If you live anywhere in Nova Scotia (like I do) other than under a rock, you’ve probably heard about a recent report released on the state of our economy. Many have heard it called “The Ivany Report” or “The Now or Never Report”. It is a nice big document that essentially puts Nova Scotians on alert, warning that our population is ageing and diminishing and at the rate we’re going, we will not be able to sustain it.
There are a lot of really smart people trying to think about how we can change this projected future and a lot of eager Nova Scotians who want to help create a place that will thrive. It can be easy, and dangerous, to have this all fall into a pattern of dialogue and thought without the quick action that is also needed.
One of the big problems with Nova Scotia is our dwindling and ageing population. As much as I’d love to try, we can’t fix this by popping out babies alone. Nova Scotia needs to be a welcoming place for immigrants. And while we proudly boast our Pier 21 as symbol of a new life in a new place, so many immigrants land here only to move on to other immigrant communities around Canada. Nova Scotians, despite what the tourists might tell us, are just not friendly enough. We need to up our game.
There are newcomers to our province who desperately want to connect and root themselves to Nova Scotia. They need Nova Scotians, super friendly and welcoming Nova Scotians, to reach out and help.
As Nova Scotians, there is something we can do right now to help move our province forward. There is a program called Share Thanksgiving that wants to connect Nova Scotian hosts with newcomers to our province to participate in one of the most quintessentially shared meals there is: Thanksgiving. Hosts and guests will be thoughtfully paired up to try to match those who live in similar locations and those who have similar family makeups.
What better way to really teach our children the meaning of Thanksgiving than by welcoming those who are new to our community to our table?
I want to challenge anyone reading this in Nova Scotia to participate. I want to challenge my blogger friends to sign up and participate. Then, write about it. I want to challenge you to look at this province where we have so much to be grateful for and see how we can make it better this Thanksgiving.
Signing up is easy. Just visit this link. If you’re a newcomer to our province, WELCOME! You can sign up at that very same link. If you have any questions about Share Thanksgiving, I can get you hooked up with the coordinator. Just shoot me an email or leave a comment below.
Not in Nova Scotia? That’s okay! Share Thanksgiving is happening in Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, St. Catharine’s, Swift Current, Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria, and Winnipeg. Check out ShareThanksgiving.ca for more info.
This post is absolutely not sponsored, though I will accept a night off from my husband, who is the Share Thanksgiving Nova Scotia coordinator.
What a great initiative! As someone who has moved around many times, it’s always so great to make connections with others during the holidays. It really helps to keep people from feeling isolated, alone, and missing their families. I hope Share Thanksgiving has as lot of success.
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Actually, someone from my area who is on Council sent it to me, too! I put it in my Valley Family Newsletter yesterday, and was about to post about it in our facebook group, but, will put your link there as well! Thanks!! It’s a wonderful idea, and I did see Dan’s name there!
I heard about this on CBC radio very early on Thursday morning. I thought it was lovely and obviously *someone* is doing a great job getting the word out because we all know a little something about it! Great job!
I think it is a beautiful initiative. What a terrific way of welcoming newcomers to an area into the community through our hearts and homes.
It’s wonderful! It’s *so* Maritime-y! I hope it is a grand success!
Congratulate Dan for me please. This is just so great!
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Such a great idea! Are you guys going to do it? I was planning a small Thanksgiving dinner (just me and the hubs) so I’m not sure that I will sign up, but I will definitely pass the word along. Great blog too!
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