Moving is more than unpacking boxes, painting and hanging pictures, and Colleen Stevens has discovered some hints for settling into a community.
The only time the Stevens lived in a community where they had existing ties was the year and a half they spent in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where Jason is from.
"Moving and moving and moving, you lose that social network and that's hard," Colleen says.
In California, Colleen met friends through work. In Utah, she used the website meetup.com. In Waconia, Minn., she taught a community education crochet class at a coffee shop.
In every city, her kids help ingratiate the family into the neighborhood. "They're always walking into people's homes," she says, laughing.
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She's learned to ask around about local Bunco groups, and just go knock on doors.
Here, the Stevens plan to have a "fire pit challenge," inviting the neighbors to come over, challenging them to come out and socialize.
Realtor Kelly Mapes says she gives Fargo-Moorhead newcomers a tour of the cities, and refers to a laminated copy of The Forum's annual "Best Of" publication. She hones in on their interests, whether it's church, sports, the bar scene or youth activities.
"Once they find those things, they meet families with the same interests," Mapes says.
Organizer Deb Williams says the easiest way to get settled into a new community is to move forward with the same interests you had in the old community.
Ask anyone you meet for references, whether for a dentist or hair stylist or dry cleaner. Don't wait for people to come knocking on your door, she says.
"Put yourself out there to participate as fully as you can," Williams says.
