Curtis Sheets
Chief, Wintergreen Fire & Rescue
As almost everyone knows, I'm usually the person writing the Facebook posts on the Wintergreen Fire and Rescue account. (If you're a Facebook user, check us out. If you are not a Facebook user, you can see these posts on the WPOA's website news page.) Like almost every user of Facebook, I like it and I hate it.
I have fun with Facebook, and it's useful in keeping our staff, volunteers, and the community (both nearby and otherwise) posted on what's happening here.
“I hate Facebook (and other social media such as Twitter and Nextdoor) because too many people are not careful with what they say.”
I hate Facebook (and other social media such as Twitter and Nextdoor) because too many people are not careful with what they say. There is too much speculation and too much guessing. And much of what is posted is misleading because it is incomplete or inaccurate. Too often people are seeing wrong information and then become upset unnecessarily. I've always believed that negative energy is energy wasted.
I recently visited the local Nextdoor channel and I was disturbed by all of the bad information about Wintergreen. Some of what I've seen posted on social media locally appeared to be intentionally misleading. That's a common gripe about social media. But it might be surprising for you to hear that even Wintergreen suffers the common problems of misinformation on social media. Believe it, it's a problem.
My two appeals to our community regarding social media:
1. Be suspicious of what you read about Wintergreen on all unofficial social media posts. Well-meaning people are making mistakes by speculating or being misinformed. From my recent survey of what I saw in our area's Nextdoor newsfeed, I estimated over half of the posts regarding Wintergreen had issues, some serious. (BTW: WPOA and Wintergreen Resort are two completely different companies.)
2. If you post on social media about what's going on at Wintergreen, do not speculate, do not assume. The real world is complex, and generalizations are often misleading. Remember that Murphy's Law–anything that can go wrong will go wrong–applies to you.
“If you’re reading something on Nextdoor or Facebook about Wintergreen that concerns you, check it out before repeating it.”
If you're reading something on Nextdoor or Facebook about Wintergreen that concerns you, check it out before repeating it. Remember, nobody actually works for Nextdoor Stoney Creek. Therefore, if you ask a question there, any keyboard warrior can say anything with very little if any accountability. If in doubt, check it out. Even if you think you know, check it out.
It’s not difficult to get the facts about what's what at Wintergreen.
First, the WPOA website (WTGpoa.org) has evolved to become a very good resource to check out long-established policies and procedures. It's not widely known, but the WPOA website now has an extraordinary search engine that not only searches the WPOA website, but also Fire and Rescue, Wintergreen Police, and other Wintergreen community websites. Find it at the bottom of almost every page of the WPOA website.
Seeking information on what's happening now at Wintergreen? Send an email. The "contacts" page on the WPOA website has a very complete list of email addresses.
The WPOA contacts page has phone numbers, too. In my opinion, often your best bet to get answers about WPOA is to make a phone call. You might have to leave a message, but you'll get a callback. When you leave a message with me at 434-325-8536, no matter where I am, I'm going to receive your message. If you have left a message about something that can easily be handled by the on-duty staff at our stations, with a few clicks on my smartphone, I can get you a response quickly.
Fire/Rescue operations at Wintergreen are a 24/7 operation. Even if you leave a message at 9 pm on a Sunday, there's a good chance you’ll get a return call right away. That's not a promise, but it is probable. Your voicemails are time-stamped and archived. This allows us at Fire/Rescue to easily track constituent concerns and make certain they're handled in a timely and appropriate fashion. Your call will not be ignored. When in doubt, call the Wintergreen Police dispatcher. They're trained to answer both emergency and non-emergency calls. The non-emergency number is 434-325-1106
Once you have used these resources to gather facts about Wintergreen, you can form your own opinions–and then go at it on social media if that's your thing. Informed opinions can be a blessing. Uninformed opinions and speculation are a liability. Remember, negative energy is energy wasted.
This article first appeared in the Wintergreen Valley Association’s Spring Informer newsletter.