Community Better Challenge - Cochrane SPARkLErs Series: Episode 5
AUDIO FILE - LISTEN HERE
We’re very excited to be interviewing Mitchell Hamm, the Director of Community Services for Cochrane.
Could you tell us a little bit about your role? Maybe first tell us about yourself and how you came into this role as well as any activities/sports that you enjoyed growing up?
I joined Cochrane back in February, filling a gap that was present in the community services portfolio. I’ve been taking the opportunity over the last five months to enjoy building relationships and meeting people in the community. I’m really impressed with the incredible amount of volunteerism, the incredible amount of input that people want to put in with the portfolio because it’s felt like it has been sitting absent for a very long time - so that plays to my strengths, consensus building, relationship building is where I really flourish.
Touching on the second half of your question, I kind of grew up in the area, Cochrane and the Foothills have always been a special place for me. I grew up in Carstairs, Calgary area, playing any possible sport I could. I would consider the foothills - out of all of the places I’ve traveled in the world - home to me. My wife and I have a young child who we are thrilled to be raising in Cochrane.
I played volleyball at Mount Royal. I’ve played any series of sports, beach volleyball semi-competitively for many years, took basketball and baseball very seriously through high school. Transitioning into my adult life, I’ve been really open to any opportunity. I love picking up any sports, anything that’s a recreational activity, even down to engaging in the trails and pathways in the region.
Within your new role, what are your primary responsibilities?
It’s quite an eclectic range in terms of the portfolio. The portfolio includes community connectivity which includes transit multi mobility i.e. roll scooter, e-bikes, and the colt bus system. And then you move into FCSS (the family community support services) and FRN (family resource network). Both of which are very sophisticated in our community and to an incredible job of advocating for themselves and having an impact on not only this community, but province-wide. We also have the Ranche House event center that the administrative building is in as well as the community events team. We have parks and open spaces which is also transitioning, it’s a very interesting portfolio. Recreation, art, inclusivity, diversity groups are still a work in progress so we’re developing some concepts for what that looks like and the timing for that is really dependent on the council.
The overall vision of my portfolio is strategic leadership as well as personal, professional, and team leadership. As I’ve mentioned to you, I find my strengths in consensus building and developing a collaborative effort. I never look at a problem as though we need to solve it, I like to find a collective, agreeable space where we can move forward.
Typically, from my experience, when we include people in decision making, especially community members, they tend to become natural advocates for that decision making process. Which is really exciting as, in a community like Cochrane, where there are so many engaged individuals, it really provides an opportunity for myself to learn what Cochranites want and what we are doing well already. One of the natural crossovers is connecting with SLSFSC, as they are a huge recreational piece, so recreating that bond between the two organizations is important.
From my understanding, what you’ve been doing is really just getting to know all of the partners and players and initiatives that have been going on. So from your perspective what are some of the highlights of the people, or just in general that make Cochrane such a great place?
I’m definitely new to this aspect so I can give you my, kind of, first impressions. All I really can understand about Cochrane is that there are significantly great numbers of people that are passionate about recreating in this community. I would even go so far as to say that that’s why people move to this community, is that they see the opportunities recreation and connecting in the community.
From my experience, especially in small towns, things can easily become discouraging due to the bureaucracy of the political system resulting in things moving a bit slower than sometimes you would like. I don’t see that here, people may, at times, become impatient, but their impatience isn’t in the space of losing faith in it happening, they just want to see the progression. I’m really happy to see that we have so many strong volunteer groups and user groups (e.g. soccer, rugby, baseball).
The areas that I’m very concerned about advocating in are the ones that don’t have large voices because they need someone to speak on their behalf. For example, if you ever go down to the skateboard park on a Friday evening it’s almost unattainable to learn anything in that space because it’s so greatly utilized. So how we would be able to expand that program in the future would be very interesting to me.
Generally speaking, what I love here is that everyone just wants to chip in. There’s always someone willing to jump in and work with the town and communicate and move these pieces forward. I can’t express this enough but I feel blessed to work here.
What about sport and recreation more specifically? Sport for life Cochrane has been invited to sit at the interagency group table which is a fascinating experience for us and is very informative to hear about what other social support organizations are doing, but sometimes we feel like a fish out of water. How does sport fit into these discussions as it can seem frivolous and inaccessible to some individuals? Where do you see the opportunity for all of us to come together through the physical activity and recreation lens?
Interestingly, I think there's an unlimited amount of opportunity here for us to build recreation, whether through the town or through some other pathway. The Cochrane Rangers is a great example of a group that took a little bit of an opportunity and turned it into something that is very successful and very well subscribed to.
On the other hand I think that we used to offer a recreational program out of the town that was revered, people in the community really drew a lot of access to it. That is something that I have continued to focus on since I came here, probably overly aggressively in terms of trying to reinstate something because when you try to move something forward too quickly, what ends up happening is you forget to audit yourself and assess yourself as you’re progressing through.
