Friends,
Six weeks ago in the State of the City, I urged that we energetically address the climate emergency – making the decade of the 2020s memorable for our progress in saving the planet and making a more sustainable society where everyone belongs and has a place.
Now we’re overrun with the pandemic of the century – facing a deadly virus, a health care system in peril, our economy in a tailspin, and our safety net stretched to the limit. It’s been quite a six weeks. And more difficulty lies ahead.
I couldn’t be prouder of our City, both our employees and our residents. Our City employees are working hard every day to protect us all, from first responders to street crews, from water plant operators to sanitation workers, from planners to lawyers to personnel experts. Most are learning to do their jobs differently because of COVID-19, and all are doing them diligently and with great dedication to the public good.
Our residents are taking care of each other. From the heroes of healthcare, risking themselves so we can heal and stay well, to our grocery store and pharmacy staff, to delivery drivers and manufacturers of critical goods. And volunteers helping neighbors in need, in a thousand ways.
You can learn all about what’s happening in Bloomington in response to the pandemic on our website. With experienced public officials and other local experts hard at work, planning for Bloomington’s needs.
I’ll emphasize just two points here:
First, help flatten the curve! Every one of us is needed to protect all of us: staying home whenever we can, maintaining physical distance (I like that better than social distance – we can still be social, just with physical distance), and conscientiously following health expert protocols to wash hands frequently and correctly and avoid viral transmissions. This is critical to avoid overwhelming our healthcare system and to saving lives right here in Bloomington.
Second, be of good heart and hope. We know we will get through this. We will come out of the pandemic, and we will be a great community with much to do together. We have challenges to meet in the coming weeks and months. But we will meet them.
We are reminded of our interdependence and the importance of resilience in our economy and community. We’re reminded of the value of human life and of human contact. Don’t you miss hugs and embraces and physical closeness with friends? They will return, and it will be so sweet and welcome.
We are reminded of how much we mean to each other and of how important it is to build the community we want to live in, sustainably, where everyone belongs and has a place.
Be well, and take care of each other,
Democratically yours,
John
PS: Here are some ways you can keep up with the goings on in city government: Every Monday I send out a video message, every Wednesday night I present updates to City Council at 6:30pm, and every Friday at 1:15pm I have a press conferences with area colleagues.