Telling stories, promoting community

It has been 10 years since Kenyon Ross played a part in the inception of the West Homewood Farmer’s Market, and now he has got a new idea up his sleeve: The West Homewood Co.

This new nonprofit seeks to build community and listen to people’s individual stories. Its mission is similar to the reason why the farmer’s market started in the first place: to be good stewards. This idea was first brought up during a small group discussion at Shades Valley Community Church.

“The concept was to look at the things God had created that everybody calls good,” Ross said. “He created the Earth, land, animals. In the first chapter of Genesis, everything he creates, he calls good. … He created these things for our sustainability, and I have never myself been a person — I hate to say it — that cared much about taking care of the land and the animals.”

The group continued by analyzing what it means to be created in God’s image and found that this means they need to be good stewards of the land and the animals.

“We kind of stopped in the small group and said, ‘Does anyone feel like they’re doing that?’” Ross said. “And no one had a good answer for that.”

The creative juices started flowing, Ross said. The group watched Ted Talks and read articles about agriculture. They were looking for ideas to do something as a small group that would help take care of the land and animals. The idea on which they settled was the West Homewood Farmer’s Market, which operates Tuesday nights during the summer.

“We wanted to make this a safe place to build community,” Ross said about the market. “So we have a rule: there’s no politics or religion.”

The atmosphere at the market has always been relaxed and the community seems to love it, Ross said. He thinks the market has helped revitalize the area.

Ross had been the market manager during that time, but about three years ago, he decided to step down. But after making that decision, he discovered the market needed a strong board of directors.

“As I thought about that, I also thought, ‘Man, I would really like to recreate what happened for us,’” he said. “Even though I’ve positioned it as a Christian message, it really is something true about everybody.

“When you recognize good things and get involved in good things — and you take away the divisive things that could separate us — people get inspired. They want to get involved.”

Thus, as Ross was beginning to walk away, he instead created a nonprofit organization.

“What the West Homewood Co. wants to be about is to learn and to tell the stories of people and businesses here,” he said. “Because when you do that, and you can see yourself in someone else’s story, you begin to get inspired.”

The company will promote the area, he said. The website will showcase upcoming events and businesses.

Ross also said he hopes to tell stories about people in the community through blog posts and videos. By doing this, he hopes people can begin to see themselves in another’s story, he said.

“When you do that, not only does creativity abound, but you redefine what a community becomes,” he said. “In some ways, West Homewood is a blank canvas. It’s gone through a lot of growth recently and seen a lot of people excited about the area, but who do you want defining who you are? You want people defining who you are. And the only way you can do that is by asking them and learning their stories.”

The building for West Homewood Co., which is at 186 Oxmoor Road, has a giant map of West Homewood on one of its interior walls. Each time a resident visits and speaks with Ross, the resident will place a red pin on the map where he or she lives.

“What’s really cool about meeting them is, nine times out of 10, I’ve heard, ‘I moved to this neighborhood because I wanted to live in a diverse neighborhood,’” he said. “They wanted to be a part of something that was diverse, versus a homogenous neighborhood where everyone is the same.”

People interested in learning more about West Homewood can also stop by and speak to Ross, he said.

Visit westhomewood.com for more information.