Traditionally, Wooten Neighborhood Association meetings are held the second Monday of odd months at 7pm, but the fate of our September meeting will be decided soon. Check back on this page for future meeting plans and for the next online newsletter. Meanwhile, stay well!
Wooten Neighborhood Climate Change Resolution
COVID-19 has taught us much, and these lessons will help us as we adapt to the pandemic and turn our attention again to the ongoing threat of climate change. We have learned that abrupt economic contraction can reduce global greenhouse gas emissions, but the reduction comes at an unsustainable cost of human suffering.
To control greenhouse gas emissions in a way that produces abundance for all will take careful planning and timely action. We’ve learned that science-based decisions give us the best results, and that the technical experts advising our leaders have much to offer. Finally, the pandemic has helped us understand that we are no safer than the most vulnerable among us, and that action to address climate change must address issues of equity and justice both for those that have been most harmed by pollution and those whose livelihoods depend on jobs in the fossil fuel industry.
Wooten Neighborhood Association has been invited to draft a climate change resolution, joining other neighborhood associations to call for local action on climate change. An example can be found on the website of the Windsor Park Neighborhood Association Climate Crisis Committee. If you are interested in this topic, please click on this link to receive updates on the process.
Community Letter: Celebrating One of our High School Graduates
Dear Seth,
Congratulations! We feel so lucky to have had front row seats to watching you grow to become the kind, funny, and intelligent young man you are today. It seems like just yesterday, we were walking you to Mrs. Moore’s kindergarten class. Now, we’re relishing these last days that we have together before you head off to the University of Texas.
We can only imagine how frustrating it’s been for you to have to shelter-in-place when all you want to do is spread your wings. Your time is coming. We believe that you and the Class of 2020 will change the world; born in the wake of 9/11 and ushered into adulthood during a pandemic, you’ve seen so much good in the world, but you’ve also seen the cracks.
As you go forward, remember that we love you always. Continue to feed your desire to seek out new places, new people, new perspectives. We can’t wait to see the man you will become.
As Neil Gaiman said, “The old rules are crumbling and nobody knows what the new rules are, so make up your own rules.”
Love always,
Mom and Dad
Congratulations to all of our graduates from the Class of 2020!
News from Girlstart: STEM Extravaganza at Home
Monday, August 10th – Saturday August 15th
Hands-on activities released daily at 9 am.
Activity materials lists will be posted on Saturday, August 1st.
Kick off the fall with hands-on STEM fun as part of our week-long STEM Extravaganza at Home! Get outside with the whole family to fly paper kites, explore astronomy, roast marshmallows in a solar oven, and discover the science behind making a slurpee! Join Girlstart for a free virtual event featuring daily hands-on activity blogs, how-to videos, and social media takeovers.
Covid-19 Information Resources for Austin
The Covid-19 pandemic has changed all our lives in the past few months. Some people have lost loved ones, many have been confined to their homes, others have to work outside the home under stressful conditions. Having reliable local information about the pandemic can help us make good decisions, and Austin has some excellent resources:
- Information about testing and summary data for Austin are available on the Covid-19 information page.
- We can assess the progress of the pandemic in zip code 78757 by checking the Travis County Surveillance dashboard.
- The same website also features Key Indicators for Staging used by the city to determine the need for closures and restrictions.
- For state-wide information, The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit news website, has a prominent section on “CORONAVIRUS IN TEXAS” which provides in-depth reporting as well as granular data about the cases, deaths, and testing in the map tracker.
Timely information is important because the Covid-19 pandemic isn’t progressing at a steady rate. Hot spots emerge, get under control, and then flare up again. As the pandemic waxes and wanes over the next months, we can use the linked resources to stay up-to-date about how it is affecting our community.
Letter from the WNA President
Fellow Wootenites,
When I began my tenure as Wooten Neighborhood Association (WNA) president in November, I could never have predicted we’d find ourselves in the middle of a pandemic eight months later, but here we are. The city is seeing escalating infection and death rates from COVID-19, and Travis County officials recently extended the Stay At Home order until August 15. It’s been challenging to say the least to adjust to measures designed to keep us safe and healthy. This May, for the first time in a long time, WNA canceled its bi-monthly meeting. It was my opinion that, in the best interest of our neighbors, we should cancel our July meeting as well, so that’s what we did. But if there are any issues you feel need to be addressed, please reach out to me (president@wootenna.com) and I will do my best to help.
We are dealing with job changes/losses, home schooling, child care adjustments, work at home arrangements, loss of/increase in family time, financial strain, and so much more. Stress can bring out the best or the worst in people, and I’ve been so heartened to see how you’re taking care of each other – in some cases people you’ve never met before. As you’ve been reading on our website, and our Nextdoor and Facebook pages, Wootenites have risen to the occasion to care for the most vulnerable in our community and spread a little joy during a time of much fear and uncertainty. Personally, I’ve never seen so many folks out walking or working in their yards. It’s been really nice to meet some new neighbors (in a socially-distant manner, of course).
It would be easy to give in to the strain of the times. But keep doing what you’re doing. Stay positive. Take care of each other. Lend a (gloved) hand when you can.
Be well,
Brian
#1183ROCKS
Girl Scout troop 1183 has been painting rocks and putting them around the neighborhood to help people know they are not alone, promote kindness and healthy relationships. If you see a rock, feel free to move to a location to brighten someone’s day. You can post on social media (follow Instagram @1183_Rocks) #1183ROCKS #kindnessrocks. You can make your own rocks to put out or just smile and know you are not alone.
— thanks to neighbor Laura K for the original post