Joa'shaney Viera, 5, left, Joanne Borders (center) and Noreen Freeland pose for a photo at the community police resource center on West Princess Street in York. Freeland considers Borders her mentor. Vierra is one of the many neighborhood kids who frequents the York center. (DAILY RECORD/SUNDAY NEWS - BIL BOWDEN)

When Noreen Freeland settled in York's Salem Square neighborhood three years ago, she wanted to get involved in the community, but she wasn't sure how. Because Freeland struggles with back problems and a complex regional pain syndrome, she didn't know what she could contribute.

Her landlady suggested she talk with Joanne Borders, then a community mobilizer for the Salem Square Community Association.

Borders, who has her own health problems, encouraged Freeland to do what she could, even if it was simply talking with people about taking ownership of the neighborhood and maintaining a certain quality of life.

"Even if you're incapacitated, you can still do something," Borders told her.

So Freeland began attending neighborhood meetings. Today, she's a block leader and was recently elected to the neighborhood association's board of directors.

She's a member of the Elm Street Advisory Council for the west end. She has organized clean sweeps, assisted with National Night Out and completed a leadership training program. She secured speed limit and "children at play" signs for the streets and raised funds for a neighborhood block party.

The list goes on.

"Ms. Borders let me know that I can do almost anything I want, regardless of my disabilities," Freeland said. "She has shown me that there is always something we can do to make our community a better place."

Borders said, "We just talk about everything."

Freeland said it is because of Borders' mentoring that she has done things she lacked the self-confidence to attempt before: "She has taught me so much."