About C2C

Commitment to Community (C2C) has successfully completed many projects, built many relationships, and has developed various programs over the course of the past four years. Most importantly, it is viewed as a sustainable, living process. Many people ask though; has it worked? Has what the C2C staff done really impacted or changed these neighborhoods in any way? How do you measure success of an organization such as this one?

C2C mirrors a community, grassroots process that builds healthy neighborhoods through residents taking ownership of their issues.  It already has achieved remarkable results over a relatively short period of time.  Furthermore, it has proven to be a unique investment opportunity that maximizes leverage and return on investment due to its ability to empower residents and attract multiple stakeholders.

As witnessed in the neighborhoods C2C works in, investing in this community process can generate powerful leverage through:

• Revitalizing democracy where residents are responsible and engaged in working together to take ownership of their neighborhood and its issues.
• Solving problems through neighbor initiative,
• Appealing to the interests of multiple stakeholders by offering points of entry to improve their effectiveness at delivering their respective programs.
• Building the capacity of neighborhood residents to attract multiple stakeholders to invest energy and financial resources in their neighborhood.

C2C measures its accomplishments by analyzing Walla Walla Police Department service and code enforcement calls, tracking anecdotes (accounts of a particular incident or event, often biographical), receiving more involvement from the greater community, (new stakeholders, new involvement of organizations in C2C's neighborhoods, greater involvement of area police officers, etc.), and conducting neighborhood surveys.

C2C Process

C2C Neighborhood Outreach organizers begin the process by facilitating conversation without an agenda with the neighbors. Through consistent interaction and engagement with the residents, they soon begin to build relationships and trust with them. By carefully listening to the neighbors, C2C organizers and residents collaboratively are able to discuss their priorities and issues; thus, creating a neighborhood vision. By donating volunteer time and in-kind contributions, the projects are executed and/or the issues are resolved by connecting neighbors to appropriate resources. The completion of the project/task is celebrated by all and followed up with some leadership training workshops for the neighbors. Such topics as dreams for the neighborhood, civic participation in the community, appreciative inquiry, resource identification, and action planning are but a few introduced to the neighbors. The value of civic engagement is promoted and once again the cycle we call the C2C process is repeated.

As previously mentioned, building working relationships is the primary focus and starting point for C2C’s Engagement Stage, which develops “hubs of trust” within neighborhoods by sponsoring a variety of projects ranging from clean-up events to revitalizing local parks with new playground equipment. Relationship-building and project development are synergistic catalysts in creating pride, ownership, and engagement. A later phase is the Implementation Stage in which the effective delivery of programs and services by institutions and agencies is enhanced with direct access to residents through the “hubs of trust” or neighborhood "points of entry”.