Oak Park - Where community comes alive

Description

Oak Park is an award-winning “new urbanism” community. We have a fantastic, diverse community that is home to singles, young marrieds, families and seniors. Our community believes in walking and we have just about everything we need within walking distance- schools, parks with trails & wildlife, churches, transit terminal, stores, offices, a pub, restaurants, community services and doctors. We say hello when we pass someone on the street, and we know our neighbours by name, we help our neighbours by cutting the lawn or shovelling the snow; we watch each others kids or lend a hand when someone is sick. That includes visits to hospitals, making meals, and phone calls to check in. We hold community garage sales, a community fair and we get involved. It is rare to attend an Oakville event where there is not at least two people from Oak Park in attendance. We care about our heritage. We have a war memorial made from the original Trafalgar Town Hall and some of our buildings recall the old town of Postville/Post Corners. Almost 10 years ago 6 women in our community formed Oak Park Moms & Tots and that has grown into a Neighbourhood Centre that is a registered charity that supported 430 families and 570 children last year. The centre is a reflection of the needs, talents and gifts of our neighbours and friends so that it is relevant & inviting to the whole community. We run drop in programs 5 days a week, ADHD group, divorce group, infant, toddler & preschool programs, children’s reading/tutoring club, food bank, parenting workshops, Spanish, German, Japanese, and South Asian programs, support for families with children with disabilities, resource lending library, information, referral, parent support, and a Child Development Resource Centre. We also provide space to various children’s programs including the Down Syndrome Assoc., Autism Ontario, and an Asperger’s support group. I could go on forever because there are so many wonderful stories that have come out of this community. We have created the neighbourhood that people remember from their childhoods that is oh so hard to find nowadays.