We have a newly elected Aurora Town Council for the 2014-2018 Municipal Term. A month passed since the Town of Aurora Municipal elections took place on October 27th, 2014. On December 2nd, 2014 Aurora officially commenced the new 2014-2018 Municipal Term with the Aurora Inaugural Meeting of Aurora Town Council at Aurora Town Hall. MayorGeoffrey Dawealong with Cllr John Abel (Deputy Mayor), Cllr Sandra Humfryes, Cllr Michael Thompson, Cllr Jeff Thom, Cllr Wendy Gaertner, Cllr Harold Kim, Cllr Tom Mrakas and Cllr Paul Pirri were sworn in. We elected this group, as our Mayor and our Aurora Town Council, to represent our community for the next four years. My (shaky motion) video highlights this historic event for Aurora.
People have always been so generous and kind to comment on my photography. However, the truth is I do not showcase my photography or videos, I showcase our community, the Town of Aurora. Our Aurora community is also a growing community. With continuous growth it is only expected to see more engagement from the public, I hope.
Perhaps I can touch more on the topic of community engagement. Community engagement does not mean that you have to go an extra mile to be involved in our community. Many of you are working families and it is hard to be involved. Sometimes I sense that people don’t engage because it may require extra working time, time they may not have. They do not want to commit. However, in my opinion, community engagement can be anything you do in our community.
“We can begin by doing small things at the local level, like planting community gardens or looking out for our neighbors. That is how change takes place in living systems, not from above but from within, from many local actions occurring simultaneously.” ~ Grace Lee Boggs
If you are staying informed by reading local newspapers, that’s engagement. If you are writing a letter to the editor, that’s engagement. If you are walking a local trail or attending town events, that’s engagement. If you are voting, that’s bonus engagement. And even if you are visiting Aurora Public Library – that is all community engagement. It means that you took the time to support our community by participating and staying informed.
In my opinion, staying informed and participating in local events are actually essential elements of community engagement. There are also other forms of engagement which may require more time to be invested in the community. These are volunteers who support local community groups, like Aurora Historical Society or Aurora Community Arboretum. Others may enjoy local politics and engage in events such as municipal elections or be members of town committees.
By sharing our knowledge, thoughts and views we can influence each other for a better community.
Speaking of politics, if you want to engage more in politics – watching Aurora Town Council meetings is recommended. As the new Municipal Term 2014-2018 kicks in, I encourage more of you to join the audience in Town Hall and keep me company. Stay engaged and enjoy footage of Aurora Inaugural Meeting.
Anna Lozyk Romeo
Aurora, ON
