Many of you have seen me in my many community incarnations throughout the years. I’ve been a lector, a director, a Committee Chair, a trustee, a Cubmaster, an Assistant Scoutmaster, a Board Member, a coach, a mentor, a community representative, and who knows what else in the various community organizations I have been so blessed to have been allowed to participate in. My favorite role, however, was simply that of “member.” In serving at that capacity – and much to the chagrin of group organizers everywhere (are you reading this Renee?) – I often delighted in playing the role of gadfly. It was so much fun. I got to be a free thinker, pulling together lessons learned from all the activities I’ve been a part of to come up with challenging and, hopefully, insightful suggestions. The best part about it: I never demanded people do what I suggested. It was a costless exchange of ideas. (Some might call it “brainstorming.”)

But those tales are for a future commentary. This week explores another favorite topic of our readers (whether they know it or not) – The Andy Griffith Show. OK, so it’s not really Continue Reading “How to Create an Ideal Community in One Word”