In September of 2024, we took a trip to Willmar to participate in their “Welcoming Week 2024” event.

This visit was meaningful and filled with community engagement. We spent the week reconnecting with participants we interviewed in 2017, meeting with new folks eager to get involved in the project, and brainstorming next steps with community partners.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to The City of Willmar, Downtown Willmar, and Willmar Lakes Area Vision 2040 for inviting us to be a part of their Welcoming Week community event. The day was a vibrant celebration of the diversity of cultures and heritages that enrich the Willmar community, leaving us feeling joyful and energized.

We also held a “NTP Meet & Greet” event where we invited project participants and community members to join us to hear more about the current and future stage of the project and to give their feedback. We had generative and emergent discussions about what’s happening in Willmar today, and about how to create spaces for having “conversations across difference,” a central question of this project.