Community2gether (formerly Community 2000) is creating a series of articles about our Town of Warwick including the three villages and every hamlet.
Our goal is to activate us all to support each other, our Town and the businesses in our Town.
We hope these articles are thought-provoking and launch discussions to help bring us out of this pandemic.
Do you remember the first time you came to Warwick? Or if you were born and raised in Warwick, do you remember being away for a while and then how you felt when you came back to Warwick. Those early thoughts and experiences need to be cherished and considered now more than ever. Because those thoughts of the extraordinary value of Warwick need to be foremost in our thinking. They can be our foundation of reactivation.
Warwick is unique because of each of us who live and work here. It is our presence in town, our participation and our support of each other, our institutions, our main streets, parks, farms and of course every business.
Excellent leadership is what’s guided the public and private sectors of Warwick for over 100 years, preserving our history and land.
It has been over 12 weeks or almost one quarter of this year since we have been locked down. We think we’re ready to safely move on.
So, what do we do now? How do we take our lives back from our fear?
We all have learned how to be safe. We have learned and are perfecting social distancing, taking care of ourselves by washing our hands and wearing masks to protect not only ourselves but also those around us and those back home who we love. Those steps we have all taken are proving to be lifesaving and will need to go on based on medical facts.
Each of us can make a list of those events or Spring moments that we have missed in the last three months. Use this list to experience those events in a different way -- if somewhat delayed. That birthday or anniversary gift or graduation present that we were not able to deliver in a timely manner can now be a special surprise. Let’s find a way to secure those items in Florida, Greenwood Lake or Warwick and around the town. Wrap them in a special way and deliver them with pizzazz. Those moments delayed can be rich and long remembered because of the extra effort taken in these extraordinary times
The pandemic has taken our Spring.
It will change our Summer.
It will change our Fall.
But it will not change who we are as citizens of Warwick. Unchanged in this season and always is the overwhelming gratitude and support Warwick has for its first responders, health care workers and volunteers.
It will not change our generosity or our caring for neighbors or our love of this place we call home. In our opinion there is no better place to have been during a lockdown than the Town of Warwick.
Let’s plan to get out safely and support those we value.
(Please share ideas for personal stories about what you have been doing to stay sane during this pandemic or perspectives for this series. Contact Patricia McMillan at patricia@community2gether.com.)