by Evan Matthews | [email protected]
Plugging in to a new place can be difficult, but as Jasper Community Outreach Services is suggesting, this place doesn’t have to be.
Jasper’s Community Outreach Services’ (COS) young adult outreach worker Ian Goodge says the organization will hold an event for new Jasperites on Wednesday Nov. 22 at the Legion. The event’s aim is to help newbies integrate into the community.
“Connecting people is one of the most important aspects of community,” says Goodge. “With people being so transient, moving around, and the way we live — there is so much disconnect that just comes with our western lifestyle — it adds weight to the importance of connection, and not just to groups and clubs, but to individuals.”
He said mental health benefits alone are worth placing emphasis on healthy social connections.
“Not just connections created at the bar scene… Connections that are flimsy by nature… We want to create healthy connections, which makes up the fabric of our community and makes it tight-knit.”
The concept is a simple one: Firstly, it’s free to the public. COS invites as many of the town’s companies and organizations to a common venue. The participants are asked to set up a booth that provides newcomers with information about who the organizations are and what they do, while giving away some free swag.
Some companies have donated food for the event, according to Goodge, while others have provided actual goods. There will be some interactive prizes, he says.
“It’s very much a meet and greet,” he says. “It’s going to be very social. There will be well over fifteen groups there.”
This isn’t the first event of its kind, as Goodge says COS typically puts on a similar event in the fall or winter months as a way of welcoming many of the new winter staff at the ski hill.
But events like this one isn’t just for “brand new” Jasperites, according to Goodge, as it takes a long time to adjust into a new community.
“People think, ‘Oh, I’ve only been here a month I fall into that category,’ but when a person has lived here for six months they tend to take themselves out of that category,” says Goodge. “But they still might not be aware of the different services and clubs available to them around town … If anybody wants to reach out, this is a great place to do it.”
Another misconception, according to Goodge, is that the event is strictly for young people.
“It’s open to all people who want to connect.”
Doors open at the Legion next Wednesday at 6 p.m., with prizes gone by 7:30 p.m., according to Goodge.
“I’m sure the food will be gone long before then, though.”
