We’re still figuring out where we sit. Literally.
It was an easy decision to give up our old offices in favor of adding another affordable rental at Creekside Corner. Setting up shareable desk space at The Hurt Hub went down even easier. Cool space, cool people, cool ideas, cool embrace of local nonprofits by the College—oh, and did I mention hot Summit coffee? No sacrifice, that.
But now that the new community room for residents and property management is open at 220 Sloan Street, Julie and I are torn. Some days we work out of it. Other days we’re hunkered down at The Hub. Most days, we quiz each other about where we plan to show up.
I think I know why.
We broke up the band.
When there was only one place to go, well, we were all there. Julie, Sherri, Lyn, the interns, Board members, volunteers, residents, vendors, neighbors. Even the merely curious. We chatted. We brainstormed. We joked. We were building a shared story. We were connected.
We’ll figure it out. We will find new routines. And we’ll strike that balance again between being productive and just being together.
Still, the upheaval we’ve felt is apt testimony to the centrality of community. Put simply, it’s the relationships.
In this role, I am reminded of that simple, but fundamental, mantra, again and again.
Much of our outreach material includes the line: We do not do this work alone. Join US.
It has been that way since the beginning.
One of our longest standing partners in the community has been Davidson College Presbyterian Church. In fact, a sermon from the pulpit by former DCPC pastor Charlie Raynal in the mid 1990s helped spur our founding in 1997. Members of DCPC have served as DHC Board members, been stalwart donors for decades, and provided a steady source of in-kind support as volunteers.
You may have seen a recent press release announcing a major grant we’ve just received from DCPC, as part of its Opening Doors capital campaign. The proceeds will literally put new roofs over the heads of residents in our Bungalows rental community. In keeping with the nature of our enduring relationship with the congregation, DCPC stepped up and stepped in, quietly but powerfully, to help fill a potential vacuum.
Neighbors linking arms with neighbors.
The will to be productive with and for each other runs strong in the veins of our shared Davidson community. It shows up in ways small and large—from figuring out where to sit during the workday to how we each invest in and deepen the quality of life enjoyed by everyone in Davidson.
DHC has another community block party coming up on Thursday, June 5. Between now and then, I’ll be using this space to celebrate the many neighbors DHC calls partners . . .
. . . because, above all, relationships matter.