Stories for Good: Building Community Through Book Club
By Angelina Rueda, Originally published in the Winona Daily News.
Building Community Through Book Club
The Engage Winona Community Builders book club is wrapping up its second go-around at the Winona Public Library. We will soon be taking a summer break after a year of gathering to reflect and have conversations about big ideas that can take root close to home. Over the past year, we’ve gathered to read books covering a wide range of topics, connecting people and ideas while making new friends and neighbors. We've selected books that truly “build” a community mindset through deep dives into themes including community power, how to love where you live and show up for it, depolarization and talking like a neighbor, building social infrastructure, and housing solutions. Together, these ideas help participants envision how our community was formed, how it can further be shaped, and how they can get involved in the community they love.
At every meeting, we saw how major news trickles down to our everyday lives. These topics could have created tension, but those in attendance created a space to show up authentically, express disagreement, and collaborate on solutions. During our discussion of Escaping the Housing Trap by Charles L. Marohn Jr., we talked about zoning rules, Winona’s 30% rental rule, and parking minimums. Since these were active City Council topics, many arrived with firm opinions. What was surprising wasn’t the disagreement, but the active listening. People made space for others to show up as they were. That is the foundation for a community that works.
We ask the group to ground their opinions in lived experience as much as possible. These personal stories become insights into how different neighbors are affected by the rules we all navigate. In March, members of the Winona Area Kitchen Table—a program of Engage Winona working to end housing instability for all Minnesotans—joined us to discuss housing challenges. The conversation was enriched by a range of perspectives, from long-time homeowners to renters to folks who have navigated the ins and outs of housing instability—all with insights gleaned from their own experiences. By showing up every month, the book club showed that sometimes listening to a neighbor’s story is the best way to understand the community as a whole.
We kicked off this round of book club with You’re More Powerful Than You Think by Eric Liu. This conversation was energizing and exciting, as many participants brought decades of experience working in the community to bring their ideas and passions to life. Hearing the real-life stories of how ideas, places, and groups came to be in Winona showcased the biggest theme in the book: that we, together, are truly more powerful than we think. One participant was involved in the formation of Engage Winona and shared her experience with getting our organization out of someone’s head and into the community—and here we are 10 years later!
After we read This is Where You Belong by Melody Warnick, a book about building community where you are and learning to love the place you live, the conversation explored why folks really love this community. Most found it an easy place to love, but we were able to dive deeper into why. For some, it was family or school. For others, it was the music scene, the cherry blossom extravaganzas, or the historic stained glass. My favorite reason given was the simple joy of seeing cats in the windows on the walk to work.
Beyond book club, participants are scheming about putting their ideas into action. After reading the books by Liu and Warnick, participants had visions of a cross-organizational volunteer booth at the local farmers market and a sidewalk chalk art festival at Windom Park. We read The Power of Bridging by John Powell most recently, which inspired conversations about cross-generational gatherings and the importance of getting outside our own social circles to connect with our community. Personally, I’m excited to hear the ideas that come out of our next and last book, Palaces for the People by Eric Klinenberg, exploring the idea of social infrastructure and the role that places like libraries and parks have in supporting thriving, connected, and resilient communities that work for all.
Engage Winona is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit cultivating stronger communities in southeast Minnesota by reigniting community participation through dialogue, support, and training. Our programs bring people together, spark ideas, and cultivate the conditions for a community where we all belong, connect, and contribute. Book club is over for the year, but you can see what’s next and stay connected at https://www.engagewinona.org/
This arcticle was originally published in the Winona Daily News, and can be read here.