Define "Home" In Allen

The question seems directed to elicit what attribute(s) I value in Allen as my home. To that I’d answer growing diversity and the development of outdoor offerings: trails and parks.

For me home is safety, love, and a place where I can grow my family, build a future, and find a sanctuary. Home in Allen means peace and security, a place where I know my children, family and friends are safe. It’s a community free from drugs and violence, filled with beautiful trails, parks, people, and recreation for everyone

Home is where everyone can feel accepted and included. A place that provides for your needs currently, and that you feel will meet your needs in the future as your age and life experiences change

Home in Allen is the safe feeling we get when we visit the different parks, stores and venues in the town. In spring we have the Blue Bonnets, Summer brings the many parks and recreation facilities we have, Fall brings Football and winter...Hockey. The many sounds of children at parks and festivals, the lights at our stadium for the many games played their and the proud parents at graduation.

Home is where I feel welcomed and have a support system, whether it's family, friends or neighbors and businesses frequented. Home is a place I have pride in, and want to take care of.

Unlike some communities to our west, I feel Allen has maintained a more hometown feel. Urbanization and growth are inevitable and this is the case for not only Allen but the entire area, which will continue. However, maintaining a hometown feel with the downtown area hopefully being brought back to life.

Home is a place that warms your heart. A safe place where you can rest, relax, feel happy. Home is where your community is helpful, takes pride in their homes, their schools, our police and firefighters, the kinds of businesses we can support and adds value to our quality of life. Home is a where we have first rate hospitals and medical services. Home is where we have strong leadership whose primary goal is to focus on our community, manage growth responsibly and thoughtful of the impact (including roads, sidewalks, green spaces) to those who reside here now as well as those who may choose to move here in the future.

It's a feeling of belonging. One town, one school. It's the sounds and experiences....a train rumbling through town, a stadium's lights and a football whistle, is the loss of dear friends with shared purpose, its a community of shared purpose, looking out for each other and supporting each other. Over time that feeling has been replaced by bigger, noiser, louder experiences. We need more focus of pockets of quiet spaces in time to be still and happy. We can be Allen!

Riding bikes on the trails in Allen or taking a nice walk through the parks, eating dinner with friends at local restaurants, and going to see the Allen Americans win some hockey games.

To me, Home in Allen is "Community" which consists of your good friends you have known since you moved here, but which also includes the new friends that you make continuously over time. It also includes your neighbors, whether that is in your neighborhood or beyond. Home also includes the activities that you participate in over time such as youth and adult sports, recreation centers, walking, running or cycling on our hike and bike trails, church activities, volunteer work for any of the multiple opportunities that we have in Allen (quite a few, no person left out on these by the way), raising kids, participating in school sponsored activities and sports, expressing your opinions to our governing bodies to let them know what we think about the direction we should be headed, and enjoying the other amenities and programs (Quality of Life) that are so abundant in Allen.