Dear Santa,

As you know the village of Prospect and its surrounding area was settled over 250 years ago and today stands as a testament to the hard work and stamina of its original settlers and the generations that followed. Today however, we face a situation where the last community institution is facing an uncertain future. With the closure of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in July 2014, the community faces the possibility of the church and adjacent hall being sold and potentially demolished.

We feel that in order for Prospect and the surrounding area to continue to thrive for another 250 years, we need to maintain these important places for the benefit of the community – just as they have served the benefit of the Catholic community in the area since 1794.

Though we understand that a community is defined by its people and not its buildings, the church and hall are the only places where we are able to come together as neighbors to celebrate and support one another, to carry on the traditions of our village. While we value the religious history of these buildings, we see this important piece of community infrastructure as more than a place of religious worship – it is the heart and soul of our community.

There is a group of younger generation Prospectors that will always hold Prospect as “home” who are ready to do the work to keep these buildings open to the community – the Prospect Old Church Association (POCA). These young Prospectors have returned to the community to put down roots, wish to in the near future, or simply want their home to thrive. They want Prospect to continue to be a great place to live and raise their families.

The directors of POCA are part of the skilled young workforce demographic that is critical for the success of our community and the province writ large, as outlined in the One Nova Scotia/Ivany Report released earlier this year. The directors want to maintain and build on the strong sense of community and the preservation of the values, culture and the natural environment that we cherish in the Village so that Prospect continues to be a place where the young and old want to live and come back to.

As a community, we share in their vision to build a supportive and vibrant space where the strong sense of community that exists in Prospect can be fostered and the residents can be supported – where the young and old can congregate to celebrate, learn, socialize, and share. We support the Prospect Old Church Association and its mission to take action and try and save these important pieces of our community.

Santa, all we want for Christmas is your help saving our church and hall!