Deborah Mohlenhoff

On June 1, 2010, several members of the community came together at Calvary Baptist Church in Ithaca to update community members with information on several current intiatives. The initial forum, held in March, was in response to the tragic death of Shawn Greenwood.

Closing out the evening, Cal Walker, provided us all with 6 things that we each can do as community members to continue moving our community forward and to ensure that all of our voices are heard.

I thought the 6 things were simple items that we all should be reminded of and that if we each took the time to do even one item from the list, we would certainly being to see things change for the better.

As Cal so eloquently stated, "People make the difference."

Here is the list:

1. Ithaca Journal Story Chat comments: when you encounter a comment that you feel is offensive or inflammatory, register yourself as a user on the Ithaca Journal website and flag the comment for removal.

2. Participate in Government: attend Common Council or Tompkins County Legislature Meetings. Either participate in the public comment portion of the meetings to voice your concern or opinion - or simply be present at them, so we know you are out there.

City of Ithaca, Common Council: meets the first Wednesday of every month on the 3rd floor of City Hall (108 East Green St.) in Council Chambers at 6pm. Click THIS LINK for agendas and information.

Tompkins County, Legislature: meets the first and third Tuesday of each month at 5:30 p.m. on the second floor of the County Courthouse, 320 North Tioga Street, Ithaca, NY. Click THIS LINK for agendas and information.

3. VOTE: Register to vote, and then vote, in every local election. Voter registration information can be found at THIS LINK.

4. Jury Summons: As difficult as it might be, whenver possible, answer your jury summons. We need diverse representation on juries as crucial local decisions are made.

5. Local Food Survey: With the unfortunate closure of the P&C on Hancock street, several community members are looking at alternative uses of that space. To give your feedback, fill out THIS SURVEY. You can print it out and drop it at any of the listed locations.

6. Keep Informed: Follow postings at this website, created by the working group "Community Leaders of Color" - CLOC. Here they will continue to post updated community information, status reports on initiatives, and additional ways for us all to remain involved.

Thank you to everyone that participated, and faciliated, this event.