Project ACTION working toward community calendar

Strengthening Springfield's neighborhoods, and providing more opportunities to the town's kids are two of the main goals of Project ACTION.

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Published July 1, 2016 in the Rutland Herald Project ACTION working toward community calendar By SUSAN SMALLHEER SPRINGFIELD — Strengthening Springfield’s neighborhoods, and providing more opportunities to the town’s kids are two of the main goals of Project ACTION. And one of the first steps the neighborhoods and community subcommittee of Project ACTION is taking to help accomplish that there is a free community calendar, listing all the activities and opportunities in the town of 9,400. “One of our goals is to improve the image of the town, that there’s noting going on in Springfield,” said Rev. George Keeler, a committee member. The community calendar is still a “work in progress,” Keeler told the community Wednesday, but he said that the Springfield Regional Chamber of Commerce had agreed to host the calendar. Stephanie Thompson, the de facto leader of Project ACTION, said the group could not afford a website, and it currently only had a Facebook page. The neighborhoods subcommittee was working with a facilitator for the first time Wednesday, as a graduate student, Diane Drake of Springfield, volunteered to help the group articulate its accomplishments and goals. Carol Lighthall, executive director of Springfield On The Move, the downtown revitalization group, said the town was working to identify money and programs to help needy residents do necessary repairs on their homes. Town Manager Tom Yennerell said the town may provide some funding for the repairs program, but the town was working with existing housing organizations on that issue. He said some seed money might come from the town’s revolving load fund, which gets its funding from federal grants, that has paid back to the town. Whether the town’s four or five neighborhood groups should be listed as part of the community calendar was discussed, but all agreed the leaders of the various groups should be contacted and approve of their listing first. “We can encourage them, but we can’t tell them what to do,” said Lori Claffee, the president of the most active neighborhood group, the Park-Union Neighborhood Alliance. Keeler said that Caitlin Christiana of the Springfield Regional Chamber of Commerce had agreed to host the community calendar, which will be organized into various topics, including those of interest to kids of different ages. Deb Grant of Community College of Vermont said her younger students wanted to be involved in their community, particularly in helping to solve a specific problem. “There’s a voice inside some of them that says they want to be in control or take charge,” she said. Keeler praised Grant’s students project Photovoice, which is on display at The Great Hall through July. http://www.rutlandherald.com/article/20160701/NEWS02/160709989