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Headwaters Communities in Action enjoys “successful” 2016

November 16, 2016   ·   0 Comments

Headwaters Communities in Action (HCIA) hosted its 2016 annual general meeting in Orangeville on October 27 with a special appearance by one of the men credited with helping to launch the local organization taking centre stage.

Twelve years on from his work in leading a two-day “community well-being” workshop in Orangeville that acted as the catalyst for HCIA’s formation, world-renowned motivational speaker and community change consultant Paul Born was back in town last month to acknowledge the organization’s growth over the past decade.

He was welcomed by a group of roughly 60 attendees, including Mono Mayor Laura Ryan, Dufferin County CEO Sonya Pritchard and a delegation from Logan City in Australia.

Speaking to the Citizen at the meeting, HCIA’s Lead Project Consultant Shirley Boxem said she was excited to have the opportunity to welcome back the man who helped “get all of this started” in 2004.

“Paul is an absolute superstar as it relates to deepening communities and inspiring people to step up and help make a difference. He really planted the seed all those years ago that motivated the people of Orangeville to form HCIA,” Ms. Boxem said.

At its inception, the organization was named the Dufferin Social Prosperity Project but over time became to be known as Headwaters Communities in Action. A grassroots citizen-based group at its core, HCIA works to foster community leadership and action towards a long-term vision of well-being for residents across Dufferin County and the Town of Caledon.

“Basically, we try to bring together local leadership, opportunities, priorities and funding in the hopes of creating projects and initiatives to support community wellbeing,” Boxem explained.

The organization relies heavily on volunteers within the community stepping up to help front and provide leadership and direction for several of its projects. The organization reported that over 860 volunteer hours had been logged in 2016. Currently HCIA has 60 registered volunteers, with 38 of those considered active.

Boxem reported HCIA had seen a 15 percent increase in its contacts list in 2016, up 540 from 2,094 in 2015 to 2,634 this year. Funding was also up in 2016 with the organization receiving $186,167 in 2016 – an increase of $15,623 from the previous year. While she admitted she was happy with the apparent growth HCIA has seen over the past 12 months, Boxem believes there is still work to be done.

“Obviously we’re delighted to see our numbers increasing but there’s always room for improvement,” Ms. Boxem said. “We know we have an exceptional group of people we can call on to get involved, and there are more out there that would like to get involved but just haven’t quite had the opportunity to make a connection yet, so I still see an opportunity for us to expand and grow.”

She added, “But of course, whenever you’re seeing some sort of growth it’s a positive. You know you’re going in the right direction.”

As the numbers may indicate, it has been an “incredibly busy” year for all those involved with HICA as the organization moved forward on a number of “positive” projects. Chief among those, according to Ms. Boxem, has been the formation of a Poverty Steering Committee. A collaborative effort alongside Dufferin County Community Services and Public Health, the committee has spent much of the year working on a Poverty Reduction Strategy draft.

“We really can’t take too much credit for the Poverty Steering Committee… It’s taken a massive effort from some of our volunteers and finding from Dufferin County to get it off the ground,” she said. “This has been about bringing the citizen arm, public health and county together to look at poverty in our area. We seem to have been able to bring in the right people and skillsets to proactively address the issues of poverty. We’re expecting big things from this.”

The Headwaters Food and Farming Alliance (HFFA) is finalizing a draft of a regional Food Charter that Ms. Boxem says will define a “common vision” for what it means to have a healthy, fair, prosperous and sustainable food system in the Headwaters region and the steps that need to be taken to achieve it.

Ms. Boxem also highlighted the organization’s Farm to School program, which sees local farmers paired with schools in Dufferin County, Caledon and Erin for class visits to teach students about the local food system and farming life.

“We’re really proud of the Farm to School program, that really seems to have taken off in the community,” she said.

Looking long-term, HCIA has established a five-year road map of sorts in an attempt to provide a better quality of life for all residents in its operating area. Branded the Community Well Being program, HCIA’s Project Consultant Karen Hutchinson spoke to the importance of ensuring people within the community are living a happy life.

One of the chief priorities highlighted in the program includes engaging with and mobilizing the public, local business community and government on issues such as transportation, affordable housing and access to services.

Looking back on 2016, Ms. Boxem says she’s “incredibly proud” of everything HCIA and its partners have been able to achieve. With that being said, she indicated this year “was only the beginning” and that she was excited to see what 2017 brings.

“I think everybody involved with HCIA can look back on 2016 with pride, we’ve accomplished a lot and have put plans into place to ensure we keep going,” she said. “I’m excited for next year, we have a lot on our plate but we also have the right people in place leading the charge.”

She concluded, “It’s going to be another great year.”

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