Feeling the Casey love

AS THE slogans go, New Yorkers ‘Love NY’ as do the burghers of Frankston love their town.
Now add to the list City of Casey – with a social-media hashtag.
The pay-it-forward campaign Casey – Love This City is the brainchild of Casey City Church pastor Larry Sebastian and wife Christa.
Mr Sebastian hopes this goodwill message for random acts of kindness – which has the blessing of Casey Council – is about to go viral.
Casey, with its high levels of family violence, suicide and vandalism, is symptomatic of something wrong in the social fabric.
There’s a lack of respect for ourselves, others and where we live, he said.
“(Love this City) promotes that each one of us have a significant part in our city.
“When we see someone in difficulty, we want to do something about it – those values have been lost.”
One example is embracing the wave of migrants settling in Casey, some fleeing violence and adjusting to new freedoms.
Helping others is not a one-way street, though, Mr Sebastian said.
“They must be willing to embrace our values and what we’re really all about.
“But we can’t tell someone coming in that you should follow us. We need to come alongside them.”
As for what Mr Sebastian loves about Casey, he talks of the great facilities, council leaders, services and the mix of cultures in the community.
At the forefront of the campaign will be its ambassador and former Casey mayor Shar Balmes.
Ms Balmes said she didn’t have to think twice in accepting the role. Those were values she already held dear, she said.
Mr Sebastian knows this is a long haul.
The next step was to promote concrete examples of what people could do in their neighbourhoods and workplaces and post videos on social media that asks random people what love looks like to them.
Its success may be difficult to measure.
As Mr Sebastian puts it, this is just one of the vehicles to turn things around.