Heart & Soul Statements Adopted in Bellevue, Bucksport, and Galesburg
The start of 2018 marked a milestone for three Community Heart & Soul® towns. City councils in Bellevue, Iowa, Bucksport, Maine, and Galesburg, Illinois, adopted Heart & Soul Statements.
Heart & Soul Statements are the culmination of extensive engagement work done in the early phases of a Heart & Soul project and put down in writing what matters most to residents. These statements then inform additional engagement as residents form an Action Plan and make decisions into the future. In adopting the statements, the leaders not only recognized the hard work of Community Heart & Soul teams, they acknowledged the importance of decision-making based on what the entire community most values.
- In Galesburg, the city council plans to prominently post the statements on the front and back walls of the Council Chambers in City Hall, so elected leaders can easily refer to them when making decisions.
- Bellevue’s mayor issued a proclamation recognizing Bellevue Heart & Soul and the discovery of what matters most to the residents of Bellevue that read in part: “… Therefore I do hereby proclaim as follows: That the following statements have been identified as deeply shared values that provide insight as to what matters most to Bellevue residents, providing meaningful guidance to the City Council and other local decision-makers when faced with important community decisions.”
- In Bucksport, the Town Council adopted a resolution that read: “Whereas, the Town Council finds that adoption of the Community Heart & Soul Statements will provide guidance in the preparation of future policy and strategic plans of the Town, as well as operational and investment decisions. Therefore be it resolved, by the Town Council of the Town of Bucksport, Approve and adopt the Community Heart & Soul Statements, listed herein, and commit to using them to evaluate decisions in preparation of future policy, strategic plans, and operational and investment decisions.”
Read each town’s statements here:
Bucksport Heart & Soul Statements
