LEWISTON – Proud? Of course.

Diverse? Increasingly so.

However residents of Lewiston now have a new, hard-earned adjective with which to refer to themselves: All-American.

The city was recently named as one of 10 2007 All-America cities by the National Civic League during a presentation in honored in Anaheim, Calif.

City officials and jubilant volunteers were on hand at the Ramada Inn on Thursday night to celebrate the title and honor those who helped reach it.

Mayor Laurent Gilbert Sr. recognized Lewiston as “The All-American City we know we have been for years.”

Laurent also thanked the committed volunteers who stuck with the project after failing to make the cut in 2006. “Two years of effort are being recognized here tonight; last year’s group laid the foundation for this to happen.”

“This goes a long way to restore pride and fight the negative image that Lewiston didn’t deserve,” said City Administrator Jim Bennett.

City Councilor Norm Rousseau, a driving force behind the project, described the sense of pride the award gave him. “We have been recognized not as a perfect city, but as a city that tries to improve itself,” he said. “Lewiston could have faded from mill town to ghost town, but we picked ourselves up and moved forward, and our future is looking brighter.”

Ally Beaucage of the Lewiston Youth Advisory Council expressed the sense of accomplishment the award gave her.

“We gave Lewiston the chance to prove itself,” she said.

The Youth Advisory Council was recognized by many as an important factor in Lewiston’s success. “We thank the leadership and drive the Youth Council provided,” said Bennett.

Criteria for the All-America City award requires a city to address communitywide challenges in order to prove itself. Lewiston showed examples of achievements in its Youth Advisory program, tax preparation for low-income residents, and the Lots to Gardens program, the latter which was represented Thursday night by its coordinator, Kirsten Walter.

“You have a real capacity to give to yourself and your community,” Walter said, “A city is not a static thing; it’s going to require constant reflection and commitment to advance the city.”

A video that the committee submitted to award judges can be viewed at the city’s Web site at www.ci.lewiston.me.us.