The following was originally published in the May 12 issue of The Herald Dispatch. For more information, go to www.herald-dispatch.com.

I was working with a team of people on a grant proposal recently. As we were identifying the community’s strengths, I jotted done the following in my notes: “H(untington) = creative, engaged, adaptable, open to change, …” and continued on with the list without thinking. Later in the meeting, as I reviewed my notes to make sure that we had captured all of the salient points, it struck me: I had just described my Huntington as creative, engaged, adaptable, and open to change.

How times are different: I would not have used those terms two years ago. Yet, as I pondered what I had written, those terms do describe my Huntington. They describe my friends and the people with whom I meet, work, and interact regularly. They describe how my life, relationships, and outlook on our City have changed in the last two years.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m neither delusional nor Pollyannaish.  I know that our community faces many challenges and that we would not describe everyone in this area with the terms I used. Still, the people with whom I interact frequently are creative, engaged, and positive. They are more likely to see what can be than what can’t.

Much of this new reality is a result of my involvement in Create Huntington and the Chat ‘n Chews. The Chat ‘n Chews are an incubator for ideas. They are a place where people can offer an idea, knowing that it will be treated respectfully and positively; where the ideas can be nurtured and, with perseverance and effort, result in something that make’s our community stronger and people’s lives richer.

Two recent projects, the Culture Center and CAFÉ Huntington, highlight the ingenuity of our community and the power of what is possible when we match our ideas with energy.

The Culture Center is an effort to establish a place where people from various backgrounds can celebrate their culture, food, dance, history, art and language. It seeks to express the rich diversity of Huntington. Begun just weeks ago, over 100 people have already expressed a desire to participate in the project. Organizers hope to identify a temporary home for the Center this summer and begin holding functions as early as this fall.

CAFÉ Huntington, formerly known as the “Starving Artist Foundation”, has been on a lightning-fast trajectory. The idea was hatched less than two weeks ago and has already garnered an army of support. Organizers hope to officially launch the program in early summer. The goal of the effort is to provide micro-grants to artists and creative projects. To do this, the group will hold monthly dinners, open to everyone. Artists and others may submit grant requests for art projects, community programs, and other creative endeavors. Each dinner guest will make a nominal donation to the group’s grant fund, 100% of which will be given to the artist or project voted on by the dinner guests.

These projects are not alone. To date, volunteers working on projects they care about through Create Huntington have born over 80 projects. Some, such as the effort to improve access to recycling or to establish a dog park, have made enormous progress through perseverance and patience. Others, such as Trees for Tomorrow, the West Virginia 5K Championship and the formation of the Jewell City Kickball League, shot off like rockets.

All of the projects share one thing: a spark, an idea; offered by a person and supported by a group of interested, engaged volunteers. I invite you to see Huntington through our eyes, to get involved with positive, engaged people, and to begin creating a quality of life in Huntington that will be a magnate for others. Join your friends at the Create Huntington Chat ‘n Chews, held 5:30 – 7:00 pm, every Thursday in the lobby of the Frederick Building, 940 Fourth Avenue.