Understanding Your Community

Berwick Sand Bucket Brigade

There is no power

for change greater than

a community discovering

what it cares about. 

MARGARET J. WHEATLEY

Learn more about your Community

Central to building a robust program is the process of getting to know your community's needs, resources, and what moves people to action.  Once you better understand the landscape in which you're working, you can begin the all-important effort of developing relationships, fostering commitment, and mobilizing your community.

Note: Below, and throughout our site, underlined text indicates a live link.

Know what you need to know.

Each new lifelong community engages in a detailed assessment to better understand the issues that impact the community and move people to action.

Do better together.

Lifelong community initiatives depend on the support of the community--elected officials, local organizations, and residents of all ages 

"Join us.  We need you."

Building relationships allow you to  explore volunteers' intent, interests, and skills. Find the energy that's all around you and put it to work!  

what community engagement has meant tO 

age-friendly Millinocket

Age-Friendly Millinocket got its start in April of 2019, building on strong community engagement and partnerships between the municipality, Thrive Penobscot, Millinocket Regional Hospital, Design Lab, the Millinocket Memorial Library, and more. 

This video of Age-Friendly Millinocket's SNOWDOWN winter festival shows how a small amount of funding and strong partnerships can engage the community in a shared vision for an age-inclusive community, with implications for Lifelong Community sustainability that go beyond a single event.