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wonderful to see all these people coming out, but
more importantly, people who are dedicated to the
idea of creating community in the neighbourhoods.
That’s really what it’s about…they want to use it as a
vehicle to create community.”
“The key to having a strong, healthy community
is having a neighbourhood association, and with
that dedicated neighbourhood association involved,
[residents] can start creating events, programs,
and services that are dedicated to strengthening
community and providing benefits for the community,”
Kim explains. “As we create
neighbourhood
associations,
and those associations work to
strengthen their communities,
we are going to find people are
going to start to identify more
with those communities, and as
those communities start doing
things that are attractive to the
residents, we are going to find
people developing a pride for
those communities.”
When Kim and his wife, Mary,
moved to Lethbridge in the late
’90s, he says no one felt part
of any single neighbourhood
or community. He says people
knew where their house was
and which side of the city
they lived on, but they did not
know which community they
were a part of. But now that’s
changing, he says, “People are
starting to identify more with
the neighbourhood they’re in. And that of course is
also going to change as we develop and grow more
neighbourhood associations.” In order to develop that
sense of place, we must first “develop that community
pride, then as that pride for [our] community increases
on that micro level, the pride will increase on a
macro level because people will become more proud
of being part of Lethbridge because it’s a place that
people would like to live,” Kim says. A community to
be proud of and make your own–Kim hopes one day
residents of other neighbourhoods will approach their
associations with the same positivity and excitement
he has received from London Road residents. He says,
“I want people to say, ‘I love,’ and fill in the blank
with whichever neighbourhood they are from. It
would be wonderful if that happens because then as
people develop that pride in where they live then they
become invested in the community, and it won’t be
a chore for them to donate their time and resources
to making sure the community succeeds, and becomes
strong and healthy.”
The council Secretary, who is also the Secretary for
the Copperwood Circle Neighbourhood Association
(CCNA), Sarah, echoes Kim’s sentiment for her own
neighbourhood when she says, “I absolutely love it
here. I love watching the kids playing and laughing.
It reminds me of growing up when I used to play at
the park. I [also] see people
randomly picking up garbage
and throwing it away. I love
that people are like that and
that they’re helping each other
out,” she says, adding that
“You should be proud of where
you grew up, where you came
from, and if we are communityminded then my kids are
going to have that important
role in their minds when they
raise their children on how
important it is to do stuff within
the community.”
When Sarah moved into the
burgeoning
community
of
Copperwood, she wanted to
meet and engage with her new
neighbours, and she thought,
“What better place to start
than with the neighbourhood
association?” But at the time,
no association or formal group
existed for her neighbourhood, so she started a
Facebook page exclusive to Copperwood residents.
The page gave her and her neighbours a way to
connect with one another beyond the simple “Hello.”
It became a place to talk about the things going on
in the neighbourhood, and to exchange ideas about
community-focused initiatives; a place to buy, sell, and
trade goods and services within the community; and to
collectively find solutions to community issues. “If we
have a problem, we can all gather together to come
up with a solution, because the more minds that come
together, the more ideas, the better the outcome,”
Sarah says.
Not long after she started the page, Sarah was
contacted by fellow resident, Erica Laliberty, now
CCNA President, asking if she would be interested in
“The key to having a
strong, healthy community
is having a neighbourhood
association, and with that
dedicated neighbourhood
association involved,
[residents] can start
creating events, programs,
and services that are
dedicated to strengthening
community and providing
benefits for the community.”
30 LETHBRIDGELIVING.COM
JAN-FEB 2016