Resilience is the ability to bounce back from difficulties. This is an important quality because it helps us to develop ways of protecting ourselves from experiences that could otherwise be overwhelming or damaging. A resilient community can maintain a sense of balance and well-being and will find solutions to problems. Being resilient is what we all need to be in these strange times.
Luckily, the people of Frome seem to have resilience running right through them. Take the wonderful ‘Gateway Club’ and ‘OpenStoryTellers’. Both work with adults who need support. Skilled volunteers go to great lengths to create confident people who can take part in our community. For example, OpenStoryTellers have created a lovely sensory garden from a small derelict yard – they saw an opportunity and made it happen. Elsewhere the Community Fridge now has a Community Larder thanks to the pioneering efforts of a few volunteers who salvaged materials and created something amazing. The larder will save an extra 6,000 food items a year from the waste dump.
Last week Trinity Community Group organized a meeting. About 70 residents turned up to discuss important issues such as anti social behavior and speeding drivers. Local police, fire and housing associations went along too. It was a constructive meeting with not a single angry word spoken and some very practical solutions were put forward. Even a dreadful building fire, which left 8 people temporarily homeless, saw a terrific public response. Offers of financial help, clothing and food poured in to the Town Hall and Fair Frome. The public rose to the challenge once again.
This is a town that thrives on social support and interaction. Mistakes will happen but problems can be an enjoyable learning process. Times are indeed a changing, but with resilience like this Frome can weather the storms ahead.
