European national beautification programs provided the inspiration for Communities in Bloom in Canada . The Canadian program began twenty-one years ago with twenty-nine Canadian communities , and has grown to over 100 national participants and hundreds of municipalities .
Communities in Bloom is more than a beauty contest . The word ‘ bloom ’ is defined as a state or time of high development or achievement . CiB helps a community to bloom by boosting civic pride and community involvement , encouraging continuous improvement throughout the community , preserving the community`s natural and cultural heritage , exchanging ideas and enjoying cultural expression , increasing community property values , fostering environmental awareness and stewardship , attracting tourists , enhancing the visual appeal of neighbourhoods and public spaces , and engaging citizens and agencies in acting together to grow flowers and friendships .
Volunteers who are chosen as CiB judges bring various strengths to their position such as horticultural knowledge and experience , community development skills , civic government history , experience in evaluation or judging , journalistic expertise and report writing skills . The coordinator skilfully matches judges with complementary strengths to provide communities with the best possible judging experience and evaluation report .
Every summer , volunteer judges evaluate municipalities on six key criteria : tidiness , environmental action , heritage conservation , urban forestry , landscape and floral displays . The principle of community involvement is so fundamental to the program that it is evaluated within each criterion .
After visiting a community , two judges work together to evaluate the community on these criteria , by giving a numerical score that will translate into the number of blooms awarded . They will also choose a special mention and provide a comprehensive document that includes their observations and suggestions that will help build vibrant and sustainable communities .
It is very important to note that communities are not really judged against each other .
Instead , each community is judged against its potential , that is , what is the community doing with what they have . To a retired teacher like Lorna McIlroy , the evaluation is just like a giant school report card .
When judging provincially , the judges have trained together and are already familiar with each other . However , when judging nationally or internationally , Lorna smiles as she divulges how she will meet a strange man at an airport and will then spend all her daylight hours with him over the next two or three weeks .
As a legacy project for the 100th anniversary of the City of Grande Prairie in 2014 , one hundred city parks were named for people who have assisted in the growth and development of Grande Prairie . Lorna was one of these people . She was surprised , humbled and enormously honoured when a beautiful new park in a developing subdivision was named Lorna McIlroy Park . The citation recognized her many years of service on a city committee now known as the Community Enhancement Advisory Committee . It also honoured her work with the local garden club and community garden , her role with the Alberta Horticultural Association and , of course , her service for the past decade as a provincial , national and international judge for Communities in Bloom .
Communities in Bloom in Alberta has been coordinated by the Alberta Recreation and Parks Association ( ARPA ) since 2006 . More information is available online at www . cib . arpaonline . ca news & views SUMMER 2015 | 31