It sounds a bit romantic and far-fetched to some, and more than any one person can tackle. But Jessica Herzing is not just one person. She has been working on this project for several years and has driven it through many phases, with substantial buy-in from the community and local businesses and government.
“When we started this work, our community was dealing with a blight problem and low resident morale,” said Herzing, project coordinator of the Cameron County Project, “We thought if we could have these positive conversations with residents and allowed them to feel heard, we could draft a plan that would help us get out of our community funk, encourage residents to re-engage with the community and really own and we could create a tool to help us build Cam Co back to something residents could be proud of.”
The values below, organized and shared by the residents of the community, are the same as in most other areas. The major difference, these are in writing and a plan is in place, with resources to keep the community proud.
NATURE, Cameron County values the nature that abounds within our borders, from the abiding beauty of our mountains, streams, and forests to our diverse wildlife. We appreciate the variety of recreational activities and scenic views it provides us.
SENSE OF COMMUNITY, Cameron County values the Sense of Community created by our people and fostered by our scenic communities and the slower pace of life that make us so unique. We value the people we call neighbors, finding them kind, friendly, hardworking individuals who make our communities feel secure and welcoming. We revere the community spirit felt between residents -where we know one another and come together with a willingness to help in times of need. We treasure the slow pace, quiet nature of neighborhoods and boroughs-where our tree lined streets and valley-nestled communities inspire a familiar feeling at home.
LOCAL ECONOMY, Cameron County values our local businesses, industries, and entrepreneurs who are the backbone of our local economy and the heartbeat of our communities, while acknowledging the potential our county offers for expanded amenities and industry.
SAFETY, Cameron County believes in sustaining a safe, secure, and close-knit community to live, work and play.
ACCESSIBILITY, Cameron County values walkable communities, the safe travel between each of our municipalities and the ability to easily navigate our vast dirt road and trail system.
ARTS & HERITAGE, Cameron County cherishes sharing our rich history and coming together to celebrate our community and artisans through year round community events, throughout the county.
YOUTH WELLBEING, Cameron County values the well-being of our young, adolescent, and teenage residents. We believe in supporting their educational and athletic pursuits and are committed to offering them a variety of opportunities to participate and recreate within our county.
The Cameron County Project worked with the Orton Family Foundation, now Community Heart and Soul, PA Humanities and PA Department of Community and Economic Development to complete the Community Heart and Soul model. This is a national program, with communities of less than 50,000 people, using their model across the nation.
“Community Heart and Soul starts on the basis of you don’t know where you’ll end up or what you’ll find, but you’re going to include everyone in the discussion and find out what everyone values and build from there,” Herzing explained. It also created an opportunity to gather data that would help area agencies, businesses, and nonprofits write grants, create business plans, and aid in strategic planning. She said there are even some grants that will accept the Action Plan in the place of a feasibility study on community support for a project.
She explained that Cameron County was a bit out of the way, and so they decided they would just use the free resources from Orton’s Family Foundation when the grant wasn’t offered, “but PA Humanities heard about our work and decided to allow us to apply for Community Heart and Soul certification,” which they received in 2018.
They are one of 14 communities across the state that have participated in the Heart and Soul model, with PA Humanities and PA DCED as the major funders for this model.
“It’s an incredible opportunity to bring resident voices and stakeholders and government to work into a cohesive picture of Cameron County,” she said.
As many have seen, resident values are being acted on, but there is a gap in how their work and projects are being marketed back to residents. Herzing stated, “That disconnect is so unfortunate as residents have so much to be proud of and encouraged by. We want to ensure that those types of projects are being celebrated.”
She also noted, there are times when residents really do hold solutions to issues or warranted concerns and that the project is always trying to help them find the correct place to take their ideas or concerns to ensure they are heard by the people that can act on them.
Additionally, by drafting their community value statements they were able to have a common ground. This was a place to start the difficult community conversations about topics or policies that can sometimes be divisive.
“We have a place where we can agree on where to start — and go back to when we lose sight of what’s truly important to the people who work, live and play in Cameron County,” she added.
The project page states, “You told us what you loved, what worried you, and what you hoped and dreamed of — you told us what we got right and what we got wrong — and we’re so excited to share the Heart & Soul of Cameron County. Here they are, #Finally, the fully-resident-vetted Cameron County Community Value Statements — the values residents can agree to holding near and dear to their hearts.
“These values are our shared, non-negotiables as changes come to our area, as decisions are made on our behalf, and as we look toward a vibrant future. These create the common ground of our shared Cam. Co. identity as residents and neighbors. We thank you for entrusting your almost 500 stories with us, your time and thoughts and ideas as we worked toward finding the heart and soul of this county we all share, but view through 4,600 different lenses. Our work is not over, though, these values are the foundation of where we’re going, as we look toward prioritizing all the ideas you have to preserve, to honor, and to reinvigorate Cameron County as we draft YOUR action plan, a resident-driven and resident-envisioned, Cam. Co. Proud Call to Action Plan.”
The project recently entered in stage 4, with stewarding the stories and values collected; and are in the company of Williamsport, Greater Carlisle, Meadville, and Upper Chichester Township.
As the project transitions to stewardship and implementation of resident vision, Herzing noted, “we can look back and see gaps in services that need to be filled and help area stakeholders lean into resident priorities as they work out what their project goals are, if they so choose. We also are able to help stakeholders or resident groups that want to run with an idea in the Action Plan get the information or resources they need to succeed by leveraging our network or assisting in finding the right funding sources.”
They also hope to have all the raw resident data available soon online as a searchable database so anyone can view or use the data.
“Now that we are at the conclusion of the Cam Co Project, we’re still trying to figure out exactly what the next step is and how to best serve the community in the future.” But the organization wants to ensure they are available to supplement what is already going on and help create a lasting bridge between resident voices and the people that need to hear them, where the Cameron County Project can promote and support both.
Herzing added the following for any community that may want to follow this path, “If other communities would want to use their model, Orton and PA Humanities, almost annually, host webinars and meetings that discuss the merits of Community Heart and Soul and encourage communities to apply for a seed grant to ensure that they are ready to take on the process, as it takes 2-3 years to complete and you need to create a good foundation of community involvement. They try to focus on regions of the state — it makes getting them the coaching and training resources easier on the funders.”
For more information about Heart and Soul, go to www.communityheartandsoul.org/what-we-do/
