On to the next chapter
Iam writing this column as a farewell to community members in the Eastern Townships because I am leaving my position at Townshippers’ Association.
It was an extremely educational experience during my short time at Townshippers’ Association. I’m not going to lie; when I started my role at Townshippers’ Association in July 2022, I didn’t know where to start. Though I have lived in the Eastern Townships my whole life, except for my years at school, I learned that I didn’t know the Townships that well. It was quite a funny realization!
For one of the projects I carried out with my colleague, Vanessa Asselin, we delivered care packages to dozens of seniors for the holidays around the Eastern Townships, and I was driving through towns I had never visited before. The landscapes in the Townships are beautiful, as we all know. Yet, what will stick with me most from my time with the team aren’t the car rides I did to attend activities in the Townships, but the people.
I feel very fortunate to have worked on projects for seniors’ wellness. I met so many welcoming, smart, lively, hilarious, and kind-hearted seniors during my time at the Association. Talking with the seniors I met in Memphremagog, Sherbrooke, and Brome-missisquoi often made me think about my grandparents. In the past few years, I lost two of my grandparents that I was very close with; I’d see them weekly, if not daily. And one of the things that my grandfather would like to repeat to me went a little something like this: “Don’t forget to take care of your seniors!” When I was doing the work that I was doing to support the English-speaking community in the Eastern Townships, which often involved seniors, I had the sense that my grandparents would have most definitely approved.
The conversations that I had with people opened my eyes as well. One recurring topic of conversation I had with people in the community related to people wanting to connect more with other people. As simple as that. After COVID, it’s safe to say that people have been lacking social connections. It was interesting to come into my role when I did, when people were starting to leave their homes to partake in group events for the first time in years. I had a handful of seniors tell me at activities I held with community partners, like Avante Women’s Centre, that the event was the first one that they had participated in since the pandemic. Others said that the activity represented one of the only activities in the month where they could be around a group of people. Some mentioned that they were recently widowed and that they were looking
for groups where they could meet new people to build a social group. The gatherings proved that people need people, which isn’t surprising considering that we are social beings.
I must say that I am glad to see all the in-person activities happening in the Eastern Townships. Life is taking form once again, and it was so needed! I know that community activities will continue to take place thanks to all the community organizations in the region, and that Townshippers’ Association will be present to support these initiatives. Even with all the work being carried out, it’s possible for you to feel like it isn’t enough, or that it’s not what you’d like to see happen. If this is the case, I invite you to take action and make your
ideas come to life. We all have power to make a change, especially when it comes to our communities.
This monthly column keeps you in touch with Townshippers’ Association’s activities and news. Other ways to keep in touch:
Online www.townshippers.org Facebook.com/townshippers Twitter @Townshippers
In person
3355 College St., Sherbrooke 3-584 Knowlton Rd., Lac-brome
819-566-5717 450-242-4421