They say that it isn’t your successes in life that matter. It’s how to rebound from setbacks. The same truism could be applied to communities. Towns, cities, counties, regions—all communities face tough challenges. The thing that makes an “All-America City” is the ability to bounce back when challenges arise.

Downey, California, a finalist in the 2011 All-America City Awards, boasts of being the home of the first Taco Bell and the oldest existing McDonald’s. It was also, for several decades, the home of NASA’s main production plant for the Apollo, Skylab and Space Shuttle Programs. In its heyday, the NASA site employed more than 20,000 people, many earning higher than average salaries. In 1999, the federal government declared the plant a “surplus” site.

Downey is a city of about 110,000 in south east LA County. It prides itself on being a diverse community that, despite being in the heart of a huge metropolitan region, retains an air of small town friendliness. But the 1990s were tough times for many Southern California communities whose economies were based on the military or on the aerospace industry.

Tens of thousands of jobs were lost in what most of us viewed as a peace dividend from the ending of the Cold War. But some cities were better than others of rebounding from the economic transition and finding new ways of bringing in jobs. Downey was one of those.

Instead of waiting for the federal government to clean up the site and auction it off to some commercial real estate developer, the city decided to buy the land itself and expedite the process of turning a potential liability into an economic magnet.

The question was: what to do next? The City of Downey was now the proud owner of a 160 acre empty space with a serious problem of contaminated soil and groundwater thanks to its long time industrial use.

The city partnered with the federal General Services Administration and a private environmental remediation company to cleanup the site. The partners took an innovative approach. The city was allowed to take the sales proceeds paid for the property toward cleaning it up. Putting together an approved clean-up plan for the site was instrumental in getting state sign-off on an early approval of the transfer of the site from federal to city hands.

The expedited clean-up process allowed the city to start finding business to open up shop at the old NASA site. The first was Kaiser Permanente, which bought 30 acres for a new state of the art hospital, a medical center that now employs about 3,000 people. Next was a partnership with a media group to create an 80 acre-production facility, Downey Studios. Some of the films produced there were Terminator III and the Ironman movies. Another 30 acres went for a commercial/ retail development.

In 2007, Downey won a Phoenix Award from the EPA, an award given to groups and individuals who do an exemplary job of environmental clean-up, reuse and redevelopment of an environmentally damaged site.

In 2009, the Columbia Memorial Space Center opened its doors and became a regular stop for school field trips to teach students and others who want to learn more about the space program and Downey’s historic role in it.

The NASA site reuse deal was one of three community projects listed by Downey in its application for an All-America City Award. The other two projects were the “GOOD” program (Gangs Out of Downey) and the Keep Downey Beautiful initiative, an effort by the city public works department to enlist young residents in efforts to clean-up litter, eliminate graffiti, pull weeds and learn about the local environment and how to keep the water supply clean.

You probably know of other communities that have lost a major employer and found innovative ways of replacing the lost jobs. What did they do to overcome the tough times and bring in new jobs and economic activity? Fill in the box below to let us know about those examples.

Happy holidays!

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Mike McGrath is senior editor and chief information officer for the National Civic League. A former newspaper reporter and magazine writer, he is editor of the quarterly National Civic Review, which will be beginning its centennial year of publishing this spring.

Mike’s posts will appear every Thursday on the State of the Re:Union website.

The Waldorf School of the Peninsula in Los Altos, California

Look around and one is sure to find a student tethered to some technical device. School-aged children seemed to always be “connectied” through technology in almost any given situation. Realizing this, many schools and districts in America are marrying lessons and curriculum with technology. As this is becoming a common tool and approach for learning, one school is taking a decidedly different avenue regarding technology and tradition, and how these being used in student learning. To explore more on this story, School Spotlight takes us to the Waldorf School of the Peninsula in Los Altos, California. (Click on clip below to see the story.)

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In traditional school-style, a child will graduate from one class up to the next grade with each passing year. However, at the Waldorf School, one teacher stays with the same students from kindergarten to eighth grade. According to the article, “It’s the Waldorf Way.”

All Waldorf teachers would agree that this style of teaching allows the teacher intimate knowledge of each child’s learning habits, strengths and weaknesses, therefore allowing better focus on those areas students need more help in. They also say that this style of learning helps them establish strong bonds with their students, alleviating the need for tests or grades. The article records one teacher as stating, “I know their strengths, I know their weaknesses. I know what will be hard for them and where they will shine. I’m their teacher with a capital ‘t.’” Perhaps this student-teacher bond is one reason that students, and school alike, are thriving with a nearly perfect graduation rate.