I think at this point, coming in, my goal is just to assess the situation and be able to address that appropriately so that when we go to council and ask for funding and subsidization that we are taking into account what you just said which is making things accessible to all people and all ages in a way that keeps people coming back to sport through its competitive nature. The example I like to use here is pickle ball as we have so few pickle ball courts and so many individuals who play that the average user has a hard time accessing these spaces.
It’s hard when a community grows this quickly to be able to foreshadow what the needs will be. I think we have a good idea of what these needs are now.
Horse Creek Sports Park is a great example. If we are able to build that out slightly ahead of schedule, that’s going to meet some of the needs of the larger sports center users. Which then hopefully leaves some spaces to meet the needs of the smaller user groups.
What I’m also hearing is that sense of belonging and inclusion. At the end of the day, if you see yourself in a program with people that look like you or you feel comfortable with, and you feel welcome, then you’re going to participate. Like you said, we all typically share those values, but are not always able to do all of the things we can to make everyone feel welcome. Whether it’s building new facilities, trails, etc. it’s important to keep in mind these values to include different cultures, ages, income levels, and needs in general. I do think that the competitive aspect is a part of what keeps people in sport, but also that sense of belonging and fun.
One of my favourite quotes that I’ve been hearing lately is that if you build a community for seniors, you’re building a community for everyone. This obviously extends past recreation but through a recreational lens, even when it comes to ball diamonds and soccer fields, it’s just applying that lens ever so slightly, and making sure we keep an awareness that these spaces will be accessible in all ways. I think you’re hitting the nail on the head in terms of opening up the diversity of whatever the opportunities are, competitively, or otherwise.
These themes are really converging - not only sport inclusivity but, inclusivity through leadership in all aspects. Message to leaders is that we don’t have to do it all at once as it can seem daunting to some organizations. I think what it comes down to, and maybe you can comment from your perspective, is really just being open and listening to what the needs of the community are and taking small steps from there.
Couldn’t agree more. As we progress through a transformation of this community due to the reintroduction of community services we are introducing new concepts around equity, diversity, and inclusion, and how we allow ourselves to learn and be genuinely curious. For example, working with the 7 indiginous communities around us -it is so important to create relationships. Growing, learning about ourselves, and progressing are important - in a healthy and inclusive way.
Tell me about a couple of the hot topics right now in relation to your role that Cochrane can look forward to.
We just completed the community better challenge through ParticipACTION. We came 7th in Alberta and 54th in Canada. If we were to win $100,000 in the future, how would you use it?
We’re very excited to be interviewing Mitchell Hamm, the Director of Community Services for Cochrane.
Could you tell us a little bit about your role? Maybe first tell us about yourself and how you came into this role as well as any activities/sports that you enjoyed growing up?
I joined Cochrane back in February, filling a gap that was present in the community services portfolio. I’ve been taking the opportunity over the last five months to enjoy building relationships and meeting people in the community. I’m really impressed with the incredible amount of volunteerism, the incredible amount of input that people want to put in with the portfolio because it’s felt like it has been sitting absent for a very long time - so that plays to my strengths, consensus building, relationship building is where I really flourish.
Touching on the second half of your question, I kind of grew up in the area, Cochrane and the Foothills have always been a special place for me. I grew up in Carstairs, Calgary area, playing any possible sport I could. I would consider the foothills - out of all of the places I’ve traveled in the world - home to me. My wife and I have a young child who we are thrilled to be raising in Cochrane.
I played volleyball at Mount Royal. I’ve played any series of sports, beach volleyball semi-competitively for many years, took basketball and baseball very seriously through high school. Transitioning into my adult life, I’ve been really open to any opportunity. I love picking up any sports, anything that’s a recreational activity, even down to engaging in the trails and pathways in the region.
Within your new role, what are your primary responsibilities?
It’s quite an eclectic range in terms of the portfolio. The portfolio includes community connectivity which includes transit multi mobility i.e. roll scooter, e-bikes, and the colt bus system. And then you move into FCSS (the family community support services) and FRN (family resource network). Both of which are very sophisticated in our community and to an incredible job of advocating for themselves and having an impact on not only this community, but province-wide. We also have the Ranche House event center that the administrative building is in as well as the community events team. We have parks and open spaces which is also transitioning, it’s a very interesting portfolio. Recreation, art, inclusivity, diversity groups are still a work in progress so we’re developing some concepts for what that looks like and the timing for that is really dependent on the council.
The overall vision of my portfolio is strategic leadership as well as personal, professional, and team leadership. As I’ve mentioned to you, I find my strengths in consensus building and developing a collaborative effort. I never look at a problem as though we need to solve it, I like to find a collective, agreeable space where we can move forward.
Typically, from my experience, when we include people in decision making, especially community members, they tend to become natural advocates for that decision making process. Which is really exciting as, in a community like Cochrane, where there are so many engaged individuals, it really provides an opportunity for myself to learn what Cochranites want and what we are doing well already. One of the natural crossovers is connecting with SLSFSC, as they are a huge recreational piece, so recreating that bond between the two organizations is important.
From my understanding, what you’ve been doing is really just getting to know all of the partners and players and initiatives that have been going on. So from your perspective what are some of the highlights of the people, or just in general that make Cochrane such a great place?
