Community Corner
Patch Launches Dispatches: 'The Changing American Dream'
Patch introduces a new series that explores life's experiences and the American Dream in Sewickley.
We're excited to inaugurate a new series for our Sewickley Patch Readers: "Dispatches: The Changing American Dream."
Every day, the national media is full of stories about how American families, businesses, and neighbors are adjusting to these trying times.
There are so many changes happening so fast that it can be dizzying: national debates about unemployment, foreclosures, debt, religion, government and private enterprise all touch on fundamental ways in which we see ourselves and our communities.
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At Sewickley Patch, we want to explore that conversation on a regular basis so we can better understand how our neighbors are adjusting to the challenges and opportunities that surround us.
We don't think there's one American Dream, but a multitude of American Dreams which a multitude of people are working toward achieving.
Find out what's happening in Sewickleywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Looking out across nearly almost 900 Patch sites, we see businesses holding their breath deciding whether to expand; college graduates returning home because they can't find jobs; and senior citizens bringing boarders into their homes to help pay their bills.
We also see bold new volunteer efforts, inspiring stories of local businesses that succeed because they innovated and locals who've taken these trying times as a signal to engage more, not less, in their government.
At the purely local level, we want to know where we, as Sewickley Valley neighbors, fit along these fault lines.
Nationally, there's a debate about whether taxes should be raised during poor economic times.
Locally, we know that municipalities could face significant financial burdens next year if Allegheny County sticks to its current property reassessment timetable.
Nationally, there's a debate about the education system, which is at the center of our dreams of a better life for our children.
Locally, we know Quaker Valley's schools are facing construction projects and lower funding levels this school year from the state. And the most important people to turn that situation around are not national politicians, but our school leaders.
"Dispatches" will be built upon the compelling vignettes and snapshots we unearth across all of our Patch sites.
Of course, we want your help: Please tell us what issues and what stories in the Sewickley Valley go to the heart of your American Dream.
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