the people of North Branch with some of the things they are looking for: jobs and new places to shop.
That’s what they were saying they wanted last week as we gathered for the Vision Quest.
If you have ever attended such a meeting, you might have participated in the dot exercise. After creating lists of assets, challenges and desires for your community, you are asked to put a paper dot on the idea you feel is most important to you.
And so, last Tuesday, we dotted the wall.
It turns out that the most dots went to the idea of a community center, a place that could provide recreation opportunities and where folks could gather for a multitude of activities. Now here’s an opportunity to use the new technology to voice your opinion with a dot. We at the Post Review offer an opportunity that could be valuable to the planners of the future of this city.
Perhaps you have seen or answered the poll questions on our Web site (ecmpostreview.com). Right now we are asking what you might like in such a community facility, if that dream were ever to become a reality. Online polls are a new way to find the pulse of the people.
But we’ve taken it one step further and have added the opportunity for you to elaborate on your answers through our Community Talk forum. It’s right below the poll question. You are only asked to register to participate in this public format. There will be no repercussions, no one will get your e-mail address from our registry. Giving us your opinion is easy and we can pass it along to the city. It won’t cost the city a cent, nor you the taxpayer, to find out what you’d like to see happen for the future of North Branch. At least you’ll have a say and you can do it from the comforts of your home. And you don’t have to be 100 years old to appreciate that.
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