A New Year

A New Year, A New Sunrise, A New Day. Photo by Richard Chicoine. iCopyright 2008
Grand Marais, Minnesota.

A New Year...A New Sunrise...A New Day

"For last year's words belong to last year's language. And next year's words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning."~T.S. Eliot

"One resolution I have made, and try always to keep, is this: To rise above the little things." ~John Burroughs

"We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives... not looking for flaws, but for potential." ~Ellen Goodman

"We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day." ~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

May this be the year that your leadership takes wings...a new year, a new sunrise, a new day!

In celebration

Blessings!

Father – Mother – God – Universal Power


Deep peace of the shining stars to you,
Which stay invisible till darkness falls
And discloses their pure and shining presence
Beaming down compassion on our turning world.
Deep peace of the shining stars to you.

Deep peace of the watching shepherds to you,
Of unpretentious folk, who, watching and waiting
Spend long hours out on the hillside
Expecting in simplicity some Coming of the Lord.
Deep peace of the watching shepherds to you!

Deep peace of the Son of Peace to you,
Who, swift as the wave and pervasive as the air,
Quiet as the earth and shining like a star,
Breathes into us His Peace and His Spirit.
Deep peace of the Son of Peace to you!

Mary Rogers, adapted from the Gaelic



Grandfather, Great Spirit
All over the world the faces of living ones
Are alike.
With tenderness they have come up. Look upon your children that they may
Face the winds and walk the good road to the Day of Quiet.
Grandfather, Great Spirit
Fill us with the light
Give us the strength to understand, and the eyes to see.
Teach us to walk the soft Earth as relatives to all that live.

Sioux Prayer


GoodNight God

I hope that you are having a good time being the world.
I like the world very much.
I’m glad you made the plants
And trees survive.
I like how God feels around everyone in the world.
God, I am very happy that I live on you.
Your arms clasp around the world.

Danu Baxter, Age 4 and a half


“Where God is, there is love, and where there is love,

there always is an openness to serve.”

Mother Teresa

What miracles will you create?

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2008. St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Church, Thunder Bay Ontario Canada

HIDDEN TREASURES

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2008

Hidden Treasures in Our Community
Sometimes we have to revisit places, people...to see the familiar with new eyes.

The magical mystical bus tour was a great way to wind up the 2008 portion of your Leadership Journey. We’ve introduced a number of leadership theories, but listening to all of our guest presenters in action was really exciting. Reading is an important base (see xowhat post #1), but learning from the experiences of others really drives the point home.

Our December Community Learning Day was based on discovering Community Assets and how “Connectors” – leaders who have the capability and capacity – to link assets can make the impossible become possible.

1. Your Mission for January’s CAP Presentations
Telling The Story

When a leader tells a story, there’s an impact on the listener. Wouldn’t you agree that the stories we heard about the Boys and Girls Club, the historical perspectives of the LPH and its patients, and the design of Magnus Theatre to accommodate a variety of actors and audiences, are memorable? How about boys and girls flying to the north pole on Bearskin Airlines?

Some of you mentioned that you’d have a hard time deciding who to volunteer with, based on the narratives you heard during the day.

Organizations aren’t just about the facts; it’s feelings (and the proof from the factual base) that attract new volunteers, donations and interest in what’s happening.

It’s Time to Tell

In preparation for January, this “asset connector” role is being passed onto you. Each of our five CAP groups will have 15 minutes during the afternoon to “Tell Our Story”.

Working as a CAP team, what’s the “story” of the organization you are supporting? Make the story your presentation.

You might consider these questions – and add your own:

- What are the assets that play a major role in this organization?
- What effect does “marginalization” have on the organization?
- What are the missing assets and links?
- Which questions have not been asked?
- What could your CAP project initiate to change the momentum of the organization?
- What are the lessons for Thunder Bay as a community and you as leaders?

To guide you in developing your story, go to 7 Stories – The Most Important Stuff - about communities and the asset model we discussed.
Download “Hidden Treasures” (92 pages) here:

http://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/images/hiddentreasures.pdf

Source: ABCD Institute at http://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/abcd/

John McKnight’s Community Asset Model, which was the basis for the Community Learning Day in December can be referenced here: http://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/images/kelloggabcd.pdf
(page 15)

AND: if you need help with your story, I’ll be around during the holidays. Just ask!


2. Dr. Brad McRae

Your Key Leadership Skill for January is “LIFELONG LEARNING”. This will be one of Dr. Brad’s messages for the morning of January 15.

What else would you like to have on the agenda? Please let us know asap: YOUR input drives the curriculum.

Strategy 3 is being sent to you by email this week. Brad is waiting for an interview with Phil Fontaine, but we might have to proceed without it. Please read… and be ready to have a good chat with the author.


3. Media!

Congratulations to all of you for stepping up to the plate for the media interviews. We had excellent coverage, and your nervousness gave you energy. Some of you were pushed gently out of the nest…and you flew! Well done!

4. Follow Ups...

Local faces talk about their experiences with mental illness, recommended by Brooke Latimer at St. Joseph's Care Group. Go here: http://www.withanopenmind.com/

Take a drive to Chippewa Park. Snow day version of the tour here: http://www.chippewapark.ca

Santa Might Say: Hey Boys and Girls here: http://www.tbayboysandgirlsclub.org/

See the Show! http://www.magnus.on.ca/

Business supports charities example:
www.bearskinairlineshopeclassic.com



And that’s it for 2008. Next week’s blog post will be short, snowy and sweet.

All the best – hush, don’t rush as we approach the holiday season,




Maggie

What's The Connection?

What’s this About Using Our Assets?

At its core, a deeply connected community--a community in which every member is valued and challenged to contribute--is a strong and healthy community. On Thursday, we’re going to check out some of our connections, and our city's assets.

Connection is one thing in theory, but a collection of powerful forces could stand in the way. Many members of any community are moved to its edges by a series of disconnecting labels—too old, too young, too poor, mentally or physically disabled, mentally ill. Not only do these labels serve to separate those labeled from the center of community life, but systems of service professing to “help” tend instead to further isolate them.


Asset-based community development begins with the assumption
that successful community building involves rediscovering and
mobilizing resources already present in any community:

o The skills and resources of its individuals,
o The power of voluntary associations, achieved through
building relationships
o The assets present in the array of local institutions, the
physical infrastructure of the community and the local
economy.

Another way of saying this is: successful community development is
asset-based, internally-focused, and relationship-driven.

7 Stories!

Read the overview now and ONE story and save six for after our Community Learning Day. Choose the one that appeals to you.

Download “Hidden Treasures” (92 pages) here (or cut and paste the link into your browser):

http://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/images/hiddentreasures.pdf

Source: ABCD Institute at http://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/abcd/


While reading, consider your CAP organization, and the stories that might evolve from your involvement.

Which questions have not been asked? What important information in these stories could change the momentum of your project? What lessons are you learning?

On Thursday, I will be referring to the “Asset Based Community Development Model” (John McKnight et al). And, we'll take about the COURAGE it takes to build those connections.

Happy reading,


Maggie

PS Remember that we have to stick together on Thursday from 8:45 am to 5:15 pm!