Los Gatos, California Since1881
Editorial
| Back when women kept the home fires burning,and men went to work at 9 and came home at 5,there was plenty of time and motivation forpeople to be involved in a wide range ofactivities from school and church to localgovernment. Ever since women jumped into the workforce,and "24/7" became an appropriate descriptionfor the average work week, however, theentire sector of the community that hasdepended on volunteer effort has been shakenup. Many nonprofit organizations have had tolearn that survival meant learning to beflexible, working around the schedules ofpotential volunteers rather than expectingbusy people to work around the schedules ofvolunteer organizations. Many youthorganization that once met after school, forinstance, now meet in the evening whenleaders are available. Volunteer organizations are often called uponto recruit volunteers with as much skill andpurpose as an employer recruiting skilledprofessionals. Busy people, it turns out, arewilling to be involved - so long as they feeltheir time is not being wasted and that theirassignment is meaningful. Few people thesedays are looking for volunteer work to keepthem busy, and if they do volunteer theirtime, they want to feel their time is wellspent. Over the past few years, those who worryabout such things began wondering who wouldbe the commissioners and council members, themuseum docents, service club members andschool volunteers of the future. Communityservice was once second nature to many smalltown residents, but that seems a lot to askwith everyone working so hard to keep theirheads above water. Now Los Gatos has learned what other citieshave discovered: The best way to assure thatthere will be leaders tomorrow is to trainthem today. When the Town of Los Gatos Chamber ofCommerce teamed up with the town to offerLeadership Los Gatos, no one really knew whatthe interest level would be. The goal was aworthy one: to teach prospective communityleaders how the town works in the hope thatmany of those in the class would want to getinvolved in some aspect of thecommunity. This month, the inaugural class, some 22students strong, graduated even moreenthusiastic than when the program started 10months ago. Using models developed in other cities, andtailored for the local community, the Chamberand the town broke down the workings of thecommunity into its component parts and showedhow each part contributes to the whole. It's often said that if people aren't happywith the way things are, they should getinvolved. But the busier people are withtheir jobs and their families, the harder itis to see the place where they can jump inand make a difference. Leadership Los Gatoshelps illuminate the way by exposing itsstudents to the varied elements of thecommunity. And now 22 Los Gatans have a goodunderstanding of how they can make adifference. |
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