One other such reason might also be the approach to technology used by the Waldorf School and its staff. Here, computers are used not at all in elementary grades, and sparingly by high school students. They are not anti-technology, but they do believe that it can interfere with student engagement. These teachers believe this enables good teachers to use their skills of good teaching to educate. Students of Waldorf echo that sentiment and become easily annoyed with their peers who cannot get “unplugged” to have a 30 minute one-on-one conversation, and instead are visiting social sites and using texts to converse.

A valid point made by one Waldorf senior student is that today’s gadgets are designed for ease of operation by anyone who attempts to use it, therefore they can figure out technology when the moment calls for it. According to the article, a former graduate of Waldorf, now a freshman in college, states “A Waldorf education gives you a foundation to say, ‘OK, I can put my phone in my bag. I can have a half-an-hour conversation with a person. I don’t need to be totally connected all the time.’ And that’s more valuable for making personal connections that will last longer than the next text you’re going to get.”

She also shares her preference for taking notes in her classes by hand, and entering them into the computer afterward. It is a helpful tool in studying instead of an easy distraction in class (as she sees is the case with most students using computers to “take notes.” She says many of the screens display social sites, not notes.).

Parents of students enrolled in at Waldorf appreciate the affinity and core values their children develop for education. They see the foundation being formed and know that is what will stay will them. Computers are a tool to add to this success.

Of course, this is not to say this formula of breaking tradition and avoiding technology is the solution for all, but it has yielded fantastic results for the Waldorf School. Again, there is not going to be a one-size-fits-all answer for schools of a nation this vast and diverse. There might be schools who are extremely technology-driven, yielding fantastic results because of it. We are all different in how we learn, and we want to know some of those differences that are working for your school and communities. Use the box below to tell us what is working to make a difference in your educational system.

As we are nearing the end of what has been an extremely eventful year, State of the Re:Union would like to recall some of the fantastic adventures and captivating stories shared, and the wonderful people we encountered along the way. The spring episodes took SOTRU to visit and explore rich stories in:

• Las Vegas, Nevada: we find more than just bright lights and glitter here – like an underground tunnel community formed by the homeless, de facto community centers, “the ninth island,” and Uberschall.
• Miami, Florida – we learn of Miami’s cultural diversity, Little Latin America, 1st and Alton – a Haitian rescue mission, and meet  The Spam Allstars.
• Birmingham, Alabama: we see how people are still wrestling with desegregation, the Hispanic cultural is pouring in, and “The Giving Effect” – one woman’s gamble to provide a music program for underprivileged children is paying off.
• Oakland, California: we explore the cost of people dreaming big in Oakland, the hip-hop renaissance, and how different cultural communities are overcoming tensions to unite.
• Utica, New York: we see how refugees are reviving Utica and making it known through food and culture, and what a jam band, a monk, a revolution and a New York home have in common.

The fall episodes take us coast to coast and allow an intimate look at communities facing various issues affecting many people, and the solutions that helped to further unify their communities:

• Cleveland, Ohio: we find how a new generation of entrepreneurs are reviving the city through education, beer and the environment, an inside mountain biking range, and other plans to save their town.
• Sacramento, California: we see how residents are remaking their beloved American city through rescuing a city’s favorite park, trying to keep their beloved Kings, and why communities are connecting despite deep divides.
• The Mississippi Gulf Coast: we learn how residents unite to deal with the aftershocks of disasters – both nature and man-made, about Turkey Creek, and the life-altering struggles some residents are facing as a result of the disasters.
• The Bronx, New York: we meet determined residents and learn of their roles in taking back their city, including a teen mentor helping to inform teens about HIV, to a teacher who is keeping teens off the street with a new international music scene, to some fun-loving Franciscan friars helping the community.
• Wyoming: we learn how people are adapting to the New Old West, how Bibles and beer work together to unite people, what fracking is and the havoc it is wreaking, from the land to lives.

All of the stories featured in this season’s episodes have made an incredible impact, not just in the lives of those telling them, but in the lives of those who have heard them. In the Birmingham episode, Jeane Goforth told her story of making a difference in the lives of school children by cashing in her life savings and starting a music program for underprivileged and underfunded schools. Incredibly, but not surprisingly, some of our listeners jumped into action, and soon, Jeane’s program began receiving instruments and donations from all over our country.

The Wyoming episode took us to the southern part of Wyoming and explored the ill-effects fracking – a process used by some companies to extract oil and gas – was having on the community. After the episode aired in the fall, the EPA began a deeper investigation into the effects of fracking in consumable water. Coincidence?

