Pride of place: Celebrating our faces, places and spaces

NADJA FLEET: Today, Messenger Launches Love Local to celebrate and support your community, its economy and local business; the faces, places and spaces.

Port Noarlunga Jetty at sunset, but look closer and it’s the local faces that unite to make this image.

WHEN my family and I moved to a new suburb in Adelaide about three years ago, it didn’t take long to meet the neighbours.

There was the couple with two children, one the same age as my daughter, across the road. There was another couple, expecting their first child, right next door to them. There was the real estate agent who sold us our beloved house living next to us. And then there was the young couple down the street who also just moved in to the neighbourhood.

In all fairness, it wasn’t us knocking on people’s doors to get to know them. Instead, it was our inquisitive labrador, who decided to wander into a different yard each time he managed to escape while we were at work, that helped us connect with our neighbourhood. As much as it was a headache to constantly fix holes in our, let’s say “rustic”, fence in an attempt to put an end to the four-legged escapee’s day trips, I’m glad he instigated the connections we now have with our neighbours.

Mosaic gallery: your faces, your community

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We regularly help each other out. We mind each other’s children and keep an eye on each other’s homes when one is on vacation. We swap groceries and lend tools when in need. And we regularly catch up to have a chat and a laugh with a glass of wine in hand and a roast in the barbecue. Love Local is so much more than just about buying local. As my predecessor and one of the masterminds of this campaign, Jessica Leo-Kelton, pointed out: “It’s about places, faces and spaces” — the places we shop at; the faces we meet and the public spaces we enjoy.

Love Local aims to celebrate and support your community, its economy and local business; the people and places. As part of our Love Local campaign we want to hear from you about what you love about your local area, whether it’s your favourite park or sporting club, cafe or local character. So read the stories, leave your comments and email us your story tips to [e-mail]

I’m very proud to be part of a campaign that celebrates what makes our community, our sanctuary, the great place that it is. Messenger truly loves local. We strive to be the voice of our community. And, thanks to our outstanding storytelling abilities, this campaign is going to help us further instil pride in the place we all call home.

As part of this movement, we want to hear from you about what you love about your local area, whether it’s your favourite park, the best place for a cup of coffee or a person who has made your community a better one.

Read the stories, visit adelaidenow.com.au/messenger/lovelocal for the latest updates and to have your say and feel free to email us your story tips to [e-mail]

As part of this launch we also asked you to send us your headshot. If you look on the cover of your local Messenger today (November 8) you’ll see why.

Up close you’ll see hundreds of local faces, from small business owners and children to sports stars and councillors - some of the people who live, work and make your pocket of Adelaide so special.

But step back a few paces and the faces unite to make one image that represents your community.

Mosaic gallery: your faces, your community

VIEW GALLERY

Nadja Fleet is Messenger’s Editor-in-chief