At its November, 2012 meeting, the Wallingford Community Council, neighbors and representatives from the Wallingford Neighborhood Association (WNA), Wallingford Community Senior Center, Family Works and the Wallingford Chamber of Commerce joined the WCC to discuss the closure of WNA and what it means to our community.

After more than a decade of service to the neighborhood, the WNA Board voted to dissolve last month. The organization, which sponsored local events such as the Kiddies Parade, the Home Tour, the Garden Tour, the neighborhood office, and produced the Wallingford E-news, has struggled with a lack of monetary and volunteer resources. Its events have relied solely on the efforts of volunteers –  who have grown increasingly scarce. The WNA Board found that it no longer had the manpower or the funds to keep the WNA office open and the events going. For more information about the WNA, its history and its closure, see http://wallingford.org.

The parade and tours are widely appreciated throughout the neighborhood. They offer a venue at which neighbors can meet and enjoy neighborhood specific events. The office has provided countless neighborhood organizations with a place to meet and discuss community issues, and a staging area for neighborhood activities. The Chamber, Senior Center and WCC are considering ways to keep the office open and the events going, but sustainability is the key.  To do this, the organizations need 1) volunteers who are willing to work on the events, and 2) money to produce them and keep the office open.

If you are interested in getting further information or volunteering, please contact the following:

Maintaining the Neighborhood Office (Wallingford Community Council):
info@wallingfordcouncil.org
Home and Garden Tours (Wallingford Community Senior Center):
kcromp@wallingfordseniors.org
Kiddies Parade (Wallingford Chamber of Commerce):
info@wallingfordchamber.org