Committee Offers Safe, Fun Alternatives and donates to Hunger Task Force
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Jane’s Walk MKE has postponed its annual month of walks, bikes, and paddles this May. The committee has yet to commit to a later date in 2020, but anticipates its 2021 celebration. Rather than group gatherings to explore the community, Jane’s Walk MKE created a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure Challenge, 20 alternatives to exploring Milwaukee and its neighbors.
Instead of resident-led tours with large groups, these adventures are to be enjoyed either solo or with members of a household or living unit. Residents can choose to walk or run, bike, paddle, or roll outside or stay inside and curl up with a book or film. Participants are invited to share stories about their neighborhood or other places they love, discover unseen aspects of our community, and learn more about Jane Jacobs and those inspired by her.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has ordered us all to honor safe physical distancing but also recommends 150 minutes of physical activity weekly, not only for physical well-being but also mental health. A good walk or bike or kayak is great for reducing stress, which most people have a lot of nowadays. We can get this much-needed activity and explore our streets, paths, and waterways and still adhere to CDC recommendations and the governor’s orders as they develop.
This year’s theme, Revisioning Milwaukee, was inspired by Priya Parker’s book The Art of Gathering. Defining gathering as a “conscious bringing together of people for a reason,” Parker’s book helped us choose a “bold, sharp purpose” for each neighborhood exploration and event: to vision and revision Milwaukee and its neighbors 20/20. Since the pandemic’s spread, however, we’ve all been forced to revise how and where we gather.
This year would have been the 5th anniversary of this Milwaukee Turners program. The launch of Jane’s Walk MKE in 2015 coincided with what would have been urban activist Jane Jacobs’ 100th birthday. The Milwaukee organizing committee joined an international movement in 20 countries and over 400 cities dedicated to changing the ways in which we see and experience our cities.
The full list of adventures is available at JanesWalkMKE.org and is available as a printable PDF, perfect for posting on one’s refrigerator or by the back door.
In lieu of its canceled May 1st kick-off at Turner Hall, which would have gathered over 250 people, the Jane’s Walk MKE committee is donating its entire kick-off budget to the Hunger Task Force, whose primary focus during the State of Emergency is to deliver targeted emergency food supplies within the community to well-equipped nonprofit organizations, schools and government institutions.
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