Jun 6, 2022
Aaron Baker really loves small towns, particularly his small town of Atlanta, Missouri. He is an expert and community clean-up events, engaging help and funds, identifying creative ways to solve problems, and his enthusiasm and passion are infectious.
About Aaron
If you know anything about Aaron Baker, you know he is obsessed
with his small town. He’s also in constant motion to keep Atlanta,
Missouri moving forward.
Aaron will tell you his most important job is being a husband to
Erica and father to their four children. Then, he’ll tell you about
being the local 4-H Club leader. Aaron works form home in
government affairs and crisis communications for several Fortune
500 companies. Aaron says his real job subsidizes his habit of
loving his community.
Aaron also helps organize an annual Sunday morning workday at his
local church when the congregation leaves the church to be the
hands and feet of Christ in the community. This year, around 400
volunteers served on 24 teams in two counties to do volunteer work
outside of the church on a Sunday morning. This included more than
60 volunteers working in Atlanta on various projects.
On this episode, Aaron talks about motivating people in “micro
towns,” those communities that don’t have an Airbnb or a large
employer, but have people committed to improving the local quality
of life. Through small grants, fundraising and sweat equity, Aaron
has worked with others to keep his small town alive; this includes
about 100 locals that have volunteered for community workdays to
paint, landscape, clean-up and more. The Bakers help organize
annual events in the community to keep people connected to each
other and the local K-12 school, where Aaron is a school board
member. Each year, the Bakers also help organize and host events in
downtown Atlanta, where thousands of people gather throughout the
year for the area’s largest Easter Egg Hunt, the annual “Big
Wheels” event, and the town’s Homecoming Festival. Aaron has also
helped the city receive grant funds to demolish abandoned homes and
commercial buildings that have resulted in new homes being built
and young families moving back to the area.
One century ago, areas like this in North Missouri had twice the
population they do today; Aaron wants to reverse that trend.
On weekends, you can find Aaron spraying weeds around town or
mowing neighbors’ lawns that need a little help. Aaron will be the
first to admit he doesn’t have it all figured out, but he’s going
to keep working hard to keep his small town growing.
In this episode, we cover:
Links and Resources Mentioned:
To learn more, email Aaron Baker at abaker@cloutpublicaffairs.com
Episode 99 with Jeff Siegler: http://growingsmalltowns.show/99-how-to-combat-apathy-in-small-towns