Karen Gerrity, Town of Nederland Administrator. Back in April, I wrote an article about the Town employees’ efforts to launch a “Culture of Kindness” after a discussion during our all-staff meeting. 

Towards this goal, staff strives to do the following:

Assume Positive Intent

Stay Curious and Ask Good Questions

Use Words Impeccably

Not Take Anything Personally

Show Up the Best They Can Each Moment

I also asked the question, “Will you join Town staff in this effort to promote a Culture of Kindness throughout the community?” because Team Ned could use your support. 

Since April there have been many situations where the Town staff and area residents, businesses and organizations have worked together to make improvements to the community and build a Culture of Kindness.  

This summer you will notice Town staff working side by side with volunteers from the Nederland Presbyterian Community Church to make landscaping improvements to parks and trails. This week the church group includes volunteers from the La Grande, Oregon Presbyterian Church. This has been an ongoing partnership for several years and the Town benefits deeply from the work of the staff and volunteers. This program fosters a Culture of Kindness.

Another example is the partnership between the Town and Nederland Food Pantry. The Town provides free space for the Pantry to operate including areas outdoors to grow produce to be shared with the community. This spring and summer, the Pantry greenhouse and gardens are having a robust year and hundreds of pounds of produce have been shared with those in need. Town staff is honored to work with the staff and volunteers of the Pantry in this partnership which advances a Culture of Kindness. 

The collaboration between the Town and the Nederland Area Seniors is an ongoing partnership to assist seniors and enhance their quality of life. At a recent Mountain Peak Life dinner, the discussion topic was Emergency Preparedness and town staff, including Marshal Johns and Emergency Shelter Manager Dawn Baumhover, participated in this important presentation and conversation which was so popular, there will be a follow-up dinner and discussion on September 21 (www.mountainpeaklife.org). 

The Nederland Area Seniors Program Manager Nicole Cavalino and her team will further their partnership with the Town during the National Night Out event at Guercio Field, August 6 to continue spreading the word regarding emergency preparedness while celebrating community and building a Culture of Kindness. They will also host an EverBridge Registration at the Nederland Community Library on August 17, assisting area residents so they can receive emergency information alerts via their cell phones, home, and work phones and by text messaging and e-mail. 

While there are so many positive things happening in the Nederland community, there have been some contentious issues facing the Town which have resulted in polarization and less-than-civil discourse. Sometimes this has happened on social media and often times in public meetings. 

A compelling read regarding the sometimes aggressive nature of social media discussions is an August 2018 National Geographic article by Augustin Fuentes entitled, “Are We Really as Awful as We Act Online?” He is quoted as saying, “It’s because we haven’t been stepping up, in unison, to do the difficult social work our contemporary work demands. That means standing up against bullying, abuse and aggressive harassment and fostering pro-social attitudes and actions. In person and social media, we must do both.”

Much has been written about a national trend away from discussions of issues and instead public commentary is focused on personal attacks on individuals and their character. We are experiencing some of that in our mountain community.  I’ve heard from a number of local people who are choosing to withdraw from the public process due to this type of negative engagement and bullying. It is discouraging to hear. 

As local pastor Hansen Wendlandt suggested at a recent Board of Trustee meeting, “don’t let the tyranny of anger” drive the Town’s decision-making.

The greater Nederland area is comprised of many passionate individuals with various perspectives on the issues we face. Each deserves to feel safe participating in the important conversations that need to take place to work through these challenges towards a solution that resonates well with the community, understanding that compromise is often required in order to move forward. 

The First Amendment to the US Constitution grants all citizens the right to speak freely in general and to “petition the government for the redress of grievances” in particular. These rights are also called out in the Colorado Constitution. While it is lawful to impose and enforce time limitations on speakers, require them to remain on topic and enforce decorum generally, regulating the tone and emotion of public comment can only be done in a very limited manner. In addition, speakers cannot be prohibited from criticizing individual public employees. 

This means that when communicating about Town issues, whether on social media or in a public meeting, the individual needs to make the conscious decision to do so in a pro-social manner. It is my hope that more people will choose this path going forward. 

Choosing to embark on this path is a great first step and here is a reminder of some of the Working Agreements, which are a basis for running the meetings and workshops held by the Town:

• We listen for understanding.

• We are open to all ideas.

• We don’t interrupt the speaker.

• We are hard on issues, not the person.

• We disagree respectfully.

When coupled with the previously mentioned commitments to Assume Positive Intent, Stay Curious and Ask Good Questions, Use Words Impeccably, Not Take Anything Personally and Show Up the Best We Can Each Moment, we have a great recipe for civil discourse and common decency. While these are lofty goals, and we may fall down now and then as individuals, collectively committing to creating and advancing a Culture of Kindness will result in civil discourse and a more inclusive and tolerant community. 

(Originally published in the August 1, 2019, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)