Entering Levittown at the end of the 50th Anniversary celebrations has been an interesting experience for me. People tell me that community spirit has been at an all-time high for the past year, which got me wondering what Levittown is like ordinarily. I have really enjoyed being introduced to the town while morale is so high, but have wondered if that will all just fade off now that it is a new year.
That question was effectively answered for me this week as I attended the first meeting of the Community Council. I realized just how much this town does care about community pride and morale. These sentiments were not something that were just pulled out every 10 years for an anniversary. The residents of Levittown obviously care enough to make a commitment to making sure that the community continues to thrive, not only during anniversaries, but all the time.
The formation of the Community Council is not the only example that I have seen of community pride. The outcry over an article which may not have portrayed one of the district's schools in the best light has shown me just how much the residents of Levittown care about every aspect of their town. It has been amazing to see how students have reacted to that article and have made many efforts to show how great their school really is. That gives an indication of the future of Levittown and how those students will try, in the future, to not only protect the image of their school, but their community as well. This community pride in the younger generation is what will help keep it strong even when there isn't an anniversary to celebrate. Add that to the fact that the school board has made a commitment to making sure that all the schools in the district thrive and there is a clear indication that by the time the time capsule is opened in 2047, Levittown will be a community that has proven itself to the rest of Long Island over and over again.
At the Community Council meeting one young woman stood up and told everyone what a dream town Levittown was for her growing up because she used to come here to visit members of her family and how now her dream of living here has come true. Levittown started out as a representation of the American Dream, where young families could afford to buy their own houses and live in a safe neighborhood. For some people this is still what Levittown represents. With attitudes such as the one expressed at the meeting, by that particular young woman and by other members of the community, it seems as though Levittown is once again a place where people are moving in to realize their 'American Dream.'
-S.T.
