I Am Rockford – a Community, Living, Breathing Organism, Signified by the Words: ‘Human Being’

RHA is in the People Business. We are focused on enriching the lives for our clients and our community together. It is our mission to “partner with the community and responsible residents to transform houses into homes while guiding families to self-sufficiency.” It is the people that form the relationships. It is also the people who motivate us to reach our goals.

As a community organization, we care deeply about people and caring is simply part of our work. It is our caring for others that motivates us to work as hard as we do. It is often the health and happiness of our families, children, neighbors, coworkers and communities that we hold fixed in our minds as we push ourselves to overcome obstacles and take on new challenges that can feel overwhelming or uncomfortable.

We are continuously enhancing our programs, implementing new ideas and looking for ways to build on our relationships between the people, the organizations and the community as a whole because that’s what needs to happen. We take pride in our tenacity to continue to be a leader in this community.

The notion of community that is dynamic and diverse in every aspect: class, religion, age, gender, language, and ethnicity. The concept of I Am Rockford is a community living, breathing organism signified by the words ‘human being.’ There are several neighborhoods, each with some special attributes: ethnicity, religion, rich and poor. In addition, within a neighborhood, there may be a diverse population with individuals and groups occupying different physical space.

To understand some of the complexities, complications, and confusions within the life of just one member of a community is to gain insights into the collective community… So I am a physical body and an emotional and (or spiritual) being. In order for a particular neighborhood or area to succeed, community must exist. In order for a community to be a community, relationships must exist. Effective community relationships are constructed simply on open dialogue and communication.

The two together make me I Am. This is the aspect of me which thinks and feels, reflects and judges, remembers and anticipates.

Being a person means that I have virtues and flaws, gifts and needs, possibilities and defeats. Being a person also means, that I am a social animal, needing connection, recognition and acceptance from others, while simultaneously knowing myself, as isolated and solitary, with many experiences which are never fully shareable with others.

I am a medley of feelings, thoughts, beliefs and needs with which only I am directly acquainted, and as a social role in the community, relating to other human beings. This means that I am a self plus a story. The situation is comparable to that of a book. Books have similar physical elements, like paper, binding, and ink. What makes them unique is the story that they contain.

I Am Rockford is a branded alignment for community unity and solidarity designed to spark constructive dialogue on sensitive issues facing individuals who comprise the community of Rockford.