I am by no means an expert on Community Development in a rural town, but I have been successful in reaching out and making contact with people with the same vision that I have for Newport, Maine. When I returned from “The Power of With” conference I had a few ideas. I started out realizing that one on one contact with our neighbors would not work due to the fact that others use that process to push their ideals and the neighbors at best will just say “I’m not interested.” Usually they will close the door in your face. I started out looking for people who are working with the youth as they were our original focus when our team started. I contacted the high school Principle, Community Center Director, and Cultural Center Director and they were all perceptive and open to Asset Based Community Development. It ties right in with their missions. We are still in the early stages of growth so there are no major initiatives in the process. I went to one of the local trade shows and met many people who are interested in Community Development. The Chamber of Commerce Executive Director was very interested and asked for an article for their news letter. I will be making presentations to the Chamber later in the fall.
Another plus for promoting Community Development is the Community Consolidation Asset Mapping Process (CCAMP) which we have purchased a license for through the Communities First Foundation who purchased the umbrella license. This shows a tangible means to document and utilize not only the skills and assets of the individual neighbors of the community, but the organizations, institutions, and businesses in the area.
The most important thing to remember is that you need to start small and think of the overall vision as the ultimate goal. If you try to go too fast you can get frustrated and fall into the “Service” mindset which limits the possibilities for the neighborhood. When building your teams you do not want to restrict yourself to the business and organizational leaders, but use those contacts to reach out to the community to invite natural leaders that have the same vision that you have. They are the ones who live in the community and know where to start in the Asset Mapping process. After you get your team established you can use CCAMP to develop your plan for your first initiative. You must always remember to look at each individual as an asset with skills and try to overlook their perceived weaknesses. This will not only empower them and their community but will bring you in as a neighbor and a friend, not just someone trying to bring their own ideas into the area.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
What Is Asset Based Community Development (ABCD)?
• Before I begin to answer that question I have a few questions I would like for you to think about.
• How long have you been in Newport?
• What do you like about your neighborhood?
• If you had a magic wand and could have whatever you want, what would you change in your neighborhood?
• What skills do you have that you can use to help bring this change about?
• If others had a similar vision would you be willing to work with them to make the changes?
Traditional service to the community relied on finding out what was needed in the community and trying to fulfill that need. An example of this is to go into a neighborhood and finding that the youth need something to do for recreation. From there you would go and raise money to build a community center. The problem with this is that the youth may not want to utilize the community center as they have no ownership of the project and feel that there are too many rules.
With ABCD you go into the community, preferably as someone who lives there and has an interest in making a difference. You would then talk to the youth and find out the answers to the above questions. After you find these answers you would research what needs to be done to fulfill the vision and work with the youth to come up with a plan to bring it about. This not only gives them ownership of the project, but it also empowers them as they realize that they have skills that they can use to make a difference in their own lives and in the community as a whole.
To further explain ABCD we have to realize that today’s programs have a tendency to label people we perceive as being in need. We label people as disabled, poor, welfare recipient, etc. What we have to remember is that every person that society has labeled has skills that they can use to make a difference in their own lives. ABCD finds these skills and brings them out. We are promoting “Community” which is a group of individuals working together for the common good.
ABCD addresses the needs of the community by looking at the skills and working together “WITH” our neighbors to make positive changes. It doesn’t ignore the needs, but addresses the reasons for the needs and helps eliminate those reasons. This makes social and economic changes for the better and everyone benefits, not just those we perceive as being in need.
Pathway Community Church through the Pathway Community Development Team would like to partner with the town of Newport, businesses, churches, associations, and institutions in the region to develop community.
The Pathway Community Church is currently involved in the Community Connection Asset Mapping Process to track the skills and assets in the community and use this information to work with our partners to plan initiatives of change. For more information contact Ted Bessey: tedbessey@pathwaycrc.org, Ph: 207-368-9977
• How long have you been in Newport?
• What do you like about your neighborhood?
• If you had a magic wand and could have whatever you want, what would you change in your neighborhood?
• What skills do you have that you can use to help bring this change about?
• If others had a similar vision would you be willing to work with them to make the changes?
Traditional service to the community relied on finding out what was needed in the community and trying to fulfill that need. An example of this is to go into a neighborhood and finding that the youth need something to do for recreation. From there you would go and raise money to build a community center. The problem with this is that the youth may not want to utilize the community center as they have no ownership of the project and feel that there are too many rules.
With ABCD you go into the community, preferably as someone who lives there and has an interest in making a difference. You would then talk to the youth and find out the answers to the above questions. After you find these answers you would research what needs to be done to fulfill the vision and work with the youth to come up with a plan to bring it about. This not only gives them ownership of the project, but it also empowers them as they realize that they have skills that they can use to make a difference in their own lives and in the community as a whole.
To further explain ABCD we have to realize that today’s programs have a tendency to label people we perceive as being in need. We label people as disabled, poor, welfare recipient, etc. What we have to remember is that every person that society has labeled has skills that they can use to make a difference in their own lives. ABCD finds these skills and brings them out. We are promoting “Community” which is a group of individuals working together for the common good.
ABCD addresses the needs of the community by looking at the skills and working together “WITH” our neighbors to make positive changes. It doesn’t ignore the needs, but addresses the reasons for the needs and helps eliminate those reasons. This makes social and economic changes for the better and everyone benefits, not just those we perceive as being in need.
Pathway Community Church through the Pathway Community Development Team would like to partner with the town of Newport, businesses, churches, associations, and institutions in the region to develop community.
The Pathway Community Church is currently involved in the Community Connection Asset Mapping Process to track the skills and assets in the community and use this information to work with our partners to plan initiatives of change. For more information contact Ted Bessey: tedbessey@pathwaycrc.org, Ph: 207-368-9977
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