I’m definitely new to this aspect so I can give you my, kind of, first impressions. All I really can understand about Cochrane is that there are significantly great numbers of people that are passionate about recreating in this community. I would even go so far as to say that that’s why people move to this community, is that they see the opportunities recreation and connecting in the community.
From my experience, especially in small towns, things can easily become discouraging due to the bureaucracy of the political system resulting in things moving a bit slower than sometimes you would like. I don’t see that here, people may, at times, become impatient, but their impatience isn’t in the space of losing faith in it happening, they just want to see the progression. I’m really happy to see that we have so many strong volunteer groups and user groups (e.g. soccer, rugby, baseball).
The areas that I’m very concerned about advocating in are the ones that don’t have large voices because they need someone to speak on their behalf. For example, if you ever go down to the skateboard park on a Friday evening it’s almost unattainable to learn anything in that space because it’s so greatly utilized. So how we would be able to expand that program in the future would be very interesting to me.
Generally speaking, what I love here is that everyone just wants to chip in. There’s always someone willing to jump in and work with the town and communicate and move these pieces forward. I can’t express this enough but I feel blessed to work here.
What about sport and recreation more specifically? Sport for life Cochrane has been invited to sit at the interagency group table which is a fascinating experience for us and is very informative to hear about what other social support organizations are doing, but sometimes we feel like a fish out of water. How does sport fit into these discussions as it can seem frivolous and inaccessible to some individuals? Where do you see the opportunity for all of us to come together through the physical activity and recreation lens?
Interestingly, I think there's an unlimited amount of opportunity here for us to build recreation, whether through the town or through some other pathway. The Cochrane Rangers is a great example of a group that took a little bit of an opportunity and turned it into something that is very successful and very well subscribed to.
On the other hand I think that we used to offer a recreational program out of the town that was revered, people in the community really drew a lot of access to it. That is something that I have continued to focus on since I came here, probably overly aggressively in terms of trying to reinstate something because when you try to move something forward too quickly, what ends up happening is you forget to audit yourself and assess yourself as you’re progressing through.
I think at this point, coming in, my goal is just to assess the situation and be able to address that appropriately so that when we go to council and ask for funding and subsidization that we are taking into account what you just said which is making things accessible to all people and all ages in a way that keeps people coming back to sport through its competitive nature. The example I like to use here is pickle ball as we have so few pickle ball courts and so many individuals who play that the average user has a hard time accessing these spaces.
It’s hard when a community grows this quickly to be able to foreshadow what the needs will be. I think we have a good idea of what these needs are now.
Horse Creek Sports Park is a great example. If we are able to build that out slightly ahead of schedule, that’s going to meet some of the needs of the larger sports center users. Which then hopefully leaves some spaces to meet the needs of the smaller user groups.
What I’m also hearing is that sense of belonging and inclusion. At the end of the day, if you see yourself in a program with people that look like you or you feel comfortable with, and you feel welcome, then you’re going to participate. Like you said, we all typically share those values, but are not always able to do all of the things we can to make everyone feel welcome. Whether it’s building new facilities, trails, etc. it’s important to keep in mind these values to include different cultures, ages, income levels, and needs in general. I do think that the competitive aspect is a part of what keeps people in sport, but also that sense of belonging and fun.
One of my favourite quotes that I’ve been hearing lately is that if you build a community for seniors, you’re building a community for everyone. This obviously extends past recreation but through a recreational lens, even when it comes to ball diamonds and soccer fields, it’s just applying that lens ever so slightly, and making sure we keep an awareness that these spaces will be accessible in all ways. I think you’re hitting the nail on the head in terms of opening up the diversity of whatever the opportunities are, competitively, or otherwise.
These themes are really converging - not only sport inclusivity but, inclusivity through leadership in all aspects. Message to leaders is that we don’t have to do it all at once as it can seem daunting to some organizations. I think what it comes down to, and maybe you can comment from your perspective, is really just being open and listening to what the needs of the community are and taking small steps from there.
Couldn’t agree more. As we progress through a transformation of this community due to the reintroduction of community services we are introducing new concepts around equity, diversity, and inclusion, and how we allow ourselves to learn and be genuinely curious. For example, working with the 7 indiginous communities around us -it is so important to create relationships. Growing, learning about ourselves, and progressing are important - in a healthy and inclusive way.
Tell me about a couple of the hot topics right now in relation to your role that Cochrane can look forward to.
- Equity and inclusion - focusing on diversity and culture portfolio
- Indigenous placement concept - economic development opportunities
- Trans-Canada trail - opportunity to connect
- Horse-creek sports park - lengthy timeline (trying to move ahead of schedule through donations and exploring a fundraising initiative with local sport organizations)
- Rebuilding recreation and arts programming in town and having some form of subsidization
- Recreational masterplan
- Build out of trail system with bike Cochrane
- Working towards new art policy
We just completed the community better challenge through ParticipACTION. We came 7th in Alberta and 54th in Canada. If we were to win $100,000 in the future, how would you use it?
- Building Horse Creek Sports Park
- New skate park
- Pickleball courts
- Restrooms in parks and pathways for accessibility
