Some of the planning team for Envision Akron Middlebury held a recent meeting at the W.O.M.B. The event will take place June 12 at The W.O.M.B.’s community garden at the corner of East Market Street and South Arlington Road. (Photo: Chris Miller)
The Middlebury neighborhood of Akron is currently getting positive attention from local organizations such as Rooted Akron, The Big Love Network, The W.O.M.B. and The Gathering. These groups are hosting “Envision Akron: Middlebury” on Sunday, June 12 from noon until 5 p.m. at The W.O.M.B.’s Community Garden, located at the corner of East Market Street and South Arlington Road. Organizers are reaching out to Middlebury residents to find out how they envision their neighborhood and how they can be a part of making that vision a reality.
Through “Envision Akron: Middlebury,” Akron residents Caitlyn Boyle and Kelly McHood are bringing their expertise and passion to Middlebury with the goal of helping to engage and empower folks living and working in the neighborhood. Boyle and McHood, as well as a host of local community organizations and individuals, are reaching across age, race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexuality and education to help residents make their neighborhood what they envision it could be.
Boyle and McHood aim for the event to energize and get people thinking creatively. They hope to re-imagine Middlebury in ways that reflect the needs and wants of the people there.
Said McHood of the event, “We want to empower people to find their voices.”
Boyle said, “In advance of the upcoming Middlebury Better Block, we want to help redefine what celebration and coming together can look like.”
Better Block, according to the website, “Leverages the strengths of local community resources to catalyze change at a fraction of the cost of traditional planning initiatives.” The Middlebury Better Block is a collaboration between Akron and the Better Block Foundation. It is scheduled to take place July 30 and 31.
The “Envision Akron: Middlebury” event will offer workshops, performances, art, music, children’s activities and free BBQ for all who attend. The event is free of charge.
If you live in and love the great city of Akron enough to celebrate its good things and to boldly face its challenges, Envision Akron: Middlebury is an excellent opportunity to jump in feet first to be part of the solutions to those challenges.
Envision Akron Middlebury is a Rooted Akron & The W.O.M.B. event supported by The Big Love Network, Grateful 4 Grace, The Gathering, Ohio Organizing Collaborative, Neighborhood Network of University Park (NNUP), smART Studio, Akron City Repair, ArtsNow, The Akronist, The Coffee Pot Café, Body Karma Healing, Forest of Youth Holistic Spa and Healing Arts, , BMe Akron, Gum-Dip Theatre, Mustard Seed Market & Cafe, Let’s Grow Akron, Oriana House, Inc., Advanced GM, Stop the Violence, Unbox Akron, Acme Fresh Market and Dave’s Supermarket.
To learn more about “Envision Akron: Middlebury,” go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1687224321538828/
To learn more about Akron Better Block, go to https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100008413536862
To learn more about The Better Block Foundation, go to http://betterblock.org/.
