Greetings Friends,
If you follow my thoughts I share on starbrightcommunitystories.org or follow what’s going on in town, you might know that we just had a really big weekend here in Paradise. We threw out the welcome mat big time to attract visitors from all over, to get a glimpse of what our beautiful town has to offer and the way we go about doing things around here. We had 50 to 70 open houses in Paradise and Magalia appealing to wannabe citizens. The Paradise Garden Club had its Annual, 2 day Garden Tour Fundraiser where visitors wandered through the lush and lovingly nurtured gardens inspiring others to imagine what their own yards can look like, all the while musicians from the Paradise Symphony and Artists from the Paradise Arts Center were peppered in the landscape of most homes adding to the ambiance. They had over 200 curious wanderers in 2 days at 7 homes and one business, (Willow Springs Garden at Butte Valley Supply and Earthworm Soil Factory). Most stores were open, offering specials and putting on their finery. We got a glimpse of what our town will look like on Wednesday nights starting June 12th at 5:30, with an extra kickoff gathering at Party in the Park on Sat. eve. with the amazing band Special Guest. It was so good to see the lawn filled with blankets and chairs and coolers and friends. The dance floor was full all evening long and the smiling was infectious. Lots of love and hugs were shared. It was us being us! Just another day in Paradise! For the 3rd year in a row the Butte County Fire Safe Council hosted the Paradise Grazing Festival in an effort to promote and educate about fire safety and defensible space. Our newly remodeled schools and campuses were open to encourage young families to move here. This is just a small sampling of what went on last weekend.
Being pretty involved with many organizations, I found myself in many different spots around town in those 2 days. The best part was chatting with all the people. Asking where they
were from, and many said, “oh we just moved here 2 weeks ago or we just moved here yesterday! I didn’t meet as many out of towners as I and the Chamber may have hoped for, but the way I see it is, we’re working this from the inside. It’s our new families and community members that saw for themselves the kind of town they moved to. I saw plenty of new faces and it’s these new faces that are going to call their family and friends and say this town is so awesome you should consider moving here! They are going to do the promoting for us!! What I heard most from people was “how kind and friendly everyone was!” I heard it over and over again. They felt very welcomed here. I’d say mission accomplished on our open house
weekend. If you have a story or experience to share I encourage you to do so. You can comment on mine or any post you see on starbrightcommunitystories.org . We are so blessed to live here. My heart swells with gratitude each and every day. To quote a friend/poet/ who wrote a song I was privileged to sing. “Oh Paradise, My Paradise, why do I love you so? I’ll hold you ever in my heart and never let you go!