Live United by Ann Austin

Our community is on a journey. We are on a journey together.

Fifteen years ago things looked very different — it was before the downtown development, the transitions of businesses and jobs and people and all of the beautiful community gardens.

We were still recovering from the Farmland fire and the challenges that followed for our community from that devastation. This was before my time, but I could feel the impact it had in our community when I moved here in August of 2003. The community felt unstable and very gray.

There is history in every community — and it reaches deep, so deep that when you are part of a community long enough, you don’t realize how it changes you or impacts your perspective of the world.

Each community has a culture that is created over generations. This culture is passed down through the stories we choose to tell, the language we use on a daily basis and what we encourage as acceptable or inappropriate behavior for our children. Often, the culture is not intentional — it’s an accepted norm that we perpetuate without thinking.

Toward the end of 2017, I found out that six people who were involved in our United Way in various ways — and had become friends of mine — were leaving our community. It takes me a while to accept friendship because I’m always worried people will leave, so I may have taken it harder than others.

But, dealing with strong emotions also has a way of putting things in perspective. With each person, before they left, I was able to talk about their experience here and what they loved and were concerned about moving forward. As a former reporter for the Tribune, I have kept the skill of continually interviewing people. (I recognize this may be annoying at times — and I apologize if I have imposed on any of you)

What I found was that they truly love where our community is heading — they have great hope for our community.

We are in the midst of another big reality shift. However, most of the transitions have already occurred. The hardest part is over. Now we get to grow.

I recently started the Equity Works Leadership Institute through the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs. We are focused on the changing landscape across the state of Minnesota and our nation. We will meet every other Friday for three months.

My classmates are from the Department of Employment and Economic Development, Department of Transportation, the St. Paul mayor’s office, nonprofits and government organizations across the state.

Equity is basically treating others how they wish to be treated — recognizing each of us is different and embracing those differences and the strengths to be celebrated.

We opened with a group discussion about our intentions for the experience. Then we had a presentation about our changing workforce across the state. There was a slide from DEED that identified most areas across Minnesota, including Freeborn County, will only grow through communities of color.

Our community is looking different than it used to. We are growing, in beautiful ways. I am thankful to have met so many new people who are moving to our area, energized with a vision for what it will be, that expands beyond my own.

Our United Way has been leveraging a lot of other resources to support this growth. We run our annual campaign to support local programs, but more needed to be done to help our community adapt to the emerging needs. We applied for a grant through the MN Department of Human Services, Office for Refugee Resettlement to help Karen community members who are living and working in the area.

Over the past two years, I have watched people start families, purchase homes, become community leaders and celebrate life in a place they truly love. This weekend my daughter and I attended a Karen New Year’s celebration at Southwest Middle School.

We have always been a diverse community, and it is exciting to see how diversity is becoming highlighted in our area and is part of the beauty and the vibrancy of our experience. Our community feels much different than it did 15 years ago. It’s strong and bright and full of hope.

Community is being created in every moment of every day; it is how we engage with each other and it emerges from what we choose to plant. Let us plant seeds of love.

Ann Austin is the executive director of the United Way of Freeborn County.