If you believe our country is irrevocably broken and everyone is only out for themselves, you need to look no further than the Clearwater community to change your mind.

What is a community? Merriam-Webster defines it as “a unified body of individuals living in a particular area.” However, I believe community goes much deeper than that.

Community is not a place, a building, or an organization, it’s people. Each of us is a unique individual, but we are often looking for the same things and are working toward the same goals.

This leads to communities that are complex, yet compelling.

My definition of community is a group of individuals who collectively care for each other, helping those who are in need, and acting together for the greater good. Community holds you accountable to see the humanity in everyone and to take responsibility for making your little part of the world a better place for everybody.

This is a perfect definition of what I’ve witnessed in the Clearwater community over the past year. People working together to help others. Although this has been exemplified in numerous ways, it’s been most noticeable to me in the amount of money raised by local fundraisers.

Like most people, I’ve been to many fundraisers over the years and have seen a lot of good accomplished through their efforts. But I’ve been blown away by what I’ve witnessed in Clearwater this past year. In just seven months there were nine fundraiser events I personally attended. For a while it felt like there was a fundraiser going on every couple of weeks.

And I’m not including the large amount of money raised and donated by the Clearwater Lions. Along with providing funds to numerous other entities, in the past year they donated $25,000 each to the Clearwater Fire Dept. and the Clearwater/Clear Lake Food Shelf and purchased and installed an AED (automated external defibrillator) at the Lions Building.

From motorcycle runs, raffles, and silent auctions, to barbequed ribs, spaghetti, and lutefisk, Clearwater has had it all. Two churches, four organizations, one business, and one group of individuals have all held fundraisers in the past seven months, and there’s likely more that I’m not aware of.

The Clearwater community stepped up in an incredibly generous way at each of these fundraisers. The majority of the organizers shared with me the total amount that was raised, and each of them met or beat their goals.

That’s incredible. Despite high inflation and the money problems many people are facing, members of the Clearwater community still reached deep into their pockets and came through.

I’ve never seen anything like it, and I’ve heard the same sentiment from many others. It reminds me of the saying ‘it takes a village,’ because it truly does. People coming together to help, support, honor, and celebrate. Through all of the highs and lows in our lives, the good times and bad times, the bond of community helps us feel better together instead of alone.

I’m proud to be part of the extraordinary Clearwater community.

People feel connected with one another when they feel they’re part of a community. Members of a community have a sense of trust, belonging, safety, and caring for each other. They have an individual and collective sense that they can, as part of that community, influence their environments and each other.

Communities are powerful – they’re what holds us together and makes us strong. We’re better together even when we don’t agree with each other. If we can start connecting our individual communities into a whole our country will be unstoppable.