#16:
Healthy Communities are seldom accidental. It's complicated.
A Tale
of Two Communities
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On
a short day trip we visited several
Manitoba communities,
all within an hour of Brandon. The neighbourhood has much to
offer. We hiked a trail, paddled and swam at a beach, stopped at a few
historic sites, and had a great lunch.
Two places we visited stood out in stark contrast. Both were very small
communities. One of them was Polonia, a place with a rather
unique history. The surrounding area was initially settled by
people from the former Austro-Hungarian Empire, who named the area Huns
Valley. Eventually, settlers of Polish ancestry outnumbered them and,
in 1921, the name was changed to Polonia.
Today there are no commercial services and very few residents in the
village. But someone there cares. The historic St. Elizabeth of Hungary
Roman Catholic Church is in good repair and sits on beautifully tended
grounds.
Likewise
for the nearby community hall. Several commemorative monuments
highlighting the history of the church and the community are well cared
for.
Even
the abandoned building that once was likely a store is
painted and maintained.
The
nearby cemetery, on a beautiful site overlooking a valley is also
the object of much care and attention.
Polonia
could his easily have become another forgotten village. There
is no commercial reason for its existence. It’s not even on a paved
road.
I’m
going to contrast it with another village, which I will not
name. A village where several abandoned buildings are rotting
away. Where derelict vehicles seem to be the most prominent landmarks.
This village may never have been as picturesque as Polonia, and may not
have had the strong sense of cultural identity, but it too was once and
attractive prairie town.
Why are they so different now?
Yes,
as the above photo shows, part of it may be that Polonia has some
historical and natural advantages, even its location on and out-of-the
way gravel road, is likely an advantage.
In fact the village that I'm contrasting with Polonia, being less
isolated, has followed a pattern I've seen elsewhere. Rural
vilages can become places where cheap housing has drawn people who want
a lifestyle unencumbered by regulation and community standards.
Also, people who have no roots in a commuity often have a different set
of values.
But I still think it comes down to people and leadership. In earlier
posts I have described places where the Municipality has made a
conscious effort at keeping villages tidy and cared for. And I
wonder
about the forces that are prevent that in this case. Either way,
choices have been made, and in the case of Polonia, someone cares.
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