Last week I sat in a room with Holbrook citizens and listened as they talked about their ideas for development. The discussion was specifically about what to do to improve the city’s largest park but there was definitely more to the conversation. These citizens know that there’s a choice to be made. The choice is do something meaningful in their city and start now, or take their families and leave for a place that holds value for them. Judging by the discussion, the unanimous decision is do something meaningful. The group ranged from pre-teens to senior citizens and all had ideas to contribute, a couple of teens even brought a PowerPoint. They love their town but it’s not enough just to love a place and they know it. Action has to be taken to grow, revitalize and improve and there’s quite simply no room for those who want to wallow in the negative, undermine attempts to grow or instill seeds of doubt. Those people can stay home.
The citizens of Holbrook are fortunate to have Mayor Kathleen Smith. She’s a close friend of mine in large part because I know the value of having intelligent, innovative and positive people in my life. And although I am just getting to know City Manager Sharon Jakubowski Wolz, from what I’ve learned she shares the same mindset for getting things done right and has a low tolerance for those who seek to maintain the status quo. Both of these ladies believe in the importance of listening to the people they serve, taking action and working towards something of value. Holbrook has a lot of work to be done – the result of years of neglect. It may start with a park, but if more residents take on the mindset of the ones who showed up last week, I can see exciting things coming for the community of Holbrook.
