Bristol Senior-Community Center featured in AARP’s Rural Lab project

AARP’s Rural Lab 2024 project recently reached out to Rodney Carr, Chairperson of the Town of Bristol Improvements Board, inviting them to participate in a meeting on October 9, 2024.  The focus of the Rural Lab project is to focus on designing inclusive spaces.  In the invitation, AARP told Carr “We are very excited by the work you are doing to develop a garden with raised bed planters and ADA-compliant benches as well as a historical mural, veterans memorial and wind sculpture installation at the town’s new community center.  If you are available, you will join a short (20-minute) panel with two other communities participating in Rural Lab 2024.  We will start the panel with brief descriptions by each of you and then follow up with two questions for each of you and then open for questions from your peers in Rural Lab.”

After the presentation, Carr received the following response from AARP: “Many thanks for sharing out on today’s AARP Rural Lab call. I absolutely love it when a community leader takes the group into a deep dive of a successful project to learn about all of the key pieces and the end results. You were fantastic, and we are so happy that we were able to share the story of Bristol, CO today.  Thanks again for taking the time to share about your innovative AARP Community Challenge grant project! “

Carr responded: “Thank you for the kind invitation to present and share our project in Bristol within the AARP Rural Lab platform.  We sincerely appreciate all the kind words and ongoing support! We would also like to say “Thank You” again to AARP Rural Lab and AARP Community Challenge for believing in our vision and supporting this important mission!  Just know AARP’s continued support and ongoing promotional opportunities have opened the door to and bridged securement of so many additional funding avenues.  Because of this, we are forever grateful.

Personally, I feel honored to be a part of AARP Rural Lab.  Participation has allowed me to grow both individually, as well as professionally.  Listening to and experiencing all the unique and wonderful projects across the country truly inspires me and provides hope to other small rural community leaders like myself.  If you will, a sense of belonging, peace and hope knowing we are all striving for the common goal of making our rural livable communities more inclusive for people of all ages.”

Again, “Thank You” for all you do supporting rural communities and for providing this unique uplifting platform showcasing the successes and challenges we all face in rural communities.  AARP Rural Lab provides a forum where we can all work together supporting each other, as we move along this forever-changing journey.”

Because of the number of overwhelming responses from the national presentation with AARP Rural Lab last Wednesday, members of the Bristol project have been invited to attend a deep dive discussion on engaging spaces to share more details and information about the projects and how they secured funding and partnerships for their projects.  This will occur on Wednesday, October 30.

A wealth of information about the Bristol project is on their website: www.bristolcommunityprojectorg or visit them at 101 S Labelle Avenue in Bristol.  They can also be reached by email at bristolcommunityproject@gmailcom

By Barbara Crimond