Milenthal-DelGrossoCommunity Gems Will Tell Your Story

Leader Recognizing What His Community Needs

Living a mere 2 blocks from downtown Canal Winchester has a lot of advantages, and attending the Saturday Farmers Market is definitely one of them. The market features produce grown by local farmers and gardners, and is well attended by people looking for wonderfully fresh homegrown bounty at good prices. Beyond that, it’s a time for people to connect with one another and share that special sense of community. It was there early last June when Bruce Jarvis, long-time resident, and Executive Director for Destination Canal Winchester, approached me to talk about creating a piece to promote the newly recognized city as it reached population 5k. It was this initial conversation that gave birth to the idea that if we could document the uniqueness of Canal Winchester, it would inspire in-state tourism and maybe even persuade people to consider our lovely community as home.

Bruce and I quickly made Harvest Moon, a neighborhood coffee shop located at the very center of town our unofficial base of operation. It was through numerous meetings and interviews where Bruce outlined the many events that Destination Canal Winchester was responsible for organizing – Art in the Park, Blues and Ribfest, The Historic Ghost Tour and Christmas in the Village. Bruce explained that these events draw in many visitors to the area which helps promote local shops and restaurants.

The Process that Inspired

I began to document the events and the town through video. I started to discover interesting things and interesting people operating around me that I had missed even after 20 years of living here. I knew about Robert Warren and Dick Weiser, two very well known artists living and working in CW, but there were several other artists working in studios tucked away on second floors and over garages throughout town. I met City Forrester Dick Miller, who speaks passionately about the great natural resources we are fortunate enough to have all around us. Miller, an avid fly fisherman introduced me to another fly-fishing enthusiast in the area, Bruce Baby. He graciously allowed me to capture him at this Zen-like sport one Sunday morning on Walnut Creek.

There were dozens of these little gems – people, events and locations – that showed a quaint and endearing community. And each of these gems would eventually give way to a story that truly would show something unique about my humble city.

It wasn’t until six months later – after completing the last event on the schedule, Christmas in the Village – when I could envision how this story should be told. I had hours of footage…people enjoying a variety of events, families visiting Metro Parks and capturing our historic landmarks, churches, and homes,. I had footage of people riding bikes, walking, golfing; kids skating, swimming and playing sports. Six months of taking 10 minutes of footage here and there started to weave an image of a community that even I could not have imagined at its beginning.

Building the Story, Generating Response

I settled on a simple execution – showing the beauty of our community without narration (meaning no voice over while the video runs, just music); showing the viewer a real homegrown and yet poetic representation of why Canal Winchester is a nice place to visit.

The results of our efforts have been astonishing. Bruce Jarvis hosted a community-wide event to reveal how Canal Winchester would now appeal to potential visitors. Our local news television station – WBNS-TV – ran a feel-good story about our video. And what makes me most proud? The over 3,000 views our video has received in only one month, and sweet response we have received from the community and friends.

The point of the story is this…every community is unique. Every community has hidden gems and energetic events that ignite interest and appreciation for that community. Every community has its story. You just need to document it, and string it together into your story. If you build it, they will come!

Carol DelGrosso, Chief Creative Officer

Carol DelGrosso is chief creative officer at Milenthal-DelGrosso, LLC. She has been a resident of Canal Winchester for over 20-years, and while her personal allegiance is obviously to her own community, her ability through video is representative of the artistic eye she can apply towards “branding your place”. Email her at carold@md-llc.com to start piecing together your community’s unique story.