Picture Perfect

Woo hoo! We finally beat Eden Prairie!

Yesterday local news was filled with exclamations of joy over Columbia's 1st place finish in the Time/Money Magazine's Best Places to Live in America ranking. Here's a celebratory photo by Scott Kramer taken down at the Lakefront, featuring County Exective Allan Kittleman.

Photo by Scott Kramer

But who are those other people behind the flower bed? Enquiring minds want to know. Right off the bat I recognize Jane Dembner, Columbia Association's Director of Planning and Community Affairs, and Barbara Kellner, Director of the Columbia Archives. And there are a few people I'm almost certain I recognize but I'm afraid of goofing. Can someone give me an accurate run-down, left-to-right?

I'm very curious about how this photograph came to be. I guess the story behind the story is often more fascinating to me. And I'm also guessing that those people have something to do with what makes Columbia such a great place to live. Standing in the background of a photo may not feel like such an honor, in the grand scheme of things. Maybe that's why I want to shed a little light on these people.

Of course no one photograph can capture all those folks who contribute to community-building. A picture is a moment, an idea of something. Columbia, whether you think it's award-worthy or not, is bustling with both movers-and-shakers and the kind of people who are working in the background to make sure things run smoothly.

We can't make it happen without both kinds of people.

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Speaking of people you don't always see, I heard a wonderful interview with David Greisman on WTOP yesterday afternoon. David is a 'hometown kid' who grew up to be Senior Manager of Media Relations and Communication at Columbia Association. I'm not able to find a link to the piece right now, but his description of Columbia was spot-on.

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Thanks to David for the following: That photo includes: Jane Dembner, Norma Heim (director of communications and marketing at CA), Scott Templin (community planner for CA), Mary Weeks (video production manager for CA), Ron Meliker (acting human resources director for CA), Dan Burns (director of sport and fitness for CA), Marlys East (managing director of Columbia's 50th Birthday), Barbara Kellner, and Janet Evans (CA Board member, Long Reach) Also David Greisman, Nancy McCord (CA Board member, Wilde Lake), Sean Harbaugh (assistant division director of CA Open Space Management), Michelle Miller (director of community services for CA), plus county public information folks.

If I have overlooked anyone, please let me know. --jam