WANTED: ‘Burg Ambassadors
Published in the World Journal, April 23th, 2026 Issue
How are you representing your ‘burg? When I’m out and about in the world, I frequently end up talking about where I’m from and what Walsenburg has to offer. I was talking to another ‘burger and found that she was also a self-appointed ‘burg ambassador. Here’s a few examples of what I’m talking about here:
Them: “Walsenburg? Where is that?” Me: “You haven’t heard of Walsenburg! It’s beautiful—less than an hour south of Pueblo—we’ve got amazing public art, a beautiful state park, you should visit sometime!” Them: “Oh. …Walsenburg,” but they are saying it with that little face and that little nod that tells me that they are at once surprised and pitying me for living somewhere like that. Me: “We love it—couldn’t live anywhere else. Ya know, I’ve lived in five states and two countries and I never found anywhere quite like it.”
These, of course, are specific to my experiences and my ‘burg—but you get the gist. You won’t catch a bad word out of my mouth in those conversations.
Small rural communities get warped in public opinion all on their own. We end up being known for all of the worst things about them.
Don’t fuel that fire, fight against it. Here’s how you do it:
1. Identify what it is you love. You won’t convince anyone if you don’t believe what you are saying. Beliefs can be nuanced like, I love our downtown and there are way too many weeds and a lot of businesses are closed. The belief and the message don’t have to be identical. We’ll get to that later.
2. Bring up your ‘burg! You can’t brag on your hometown if you aren’t talking about it. The act of announcing proudly where you’re from is already telling. No one in the last five years has “found out” that I’m from Walsenburg. It generally comes up within five minutes of chatting.
3. Spin, baby, spin. If you say to someone “I love our downtown, but there are way too many weeds and a lot of businesses are closed,” all they will hear is, “our downtown is covered in weeds.” That’s not the message! These conversations with strangers are for cherishing the good. Work on the bad within the community, where people understand the nuance and already share the love.
Maybe this helps, maybe it doesn’t. Regardless, I hope you show your ‘burg some love next time you are out in the world. No one else will do it for us.
