Tonight we are nominated in the Community Impact of The Year category at the Kingston Borough Business Awards. We are honoured to be recognised for the work we do, and up against the Kingston Carers Network and Full Cycle Community Bike Project, it’s going to be a tough call for the panel.
I grew up in Kingston through the 1980s and I, like a lot of young people, saw myself as removed from the wider community. I had my circle of friends and my family but that was where the reach ended.
It always felt like Kingston was busy, but it felt like these were a bunch of people linked geographically. School presented a broader community, but I, again, felt this was a group of people brought together by chance rather than by choice.
Even into my adult life, with workplaces and then back into the education setting via my children, community still lacked a heart for me. Until I started working here.
My job has finally afforded me the chance to see the way these disparate groups combine. I have had the pleasure of connecting with schools, businesses, churches, individuals and the people we support in a way that shows where the heart of a community is. And that heart is a cause.
Our vision that “Everyone in Kingston is in a stable home and is able to build a happy life” is a clear call to arms that touches every group and motivates action on a scale I have never seen before.
While we wait for the result tonight, I would like to personally award the people of Kingston the honour of having a winning impact on me, and I will continue to champion our cause, strengthen our bonds and build the community of those willing and able to support the people on the edges of our society.
