A small group of folks in the valley, not connected with any particular group or organization, are starting an effort to enable each of us to better understand and appreciate an inclusive sense of our community of Seeley Lake and the Clearwater Valley. We care deeply about our community, both the people and this place we call home.
A community, we believe, is made up of two distinct but connected features:
• First, it is made up of various groups of people, often being distinct from each other. Human nature makes us most comfortable living and socializing in our individual groups. As such, many of us don’t get or take the opportunity to know and appreciate folks not in our group. Hence, we often don’t recognize the many common values among our groups. If recognized, likely it would help us build a better and stronger community.
• Second, a community is tied to a place. It creates a sense of belonging. This place is where I live. Why have we decided to live in this valley? What brought us here? Why do we stay?
So, we are initiating a “story telling” event around the theme: “Why do we live here, what’s your story.” Our inaugural event will be held from 7 – 9 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 13 in the Community Foundation building. Stories will be limited to five minutes.
All of us have a story of “why we came to this valley” but maybe more of interest is “why have we stayed?” What is it about the people and maybe more important, this place, that has compelled us to set down our roots and build our lives? Why do we love this place?
We would like to hear from folks living here a long time, a short time, the older, the younger. The stories of everyone are important. We have already requested stories from a cross-section of folks for this inaugural event but hope to continue this effort in the months to come. Details for future events will be sent out after Oct. 13.
We believe it important that your story only address why you wanted to be here and why you have stayed. We are assuming the stories are going to entail positive attributes about the people and this valley that has compelled you to come and stay. It is your stories of why this place is special to each of us, that is the foundation to building a community. Maybe we will find that we have much more in common than we ever thought.
Due to the ongoing risks of COVID-19, we will be requesting that folks attending in person wear a mask. Masks will be made available. Also, we intend to livestream the event so that folks unable to attend in person will be able to do so online. Please join us for what we hope to be an interesting and fun evening.
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