New initiative aims to build community

“Connecting community is really about just that, finding ways to connect people and to tell different stories. Storytelling is a great way to get to know people in more than just a surface kind of way,” said Leslie Jerry Community inclusion coordinator for the City of Medicine Hat.

Posters are on display at City Hall, the Family Leisure Centre and the Esplanade Arts and Heritage Centre.

Maxine Tindle is featured on one of the posters at the Family Leisure Centre. She’s been in a wheelchair for two years and hopes the program will help reduce the stigma surrounding people with disabilities.

“ I want people to see people with a disability to see them as a person not as a disabled person, just as a regular person and help them become independent and just help them to adjust and help them have people just treat them like an able-bodied person instead of disabled person,” she said.

“People get yelled at just because you are sitting in a wheelchair, people think you are deaf. You’re not, and they do and they don’t have patience, they don’t have the patience for you,” she added.

To highlight the diversity in the city, the public can also weigh in and participate through social media by using the hashtag #imahatter.

A series of videos will also be produced showcasing Hatters and their unique stories.

The next video will be shot Oct. 27.

Residents who are interested in participating in a video can contact Leslie at 403-502-8086 or by email at lesjer@medicinehat.ca

by Tiffany Goodwein

New initiative aims to build community

Our Community