The Stories Before the Stories We spend a lot of time talking about outcomes in community building. What we don't often hear are the strange and unexpected chains of events that made them happen in the first place. For me, it’s unexpected conversations in unexpected...
Hub Happenings in the Groveton / Lancaster / Littleton Region
Previous Events
The Magic of Letting Go
Lately, I keep coming back to one thing: when we trust young people, really trust them, something shifts. In late December, the Spartans on a Mission (SOAM), a group of 9th–12th graders, had no plan other than to simply show up at the Country Village Nursing Home in...
North Country Youth Summit
High school students from across the North Country are invited to the first-ever North Country Youth Coalition meeting — a youth-led space to connect, share ideas, and create real change. Students will work in teams during a Shark Tank–style pitch challenge to design...
Back to the 80’s, Forward Together
Whitefield’s 3rd Annual 80’s Day showed the power of nostalgia, connection, and the staying power of community, alongside a summer filled with music, dancing, and new leaders stepping up. Nostalgia gave us common ground: music, laughter, and plenty of “remember...
The Power of Yes
Sometimes, the biggest changes in a community don’t start with a plan or a meeting. They start with one simple word: yes. When someone says yes to trying something new, it creates ripples. One yes turns into another, and suddenly, what seemed small begins to reshape a...
Freeze the Water Bring the People
Neighbors in Whitefield were thrilled when the famous ice rink on the Common was brought back to life this winter! The rink has become a tradition and a sense of pride for residents. However, due to weather and volunteer scarcity, the Common sat iceless for many...
Latin Beats and Eats: A Celebration of Culture, Community, and Connection
This year’s Latin Beats and Eats event was something truly special. We gathered at The Loading Dock in Littleton, where people from 10 different Latin countries came together to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with the sounds of merengue and bachata, delicious food,...
From Neighborly Chat to Community Success
A serendipitous meeting with a North Country neighbor led to the beginning of our Homestead Classes in Groveton. A question we begin with here at the Hub is "Did a neighbor ask for it?" In this case the answer is yes! Kayla Leighton a young homesteader and farmer...
Coffee on the Common
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Kick Up Your Boots: Country Line Dance Nights Return to Lancaster!
Hosted at the Lancaster Motel every other Wednesday, this event doesn't disappoint. It’s a fantastic evening of music, dance, and camaraderie. The best part? It's entirely free! But here's the twist, all donations go towards Cigars for Warriors. Leading the way and...
Hey I know someone you should talk to!
Hey, I Know Someone You Should Talk To!
I say this more than I realize. Someone tells me about an idea, a problem they’re trying to solve or something they’d love to see happen in their community, and my brain immediately starts flipping through its Rolodex. “Hey, I know someone you should talk to!” And boom, a connection is made.
One of my favorite parts about this work is getting to meet strangers, hear their stories, learn what they’re passionate about and introduce them to someone who can help. Over the past few months, I’ve had plenty of opportunities to do just that.
There have been many conversations about food resources. Who’s doing what? Where are the gaps? Could a church, a neighbor or an organization help connect people with what’s already available? Often the first step isn’t creating something new, it’s finding out who else is working on the same thing.
Then there are the young people! Working with Spartans on a Mission and the Fri-Yay Youth Summit has been a reminder that kids have some pretty rad ideas. But having an idea and making it happen are two different things and that’s where knowing people comes in. Who has a space? Who knows how to build something? Who might have a resource, a skill or some time to share, who’s willing to listen to what these kids have to say?
I’ve seen the same thing with the Anyone Guitar Jam and the Humpday Hoedown in Lancaster along with Latin Beats and Eats in Littleton. People come for music, food, dancing or just something to do, but they also meet neighbors they might never have crossed paths with otherwise. Sometimes what comes from those conversations won’t surface until much later.
For example, I met a woman from the Dominican Republic in Littleton while volunteering at LAMA (Littleton Area Mutual Aid). I told her about Latin Beats and Eats and explained that one of our organizers is married to someone from the same place! A month later she showed up at the event! I looked over at one point and saw the two of them sitting on the couch chatting away. Sometimes what surfaces isn’t some grand idea, but a simple moment of connection, and that is enough.
I think we sometimes underestimate how much we already have in the North Country. There are plenty of people who know things, make things, fix things, organize things and care about things but the trick is getting them together.
We are all super connectors in our own ways, which makes it sound like we should all have capes! For me, I’ve always been wicked curious about people, and I tend to remember who said what. So if we happen to strike up a conversation and I suddenly say, “Hey, I know someone you should talk to,” don’t be surprised. I probably do.