HAPPY, HEALTHY, STRONG COMMUNITIES BY DESIGN by Gary Howe, Advocacy Director
The happy, healthy, strong community provides dignified accessibility for everyone. When we cross the street, we don’t need to run or play frogger. When the family gathers after a day at work and school, the 10-year-old leads the way with confidence to the ice cream shop. On the way home, the family swings by the park and stays till dark visiting with neighbors. The happy, healthy, strong community is built on top of equitable policies set in school administrative buildings, city and township halls, and conference rooms. Decisions are considered in the abundance created by collaboration and creativity, rather than in the vacuum of short term budget constraints and scarcity mindset. Policymakers strive to understand the cascading impacts of their decisions on health, equity, and connections. The result is safer, more active places where we come together by design. Everyone feels valued, everyone is celebrated, and everyone is encouraged to realize their full potential.
The happy, healthy, strong community is what Norte celebrates, envisions, and works to create and maintain. It is the fundamental metric by which we measure our daily work. Our success is measured by the number of smiles generated in community slow rolls, summer camps, and strider bike socials. We see Norte’s impact when citizen advocates engage and represent their community with confidence and clear voices. We revel in the story of the person inspired to walk to work by all the people biking and walking around town in bright orange winter hats. And, then inspires their co-workers to join them. The happy, healthy, strong community isn’t a dream--we see expressions of it every day. Our task at Norte and across Northern Michigan is to advance these experiences, celebrate them, advocate for them, and make them the foundation of our work. The happy, healthy, strong community is by design.
NORTE | 2019 ANNUAL REPORT
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