Kinsley High School
Kinsley, Kansas
Teacher: Dr. Galen Boehme
Supporting Our Communities
By Shannon Fulls
12th grade
As part of a community we certainly must foster a vision, we need to participate in community activities, and we need to support the institutions in the community.
To foster a vision we must think about where we see the local community going. To do this we must first look at and learn from the past mistakes made in the community. We do not want to make these same mistakes again. If a business does not succeed in a town, another business selling the same items will most likely not work either. When my family owned the local café it was a successful business. We sold the café to another family. They did not have such a successful business. So they sold it to another family. The new family also did not have a successful business. The café was recently bought by a new family. The community will now see if this family can make an honest business of the café, or if they will fail. It may be the quality of the business. The two previous owners could have made improvements on the quality they presented.
We must also look at the community now. A community is a group who functions together in everyday life. We need to look at how we function together in our society. We will likely want to improve the local community. We gather information from the local residents as to how we can do this. To do its job, the local government must communicate. In any community, communication is a key factor. When improvements for the community are found, the whole town could vote for the improvement to be made. When the local hospital was destroyed by a flood, the community agreed to revamp the building. This took time and money, but was a very good investment. To try to avoid conflict, we steer away from clashing interests. If someone in the community is erecting a new building, the community may gather for public input. Later, someone will make a final decision. The community bases their ideas upon what other members want.
To foster a vision we must also look at the future. There will surely come a time when changes will need to be made. As a community these changes must be agreed upon. New laws may come into action. Communities may grow; homes and buildings may need to be built. We need to support the decisions the community makes that will better our futures. The national community is facing new challenges today with the immigration law protestors. The national community must come up with some plans on how to control the protestors and how to implement the laws.
To function as a community we must participate in activities. We need to try not to avoid these gatherings. We should socialize with our families. My close family is my unique group. This group consists of my nuclear family, my Grandma, aunts and uncles, and cousins. This group is not all of my extended family. We always gather as a whole group at my Grandma’s house on the Fourth of July. Sometimes not everyone always wants to attend these gatherings, but we always do. If one person is not able to attend we cannot function as a whole community. We each usually have our own special job to attend to. If one person is missing for his or her job our community cannot function correctly. I encourage communities to enjoy their time together, because our time does not last forever.
To function as a community we must also attend local attractions. We have the local theater that plays movies on weekends. To keep the theater going we must support the theater. We can do this by attending the movies. The entertainment team also sponsors play productions at certain times. The community could support the entertainment team by attending these plays. Another local attraction is the local sod house museum. Here we can learn about our ancestors. We can learn how they grew up and what life was like for them. Visiting the museum takes us a step back in history. The community should support this local attraction so the museum will stay open.
Supporting institutions is critical for a functioning community. We can support the school by donating receipts from the local grocery store. If the school receives a certain number of receipts by a set date, then the store will donate a certain amount of money to the school. Students can also bring in Our Family labels for another donation. The money earned by this will support the schools in purchasing much needed items. We can also support our local churches. Attending church is a major support all on its own. We can also donate funding to keep the churches in good shape. We do not even have to donate a large sum of money; just a few dollars will suffice.
Another institution we as a community can support is the local hospital and nursing home. We do not have to be employees of these institutions. We can volunteer at them. On a weekend afternoon we can gather a group of our peers and all go visit the sick and elderly together. This could be a wonderful way to spend an afternoon with friends. The local student service club could also do this. This would be an excellent way to work in community service. Some residents may appreciate us to visit them sometimes. To volunteer does not take much time. Maybe we could volunteer an hour of our time every week. In this community our time would be much appreciated.
To be a part of a community, we must be willing to give our time. Everything in life takes time. Helping the community will just make the time more worthwhile.