Village News

It is 2024 and we are losing our villages. We live in a world of large cities and a world of digital interconnection like never before. But is it enough? Is the global village enough? Is it ok if our villages are only digital? Afterall, digital connections with people are easy, help us connect with family, colleagues, and experts around the world. They save us money on long-distance calls, travel, and postage. Our largest social media platform is called Facebook, two very traditional wholesome words. However, I would argue that nothing can take the place of face-to-face relationships.

Traditional cultures have helpful wisdom when it comes to our current village displacement and well-being. In Techless, Cami Laughman writes about the Japanese concept of gemba: “The word ‘gemba’ in Japanese means ‘the actual place’ or ‘the real place.’ In a business or manufacturing setting, it refers to the location where work is happening, such as a factory floor, a shop floor, or any place where value is created or where a problem or process is occurring. The phrase ‘get to the gemba’ emphasizes the importance of physically going to the place where work is being done or a problem is occurring to gain a firsthand understanding of the situation. It encourages managers, leaders, and employees to leave their offices and engage directly with the workers or processes on the ground. By doing so, they can observe, gather information, ask questions, and identify opportunities for improvement or problem-solving.”

Gemba also applies to our social lives too. How often has an on-going problem with a friend been helped by texting or by ignoring it? It is usually best to get to the heart of the matter and resolve hard issues in the gemba, face-to-face.

At Mennonite Heritage Village (MHV), we are digitizing our membership process, our artefacts database and have virtual tours of MHV exhibits for those that can’t visit our village. However, nothing will replace the actual MHV, our gemba. It is one thing to read about history, to watch documentaries, but to be in-person and walk in the same housebarns that our ancestors lived in, to taste the food that sustained them and come close to the open Bible that probably helped them decide 150 years ago to move to Canada and start a new life, a new village. These cannot be replaced.

Today, as I walked through our gallery, I looked up. I had never noticed a set of large photos on one of the walls. I slowed down. The chest in front of me opened and inside were several items that Mennonites had packed when they came to Canada. ‘What would you put in there?’ my friend asked. My imagination whirled. There is so much to learn from and experience in this place. For those who feel drawn to understanding what brings families to move around the globe and strive to hold on to their cultural values, visiting the gallery at MHV should be an annual pilgrimage.

In 2024, we want to take MHV off the endangered village list. Our plan is to have a three-year campaign to remove our debts (interest rates are really hurting our bottom line), build our endowment and complete several special projects. Currently, we are doing a major feasibility study on our 33-year-old gallery to see how it can be redesigned for the next generation to tell new stories that have come to light since the early 1990s.

Please continue to visit and support the gembas of your life. The real places where you come from, the real places your ancestors survived, and that are being held safe for you. At MHV this is our sacred trust, however, it is up to you to take time to disconnect from the digital village and come down to your real village, your gemba.