Don't move - get involved

A few people have commented recently on this website that they wanted to move from Minonk for one reason or another. Their comments made me think about how I felt about Minonk when I was a young lad growing up here.

Like many young people raised in the idylic 1950's I couldn't wait to get out of Minonk and see the world. And I did! After graduating from college I lived in Chicago, Europe, Massachusetts, Texas, California, New York City, and Kentucky before returning home to roost in Minonk 35 years ago. When I lived in Massachusetts I had a hard time adjusting to what I thought were an inordinate number of cloudy days. I concluded that the Northeast was not the place for me and I started to blame the problems I had on the fact that I was living in an undesirable area. What I failed to realize at the time is that after living a carefree life of traveling in Europe for a year, I could have returned to live in Shangri-La and still have been depressed.

The point of all this is that too often we blame a place for our problems rather than looking further into ourselves and see what is really bugging us. There may be legitimate reasons for wanting to leave a place but don't expect your problems to disappear when you move to another place. As long as you have to take yourself with you to another place you may still have to deal with those same problems.

It is a common lament of newcomers to a small community to complain about not being accepted. Smaller communities are usually closer knit than larger communities and sometimes it can be hard to become accepted. However, it can be done and has been done. Some of our most active community leaders moved here from somewhere else including our mayor and the head of our Fourth of July committee.

I shudder when people say they hate Minonk. I think Minonk has one of the finest residential areas of any community of its size and is deserving of an appreciative citizenry. I know many of you have complained about your children being abused or mistreated in school. Bullying by students and mistreatment by teachers is not something unique to Minonk. It happened when I was in school and happens everywhere else.

For those who would blame Minonk for their unhappiness, consider this. Illinois has the 5th lowest suicide rate of any state. Also, the highest suicide rate is in the West, land of milk and honey where everyone goes to seek their fortune, while the stodgy old Northeast, where people tend to stay put and nothing changes, has the lowest suicide rate. One could infer from these statistics that suicide rates are inversely related to the quality of your social relationships. So instead of blaming Minonk for your problems, toss aside your inhibitions and preconceived notions and make an effort to get involved in the community. It will raise your recognition and status in the community and make you feel a whole lot better about yourself and your community.

Finally, don't assume the complaints and negativity of the recent comments on this website are giving Minonk a bad image. Rather, it suggests that we live in a vibrant community that takes its issues seriously and want to do something about them. Other communities have similar issues but are probably suffering through them in silence. Where would you rather be?

I have lived in the Minonk Area for almost 6 years now..I enjoy the small town living,where everyone knows everyone,waves or say hi when you go by..You won't fine that in the big cities,I just love the welcome feeling,that Minonk gives,it's just one big welcome mat...

I was born and raised in Minonk and I think it was a great place to grow up. I moved away six years ago to a town that is not much different than Minonk, maybe smaller. Although I hated to leave, I was excited to move somewhere different, meet new people, and develop lasting friendships. The first few people that I met complained about my "new" town and said that they didn't accept newcomers very well. I found that odd, because I kept meeting people who hadn't been here much longer than I had. I soon discovered how wrong they were. I started volunteering at my children's school, became a leader in my son's Boy Scout troop, and coached their T-ball team. Everyone in town knows who I am, and I can name almost all of the kids who go to our school and my husband is now on the Village Board. You are so right about "doing" something to become a part of your community. It reminds me of the saying, be a part of the solution, not the problem.

I have lived here all my life, except the 3 years I was in the Army. While I was in the Army I got to go to big cities and see many things, some of them I really could not understand. I was in this city and I saw people sleeping in doorways and I am talking about kids too. Growing up in Minonk you never saw this kind of thing because friends, family, or just neibors would not let this happen. Everyone looks out for each other here and you do not have the same kinds of things to worry about. I have always loved this town, but I did find a way to make it better to at least me, I now get involved and help out. I would rather be in this small town with all it's problems than in a big city with none.

I have lived in Minonk all my life, with the exception of 3yrs. I can not tell you how many times I have had out of town people tell me how friendly this town is. They got such a kick out being able to drive around Minonk and get every person they saw to wave at them. To them that was "weird". To me that is normal. Minonk has always been like that and its a feature I have come to love. Your never going to be able to move away from town gossip, or anything else you seek to get away from. You think Minonk is the only place like that. Think again.

The first day we moved to Minonk so many people were driving by, and we know, just checking out the new family moving in. They were very nice and went slow and waved at us as we were moving things in. Some were very nice and introduced themselves to us and welcomed us to Minonk. When we finally laid our heads down for the night which was almost 3:00 am we said, "listen how quiet it is" and at 3:00 the chruch bells rang 3 times and it made us both feel so at peace. We have had our ups and downs with the school and how the consolidation went and with some of the past administration. Enough so that we at one time had our house up for sale. Well I am glad it didn't sell and we are very happy with how the school system is back on a track and now feel again that we are at peace here at "home". What a beautiful, peaceful and safe town it has been to raise our family. We thank you Minonk,the Zimmerman family

I too, thought I would go out and conquer the world as a young "know it all." However, like Dorothy, I realized, "there's no place like home!" When we decided to start a family, we knew there was no other place around that we would want to raise our children. The small community really has it made over a larger community; many of us do not realize how lucky we are. We know our neighbors, the people down the street, etc. and we feel comfortable. I agree with everything you've written, and could go on and on too----but you have a word limit. Kudos on a well written editorial!

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