City of Hampton, Community & International Relations

All America City

Nation´s most prestigious civic award

At a presentation in Kansas City, Mo. on June 15, Hampton was selected from among 30 finalists as an All-America City. The All-America City award is the nation´s longest running and most prestigious civic recognition program. Previously named an All-America City in 1972, Hampton is the only community in the region to receive this honor for a second time.

The Hampton delegation was awarded a plaque at the ceremony naming Hampton an All-America City. The plaque states: "In recognition of achievement through citizen action."

Hampton and other winners of the All-America City received special recognition at a program hosted by President and Mrs. Bush at the White House.

About the Award

The All-America City Award, a 53-year-old program of the National Civic League recognizing civic excellence, annually honors 10 communities that best exemplify the spirit of grassroots citizen involvement and cross-sector collaborative problem solving. Since the program began in 1949, more than 4,000 communities (neighborhoods, cities, towns, counties, and regions) have competed and nearly 500 communities have been named All-America Cities.

During the National Civic League conference in Kansas City, a community delegation from Hampton presented to a 10-member jury the problems addressed by and successful outcomes of the three innovative programs featured in the application:

Healthy Families Partnership
Y.H. Thomas Community Center
Youth-Community Oriented Policing Effort (Y-COPE)

"We are very proud and excited that Hampton was named an All-America City award winner. Ours is a city in which citizens work hand-in-hand with local government, the business community, and a variety of organizations to find solutions to our problems and to make Hampton a great place to live. Being a winner of this prestigious award from the National Civic League recognizes and honors the efforts of all citizens of Hampton. We´ll be using this recognition to celebrate and to foster community pride, and to help market Hampton to potential businesses and newcomers." Quote from Mamie E. Locke

Questions:

Why is Hampton an All-America City?

The city takes great pride in the fact that, as we address civic challenges, there is so much interaction between our city government and our citizens. Often, we simply take this for granted because it is an ingrained part of our culture. But the reality is that, yes, we are special, we do work well together, we do achieve results, and we have many things to celebrate.

What does it mean to be an All-America City?

The award signifies that Hampton is a community where city government and the citizens work together to solve problems.

Can you give examples?

Three specific programs were highlighted at the All-America City conference, but there are many more as well. The three that were highlighted include:
Y. H. Thomas Community Center - At citizens' request, the city renovated a closed, junior high school and turned it into a community center. The center is staffed by community volunteers who donate thousands of hours of their time.
Y-COPE (Youth-Community Oriented Policing Effort) - A successful partnership between youth, Alternatives, Inc. (a non-profit youth development agency), neighborhood organizations and Hampton Police Division. Y-COPE brings young people and police officers into casual, non-confrontational contact through work, play and community projects. The program brought about a 50 percent drop in violent crime rates in one of the neighborhoods where it is offered.
Healthy Families Partnership - This community partnership offers parenting classes, family support services and the libraries' Young Family Centers "to ensure that every child in Hampton is born healthy and enters school ready to learn." About 25 local restaurants offer a free dinner at classes that range from ways to be a dynamic dad to skills for parents of teen-agers

How else do our community and city government partner to solve challenges?

Thousands of citizens partner with government, in a variety of ways. They do this by serving on commissions, helping with neighborhood community projects, and more. For a list of some examples, see below.

How can I become a part of this exciting process?

If you'd like to become a part of our citizen involvement team, call the Neighborhood Office at 727-6460 and they will provide you with a list of opportunities. As a citizen in Hampton, you can take pride - well-deserved pride - that you are living in an All-America City!