Your Opinion: Plan represents collective effort

Dear Editor:

As a resident, small business owner, and young professional in Jefferson City, I have been privileged to be a part of the Jefferson City business community over the last seven years. I am so proud of the citizens here who work tirelessly to better our community, and I have been privileged to be a small part of that effort.

Unfortunately, many of the individual efforts for community improvement in the past have been largely disjointed and under-funded, run by boards of volunteers who have neither the time nor financial resources to make the kinds of impacts they really desire. However, over the last year, I've had the rare opportunity to be inside the Transformation initiative, to see it grow, and develop into a comprehensive plan that will make an enormous impact on Jefferson City.

This initiative represents some of the finest work I've seen from the Jefferson City community. We had hundreds of people researching, countless hours vetting ideas, volunteers from all walks of life adding their ideas and knowledge into this effort. A team of Jefferson City's best and brightest assembled month after month and genuinely devoted themselves to making sure that they did their due diligence for this project.

This plan was created by a large group of Jefferson City citizens, and the sole mission of the group has been to identify projects that are the best possible for the betterment of the community as a whole. Creating the plan was an enormous task, and the implementation will make it look like child's play. However, I believe that Transformation has the ability to be a game-changer for Jefferson City.

So many other communities across the nation are struggling to find ways to remain economically viable, to grow and prosper for their citizens. This is our shot.

Transformation is about utilizing the resources that we have, and creating the resources we need. Transformation is about capitalizing (no pun intended) on our resources right here in Jefferson City, and making the absolute most out of them. It's about breaking the mold and thinking outside of the box. Transformation is about celebrating our history, and bravely grabbing hold of our future as a community.

As a small business owner, a young professional, and a Jefferson City resident, the possibilities are so very exciting, and I can't wait to see Jefferson City Transform!