Hickory Nut Gorge Community Covenant

In the Spring and Summer of 2016, the Chamber of Hickory Nut Gorge and the Hickory Nut Gorge Foundation invited all community members to participate in a series of public forums to develop a Community Covenant for the Hickory Nut Gorge region.

The purpose of the Hickory Nut Gorge Community Covenant is to serve as a guide and reminder that a strong and healthy community is built on strong and healthy relationships. Strong and healthy relationships depend on the ability to listen to one another in a respectful way and for leaders and citizens to be honest about their intentions.

Our community leaders, whether in government, organizational, business, religious or educational roles, are responsible for making decisions that are in the best interest of all concerned. Making decisions for a community is not always easy, especially when opinions differ.

We recognize that with the rights we possess as citizens of this mightily endowed region, come responsibilities. Certainly one of those responsibilities is to engage in only civil and respectful public discourse that genuinely seeks the truth and best outcomes for our Community.

This Covenant is meant to promote a united community spirit.

We, the citizens of Hickory Nut Gorge, thereby resolve to:

• Honor and abide by each organization’s meeting guidelines

• Focus on the issue at hand

• Use facts to make the point

• Be polite, objective, and respectful.