Know Your Community Businesses and Organizations
One of the more interesting parts of studying my community has been learning about the different organizations present, both for profit and not for profit. If I had not taken time to see the types of organizations in my community, I never would have seen the diversity and amount of knowledge, talent, initiative, and care in my community. Knowing the organizations in a community is great way to connect with what its people value, spend time with and spend money supporting. Here are a few ways to get to know the business and organizations in your community that have been helpful for me and others where I live.
Drive and Walk around. there’s no better way to know your local organizations than to go around your community looking for them. Don’t just go on the main roads, but also go to new places (safely!) and explore areas you don’t often visit.
Talk with others. No one knows a community better than those who live there. If you want to know where people go, what they do, and what they enjoy in a community, then listen to what they say and pay attention to where they spend time. Restaurants, theaters, service organizations, entertainment venues, kid story-times, and senior citizen classes can all be new and exciting places to go and learn about your community!
Investigate local business organizations. There are often groups bringing local organizations together, and these can be great places to find out about what’s available in your community.
It’s great to know about businesses and organizations in your community, but how does that help build a stronger community? How could you use this knowledge to improve where you live? There are many great things to do with this information–here are just a few ideas.
Look for synergy. Often there are organizations that could benefit from working together, such as a food bank and local restaurants or grocery stores. Sporting goods stores could work with youth sports teams. Cosmetics and beauty salons could partner with the senior center. The list goes on. Finding ways to bring these groups together can deliver great value to a community.
Volunteer. There might be no better way to lead and bring value than to roll up your sleeves and serve where you have passion, skills, and interest. It’s not always easy, but it’s almost always worth it!
Educate. In your day-to-day life look for opportunities to connect people and organizations to one another. Better-yet, look for an opportunity to take one of your neighbors (or a lot!) to a local organization and experience it together. Neighors, co-workers, extra-curricular teams and families–look for opportunities to take them all!
Only through watching and learning what happens in our community can we connect with the daily rhythms happening in our place. Engage the businesses and organizations around you. Many are run by people who probably live near you for people who live near you. Be present in your place and look for ways to connect your community together.
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