The stories we covered have produced some interesting feedback and provided additional avenues that are helping other communities find solutions. We would love to know some of your favorite moments from this season. Use the box below to tell us what they are and why you think those moments stay with you.

Although Thanksgiving is widely acclaimed as a day of feasts, family, friends, fun and football (the five F’s of Thanksgiving, but that is another post), it is important to remember that the first Thanksgiving was truly all about community. In SOTRU fashion, we would like to honor some organizations and communities embracing and perpetuating the spirit of the oldest American holiday tradition.

• Some folks at The Giving Heart organization in Richmond, Virginia, will celebrate Thanksgiving with The Giving Heart Community Thanksgiving Feast. Everyone in the greater Richmond area is invited, but a special invitation is sent “to the less fortunate, the elderly and those who would otherwise spend Thanksgiving alone.” At the end of this holiday feast, guests will be given a floral arrangement commemorating their celebration and have the opportunity to pick up a few necessities for staying warm, including a Giving Bag, consisting of “toiletries and other essential items that are created by many” in their community.

• Equinox Inc., a community service organization out of Albany, New York, will be hosting its 42nd Annual Equinox Thanksgiving Day Community Dinner. This long-standing tradition originally started in 1969, feeding 200 college students who were without family. Whether it is at a designated community location, or delivered straight to their door, today, more than 8,000 individuals who are lonely, homebound or homeless neighbors are served. This is truly a community-led effort, enlisting the help of around 3,000 community volunteers who make this day possible. “The Equinox Thanksgiving Community Dinner is funded entirely by generous donations from local businesses, civic groups, and private citizens. Cash, food, trucks, tables and chairs, cell phones, serving dishes, linens, aprons, soap, towels, and advertising are matched by the valuable help of our volunteers. Equinox is the coordinating and sponsoring agency. All surplus donations are used to assist needy families throughout the year.”

• And in Santa Monica, California, the Westside Thanksgiving Community Dinner and Celebration hosts a day filled with surprises, giving families and community members a lot of reasons to be thankful. “The Celebration is open to everyone. No reservations are necessary… just come to the 
Santa Monica Civic Auditorium on Thanksgiving day.  Dinner from 11am – 3pm.” But it doesn’t stop at dinner. All can participate in a day of free services that include: Thanksgiving Dinner, Children’s Entertainment, Basic Medical Consultation, Clothing Distribution, Haircuts, and Basic Eye Exams.

Kudos to these communities who practice the foundations of what Thanksgiving was first based upon: friendship, caring, sharing and being good stewards of humankind. During these times that are so often overwhelming and harrowing, communities such as these have become a mecca to American tradition. Thank you for your sacrifices, kindness, and caring. Thank you for your shining example of subservience, strength and leadership. And most of all, thank you for restoring a bit of  faith that some individuals have been working hard to chip away at. For this, we should all give thanks.

The Making of “Sacramento”

Get a behind the scenes look at the making of a State of the Re:Union episode.

This video takes us to Sacramento, California. There’s no over-estimating the love fans here feel for their Sacramento Kings, one of the city’s few big attractions.  But last winter, the King’s owners put in motion a plan to move the team down to Anaheim, and fans here reacted more powerfully than anyone could have imagined.  We follow the ups and downs as the dramatic—and possibly final—Kings season unfolds.  You’ll get a firsthand look at just what goes into quilting together pieces of an episode to create an hour of radio storytelling, and what makes Al tick (sweet potatoes from Boston Market, for one.).

All Hands on Deck

There’s been a lot of bad news coming out of Sacramento lately: homelessness, the foreclosure rate, unemployment, political gridlock in a state crippled by the recession.  Add to that a stubborn case of politics fatigue, and you’ve got a lot of reasons to write off this city.  But we trekked to California’s beleaguered state capital to peek behind the national headlines and find out who keeps this city running—day in, day out—despite all that’s going wrong.  And we left with the realization that people in Sacramento are remaking the American city, in surprising and deeply moving ways.

For instance, after severe budget cuts jeopardize Sacramento’s biggest and best-loved park, a fifth grader masterminds a solution to help save it.

We follow the emotional ups and downs of die-hard fans as the threat to move their beloved basketball team, the Sacramento Kings, unites them as a community with one voice and cause. Also, Explore Sacramento’s tent city, and the people working to find innovative solutions to assist in resolving this crisis spanning many years. Al will give you a guided tour of all of these things involving facets of survival and community helping to bridge a divided community.

To find out more how the story unfolds, listen to the full episode of Sacramento, CA: All Hands on Deck.