Never Underestimate . . .

Introducing Citizens for The Dunwoody Community Garden from Pattie Baker on Vimeo.

Click on the video above and meet Rebecca Barria. Three weeks ago I didn't know her at all. As of today, I have stood in two different unloved, unused fields with her in the blazing sun for hours, along with a variety of other people from a city council member to non-profit leaders to a county government expert to a retired corporate exec and a U.S. serviceman. Dozens of emails among dozens of people have been exchanged. Much research and many conversations have happened. And a flicker of an idea has officially grown into a flame.

You see, Rebecca Barria just wants a community garden. Yes, yes, she knows Dekalb County still owns Brook Run but wonders if it could still be created there anyway, and she is willing to do the legwork involved to make it happen. She already has more support than you can imagine (see list in first paragraph of people who have stood in fields with her). She now needs your support. Email Rebecca at dunwoodygarden@gmail.com to get involved with the Citizens for the Dunwoody Community Garden. This actually can happen this year in Dunwoody, if enough people believe in it enough to get involved. And, no you don't have to be a gardener. Lots of first-time gardeners join community gardens, plus many people get involved just to help get the garden going or because they have some materials they can donate (fencing, mulch, cedar for raised beds, tools, etc.)

But this post is not just about Rebecca and the Dunwoody Community Garden. It's about other people like Rebecca, who have unachievable ideas and set out to achieve them.

* It's about people who are tired of waiting for a walking/jogging path so they are making one themselves.

* It's about a person who almost lost his wife and committed to raise enough money to equip every police car in Dunwoody with defribillators, and is well on his way.

* It's about a group of moms who are spearheading the first organic vegetable garden at a school in Dunwoody. (That would be Vanderlyn--please email me if there are definite plans for organic vegetable gardens at any other school for this fall).

* It's about Independence Day tomorrow and how this country and this city were founded by people who had some new, innovative ideas and then made them reality.

* It's about a suburb of Atlanta, now the City of Dunwoody, that somehow created the largest Fourth of July parade in the state of Georgia.

* And, ultimately, it's about one of my favorite quotes in the world:

"Never underestimate the power of a small group of committed people to change the world. In fact, it is the only thing that ever has." (Margaret Mead)

This Independence Day, set yourself free. Dare to dream a little. And believe what is being proven as true, over and over again here in one of the newest cities in the United States of America: Together, we can achieve whatever we believe is possible.