I spent this spring studying our city’s strengths. Here is what I found, and why it gave me hope.
Kamloops takes its name from the Secwépemctsín word for “where the rivers meet,” the confluence of the North and South Thompson at the heart of Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc territory. That meeting place is both the city’s beginning and a good way to picture what it can be: a place where communities, histories, and futures come together.
This spring I completed a report by that name, Where the Rivers Meet, a SOAR analysis of our city. SOAR stands for Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations, and Results. It is a strengths-based way of thinking about a community: it starts from what we already do well, asks what is possible, names what we hope to become, and sets out how we would know we are getting there. It grew out of a community visioning workshop this March, organized by Randy Sunderman and facilitated with real care by Tom Dickinson and Randy Sunderman, along with a wide base of public evidence.
What struck me most was the Strengths. We sometimes forget how much this city has going for it. A few that stood out: a remarkable location where highways, rail, and two rivers meet; one of the most diversified economies of any mid-sized city in Western Canada; Thompson Rivers University and its roughly 25,000 learners; a regional health hub at Royal Inland Hospital; a rich arts, culture, and volunteer life; a natural setting of rivers, trails, and big sky; the energy and contribution of newcomers; and a government-to-government partnership with Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc that is a genuine strength of national significance.
The report does not look away from the hard things. Housing, safety, and care are real challenges here, as they are in many growing cities. But SOAR insists that we meet them from strength rather than fear, and it points toward aspirations a whole community can share: a city where everyone has a safe and stable home, where reconciliation is lived and not just spoken, and where the city is designed for people at every stage of life. I wrote it as a living document and an invitation to think boldly about Kamloops, not as anyone’s manifesto.
It is also the reason I started SOAR Kamloops, a free 12-week summer celebration of the best of our city. The report names our strengths from the evidence. The challenge gathers them from you, in your own words, and turns them into a free, updated Welcome to Kamloops guide for everyone who calls this place home and for whoever arrives next.
You can read the full report here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EdCxAb5puv7lRzspc5lOxzqd0sDrPOZf/view?usp=sharing
Kamloops is strengthened by everyone who shows up for it.
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