May 12, 2021
GARDINER — When Katherine Kollman took her seat Monday in the empty bay of the Gardiner fire station, she became part of an initiative that’s expected to define a series of goals the community will be working toward over the next 10 years.
The United Way of Kennebec Valley has joined with leaders across the region in the Kennebec Valley Goal-Setting Council to focus attention around three areas of concern — health, education and financial stability for those who live and work in southern Kennebec County.
As a soon-to-be empty nester, Kollman said she’s interested in finding a different avenue to contribute to Gardiner, the community where she and her family have lived for two decades.
“We’re very involved in our community and the direction it’s taking,” Kollman said.
So Kollman spent about an hour and a half at the first of four public conversations intended to identify what’s good about the community, what can be improved and strategies that could be used to make those improvements.