Healing Our Community By Rallying Together

Many are waking up this morning in Edgewater and across the United States with a sense of uneasiness and even fear as they look at the results of the presidential election. We can all agree that this election has revealed some deep divisions within our communities and country. Political pundits and news anchors are communicating that we have some deep wounds and divisions that need to be healed.

How do we bring our communities together and heal the harm that this election has caused?

At Edgewater Collective, we believe the power to heal and come together already exists in our Edgewater community. Over the last four years we have been working to bring people together on common good projects.

As we work together on projects, we listen and learn what we have in common with those who share different beliefs and political views. As hard as it might be for some to believe, there are people in Edgewater who voted for Donald Trump who are great neighbors and care deeply for our community.

We have some exciting opportunities here in Edgewater to rally around as well as some big challenges.

The City of Edgewater is now empowered to move forward with plans for a new Edgewater Civic Center with a new library, recreation center, city offices and police station. Residents will need to come together and offer their ideas for what this great community facility should offer and look like.

Edgewater has a vacant lot at 20th and Depew that sits empty as new developments are being built all around us. What do we want this corner of our community to look like and offer to residents?

But when we look at our three neighborhood schools we have some big challenges. With the 3A/3B increased funding for schools not passing, our schools will have to do more with less. Our vision at Edgewater Collective is seeing thriving neighborhood schools connected to a thriving community. For this vision to occur, our Edgewater community must rally around our schools. It will take community investments in the form of volunteer hours and smart financial investments. We need to stop operating under the myth that Edgewater kids don’t attend Edgewater schools because the reality does not match that. Every day Edgewater children attend Edgewater Elementary, Lumberg Elementary and Jefferson Junior/Senior and we have the data to prove this.

Join us as we move forward as a community and heal through working together on these exciting opportunities and tough challenges that face us.

Let us know how you would like to be involved in this healing process.

Joel Newton

Joel has been a resident of Edgewater, Colorado with his family since 2012. He is the Executive Director of local education nonprofit Edgewater Collective and Editor of the Edgewater Echo.