The latitude for the cities of the Androscoggin may never change, but the attitude of the people who live in these cities sure can. And for good reason.

Androscoggin County is safe, scenic, centrally located and holding steady in the job market.

Sound like a chamber of commerce pitch? It is.

Since February, Androscoggin County Chamber President Chip Morrison has been presenting the chamber’s latest pitch of the county’s attributes in the form of a narrated PowerPoint presentation.

The 30-minute presentation is the work of the chamber’s Regional Image Development Committee, and is an impressive effort to consolidate and highlight all that is good in Androscoggin County.

Jan Barrett, owner of the Ware Street Inn and a member of the image committee, really hopes the presentation gets a wide local audience. She said it’s easy to convince people “from away” to visit Androscoggin County because they’re looking for a destination that has museums, restaurants, outdoor recreation, hotels and other amenities. Androscoggin County has all that, but Barrett said it saddens her to know that too many people who actually live and work here don’t appreciate the area in the same way that visitors do.

She hopes the chamber’s work can change that, and that the people who call Androscoggin County home can fully appreciate what’s in their backyard.

The newest fixture in that backyard is the 2,500-acre Androscoggin Riverlands State Park that stretches along the Androscoggin River in Turner and Leeds. It’s been 30 years since Maine established a new state park, and this one is just glorious.

The location of the river invites paddlers and anglers, but there are miles of walking, hiking and biking trails that are easy to get to and are just a short drive from the downtowns in Lewiston and Auburn.

According to the chamber’s research:

* Recent Uniform Crime Reports rank Lewiston-Auburn as the 28th safest metropolitan area of its size in the country.

* The unemployment rate is lower than the state average and significantly lower than the national average.

* According to the Milken Institute, Lewiston-Auburn’s growth of high-tech production is 12 percent above the national average, well outpacing similar figures in Portland and Bangor.

* The Twin Cities, despite the recession, have boosted a number of development projects, including the TD Bank customer service center in Auburn, the 100-room Marriott Residence Inn, the Bedard Medical Campus project under construction in Lewiston, Baxter Brewing and expansions at the hospitals.

* The Twin Cities recently hosted the inaugural Lewiston-Auburn Film Festival, just one of dozens of annual festivals held here, including the Great Falls Balloon Festival, the L-A Greek Festival, Festival FrancoFun and the Liberty Fest.

* There are nine golf courses in the Lewiston-Auburn area, among other popular recreational centers, including Lost Valley Ski Area, the Nordic Ski Club, Maine Cycling Club, Taylor Pond Yacht Club, Mount Apatite and the largest bird sanctuary in New England at Thorncrag.

* Lewiston-Auburn is home to four colleges, and the cities’ public schools boast the highest early college participation rate in the state.

That’s a summary, but we also have a major junior hockey team, tremendously competitive high school sports, a busy charter airport and busier intermodal facility, art galleries, museums, Saints Peter and Paul Basilica and the Great Falls.

Androscoggin County is also considered the gateway to the western lakes and mountains region of Maine, where there are unlimited recreational opportunities and postcard-quality vistas. It’s not the coast; it’s better than that.

Twenty years ago, Androscoggin County residents fought to open the L-A College campus. A decade ago, we fought for regulatory approval of the Central Maine Heart and Vascular Institute. And, we fight for better schools, safer streets and better jobs every single day because, if we’re not going to fight for ourselves, who will?

And if we’re not going to be our own best and loudest cheerleaders about the quality of life here, we certainly can’t expect others to step in and do the job. That’s our job. This is our home.

It’s not perfect, but it’s definitely worth fighting for and cheering about.

Morrison said he would accept any and all offers to present the chamber’s “image” pitch, so we invite you take him up on that. It’ll make you glad you live here.

Call him at 783-2249.

[email protected]

The opinions expressed in this column reflect the views of the ownership and editorial board.