Transition Birchwood

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Comment by Cari Duffy on November 23, 2009 at 11:19am

Cameron and Alicia,

I'd love to be a part of that ABCD project, too.

Cameron, It was nice to meet you at the BNA meeting last week and I have been send out the word about the Birchwood Toy Store. I also received the email about the Faith Lutheran Church meeting. Do you know where their proposed Community Garden site is located? Is it on their property, or on another site in Birchwood, do you know?

Comment by Alicia Wills on November 23, 2009 at 10:43am

Sounds interesting, Cameron - the ABCD. Perhaps we can get together sometime so you can show me/us the software and we can talk about the model and its possible applications here in Birchwood. Alicia

Comment by Cameron Garcia on November 23, 2009 at 10:21am

Good Morning Birchwoodies,

Two things: 1) there is an informational meeting being held next Sunday (November 29th) at Faith Lutheran Church (2750 Mcleod) at noon on a possible community garden on site. They will be serving a light lunch and Becky Curtiss from Community First will be there leading the discussion.
2) Let me know if we are wanting to do some asset mapping of the neighborhood. I have been certified in Asset Based Community Development and have access to software that could help us out in this area.

Blessings!
Cameron

Comment by Cari Duffy on November 23, 2009 at 9:57am

Alicia, I'm a CERT volunteer and would love to get you more information if you are interested an need it. I might be able to help with the neighborhood mapping if you need help with that.

Comment by Alicia Wills on November 23, 2009 at 8:18am

Thanks for being the info-carrier and communicator, Juliet. I'm interested in CERT, skills inventory and workshop organizing, having been an event coordinator in a past life. And I will also support the Gardener's Market as I can, so keep me in mind. I've already spoken with a neighbor about Neighborhood Watch and we're figuring out how to connect with the rest here on Bennett and Alderwood. I wish I could host a potluck but my home is only 400 sq ft. In the summer, I can host here.
December IS busy. What strikes me is that, like our garlic, now is the time to lie quiet in the earth, gather strength, put out a few feelers and dream/plan of what might sprout with the coming spring. Anyone interested in dreaming together about possibilities with CERT, neighborhood mapping, skills inventory, and/or workshops?

Comment by Juliet Thompson on November 22, 2009 at 12:46pm

Hi Alicia,
I am planning on focusing my efforts along with Cari, Rick and Mark and anyone else that's interested, on the Gardener's Market. It seems like a good way to get us and others involved with the larger idea of growing as much food as we possibly can. Having the Gardener's Market lets others know that it's possible, it's visible, and it's potentially profitable - well, theoretically, at least. Maybe this will encourage others to participate in the food growing effort, which we know is part of our unique contribution as wood hoodies.

The kiosk idea was suggested by a few people, and I think the intent was to bring it to the BNA and apply for a Small and Simple grant. It would be great to hear from Andrew, Brian, or anyone else who wants to champion this idea and create a strategy. I am willing to support this idea, but not sure how yet.

I think the workshops would follow once we've gotten a system for communicating in place, and I'm assuming that's the purpose of the kiosks. If there are other ways to improve the communication throughout the neighborhood, I am willing to support and work on them also, since I understand this to be the intent of the kiosks.

I forgot to mention something in the previous comment - Brian wants to do some permaculture plantings on a strip of land near his house on Firwood. This is something I would participate in and our household could contribute some plants to.

The other idea I am committing to is to organize a Block Watch for our block of Pinewood. It will take some door to door communication to reach everyone on this long block.

I'm also hoping that we'll have another potluck in December. Does anyone else want to host it? It's fine to have it at our house. Dates? Is December too busy?
Talk to you soon, J

Comment by Alicia Wills on November 22, 2009 at 8:18am

Whoops! I meant Thanks, Juliet .... middle-age early morning brain!

Comment by Alicia Wills on November 22, 2009 at 8:17am

Thanks, Heather! I wish I'd been there. My time gets limited sometimes between my mother and my work, plus my tendency to avoid large gatherings. (Maybe I can offer something about elder care as a workshop, when the time comes ?!? It is a part of all transitions.)
So my question is, with these brilliant ideas for projects in our hood, how do they begin? Did people step up to organize any of them or is that something that will arise organically as people are moved to initiate one of them, using this group as a bulletin? Or do we perhaps want to have another neighborhood potluck and pick places to start? Guess that was more than one question!
I'd like to be involved on some level with organizing ... what do you all think is our next step?

Comment by Juliet Thompson on November 21, 2009 at 7:29pm

Hi Alicia and all,
Sure. It was GGREEEAAT! to start - David blew on some kind of sheep or goat horn to bring us all together. The TWIGS (mainly Chris & Kate) gave us the state of Transition - it seems that people are super excited and are moving or wanting to move into action phase at this point. There were signs up on the walls with all of Bellingham's neighborhoods listed, so we met by neighborhood, coming up with a plan for what our 'hood level actions might be.
Here's how Birchwood's came out - we had participation from Andrew, Brian, Cari, Rick, me, Mark, Heather K. We missed you Alicia!
1. Wood hooders want several places to post information in the neighborhood - kiosks placed along trails, at the shopping center, in places we can walk by and check to see what others are organizing and doing in the neighborhood.
2. We want to do a skills inventory and plan a series of workshops on:
Bike maintenance, chicken raising, beekeeping, rainwater collection, you name it.
3. We thought that one more useful step would be to develop Block Watches on each block, to find out more about CERT (Community Emergency Response Team??) and to participate or organize a Map Your Neighborhood event.

After the neighborhood small groups, we re-formed. After a lovely group song, anyone who was championing any type of project that fits into the Transition mission got up on the stage and talked for a minute or two about their project. People who led the specific projects met with anyone else who wanted to know more. There must have been about 15 projects. All in all, it was great.
Hey is anyone going to the Heart and Soul meeting at Bloom tomorrow? Do you want to carpool? I'll be leaving at 4, if anyone wants to go with me, let me know!


The neighborhood meeting on the following Tuesday reiterated the Neighborhood Watch effort - since there has been an upswing in crime, it would be a good time to organize these. The officer's name who runs the Block Watch program is Kat Dearborn - email kdearborn@cob.org
Something else that came up at the neighborhood meeting - there will be 7 openings on the Board in 2010. If anyone is interested in running for a BNA board position, send Rebecca Schlotterback a brief bio along with your intent.

There's a subgroup working on the idea of the Gardener's Market too. Whew! A lot going on.

Comment by Alicia Wills on November 20, 2009 at 7:57am

Hey Juliet. I hear you represented Transition Birchwood at the Walk the Walk. I'm sorry I couldn't make it. Would you be willing to write up a little report of what happened for those of us who weren't there?

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