Monday, June 30, 2008
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Final Review Graduation Questions
Horizons Community Graduation Interview and Debrief
1. Look back over the past 18 months and think about all that you did in the Horizons program. Would you do it again (or recommend that the community do it again) knowing what you know now? Why or why not?
YES, Trout Lake would do it again. There is a big time commitment to fulfilling the project but the rewards for community pride and spirit are worth it.
2. What was the best part of the Horizons program?
For Trout Lake it was the Study Circles; gathering together to praise the value of living in Trout Lake and helping to guide the future.
3. What was the most difficult or challenging part of the Horizons program?
Getting others on board and then to commit.
4. What was the biggest mistake or missed opportunity of the last 18 months in Horizons? How would you avoid it in the future?
We should have gone right into the Visioning immediately after the Community Forum at the end of Study Circles and then had Leadership Plenty after that. We had no response to Leadership Plenty on the first try.
5. If someone moved away two years ago (before Horizons) and came back to town today, what kinds of changes in the community, if any, would they see? A rejuvenated Grange Hall as a Community Center, now open for many community events; A Community Bulletin Board on the porch rail of the Grange Hall/Community Center; New people in leadership roles; Forward thinking, “can-do” attitude.
6. Of all the things you have done during the last 18 months in the Horizons program, of what are you most proud? Study Circles, the community dialog, the Community Forum. What could be done to insure that other communities get to achieve the same thing? Get respected, established, leaders involved in the project with some as leaders of Study Circles.
5. Horizons is a community leadership program focused on poverty reduction. What is the evidence that people in your community see poverty as a serious issue? One does not associate “poverty” with “Trout Lake” and yet we discovered through Horizons that we DO have families and children in financial poverty AND the community has social and sustenance needs that are not being answered. Are you working seriously at reducing poverty? The establishment of a Community Information Center at the Grange Hall/Community Center was a first step in getting information out to the public about available community opportunities. A Trout Lake YELLOW PAGES was published and included in the Annual Town Fair Booklet. A Trout Lake blog site has been established to further disseminate community information.
6-10.We’d like you to be very candid about your work with Ava Van Velsor and Linda Williams. What was it like to work with us/them? What did they do here? How could Linda and Ava have been of more help to you here? What could they do differently? What should they provide that they did not? What difference did it make to work with Ava and Linda? Could you have done (implemented) this program without their help? What would be different if they had not been involved? Ava and Linda were highly influential to our success in Horizons. They provided needed information, forms, and materials and checked and double checked to be sure we had what we needed. To have all the materials provided right down to refreshments, child/elder care, and gas cards made the project more do-able with no out-of-pocket expenses. When we reached low spots, especially with Leadership Plenty, they carried us through, obtained more acceptable deadline dates, and lots of encouragement. Their leadership was firm but friendly and sincere. There was no doubt that they wanted us to succeed. They did some wonderful editing of the reports we provided. The project had so many valuable spin-offs which allowed us to attend Small Community forums, speakers, and workshops that would have easily passed us by without their omnipresent emails!! Their friendly reminders of deadlines kept our goals in front of us and deadlines met. I know I speak for all of Trout Lake in expressing our appreciation to Ava and Linda for keeping us on track and on task through to the successful end of this project!
11. Will the community continue the work you started in Horizons? We have the confidence we need; we have discovered new leadership; we have a sense of community pride; we have more knowledge about available grant money and the skill and resources to make successful applications; we WILL continue the work started by Horizons!! What will you need to make sure that happens? We have already experienced new leadership that has a passion for a certain community betterment project and is willing to put their passion into action. Some of these folks will carry out large assignments; some will carry out small assignments; some will follow. It will be important for us to have projects of some size to work on together for the next five years to keep the momentum going; to keep the confidence up; to keep the community pride going. There still are some leaders in the business community that need to “buy in” (not literally) to the concept of planned community growth and what it can mean to their business. We found many of these folks were so busy with their business that they did not have time for community action at a major level. We need to get the school administration, youth, and lead teachers involved in future community improvement projects.
12. If you were talking to someone from another community who is thinking about participating in Horizons, what would you tell them? I would encourage them to find a few leaders who will be dedicated to the time needed to succeed. What would you tell them was the most important thing that happened in your community because of Horizons? The community dialog, on a positive, “can-do” attitude, which reflected the “good” things about our community on which we want to build the future. What do you think might happen in the future? Trout Lake is a great place to live and, as more people are finding out about what life could be like here, we are going to experience continued growth. I think the Horizons project gave us tools to guide and plan this growth. We probably will never be a “large” town because the value of the organic agriculture and dairy is well established on well-planned large parcels of land. However, our Planning Commission has allowed for development on non-agricultural which will probably lead to smaller lots and more affordable housing. Trout Lake will always be a community with a lot of pride and will see to it that it remains that way in the future.
13. Put on your big picture hat. What difference does it make in the state or the region that (23) small, rural communities participated in Horizons? I think the usual “small, rural community” mind set is “Oh, we can’t do that—it’s never been done that way—and besides, who cares?” Well, now these 23 communities know better. The Northwest Foundation cares; the WSU Extension Service cares; and now the people in each of these communities care as well. This is sure to make for a healthier financial, social, psychological, and physiological rural strength for the State of Washington. I believe this will have a big impact on the “Green” life that will be our future.
Respectfully submitted by,
Trout Lake Steering Committee
Doug Anderson, Co-Chair, Nina Pochna, Co-Chair, Ray Thygesen, Founding Co-Chair, Dorothy Franklin
1. Look back over the past 18 months and think about all that you did in the Horizons program. Would you do it again (or recommend that the community do it again) knowing what you know now? Why or why not?
YES, Trout Lake would do it again. There is a big time commitment to fulfilling the project but the rewards for community pride and spirit are worth it.
2. What was the best part of the Horizons program?
For Trout Lake it was the Study Circles; gathering together to praise the value of living in Trout Lake and helping to guide the future.
3. What was the most difficult or challenging part of the Horizons program?
Getting others on board and then to commit.
4. What was the biggest mistake or missed opportunity of the last 18 months in Horizons? How would you avoid it in the future?
We should have gone right into the Visioning immediately after the Community Forum at the end of Study Circles and then had Leadership Plenty after that. We had no response to Leadership Plenty on the first try.
5. If someone moved away two years ago (before Horizons) and came back to town today, what kinds of changes in the community, if any, would they see? A rejuvenated Grange Hall as a Community Center, now open for many community events; A Community Bulletin Board on the porch rail of the Grange Hall/Community Center; New people in leadership roles; Forward thinking, “can-do” attitude.
6. Of all the things you have done during the last 18 months in the Horizons program, of what are you most proud? Study Circles, the community dialog, the Community Forum. What could be done to insure that other communities get to achieve the same thing? Get respected, established, leaders involved in the project with some as leaders of Study Circles.
5. Horizons is a community leadership program focused on poverty reduction. What is the evidence that people in your community see poverty as a serious issue? One does not associate “poverty” with “Trout Lake” and yet we discovered through Horizons that we DO have families and children in financial poverty AND the community has social and sustenance needs that are not being answered. Are you working seriously at reducing poverty? The establishment of a Community Information Center at the Grange Hall/Community Center was a first step in getting information out to the public about available community opportunities. A Trout Lake YELLOW PAGES was published and included in the Annual Town Fair Booklet. A Trout Lake blog site has been established to further disseminate community information.
6-10.We’d like you to be very candid about your work with Ava Van Velsor and Linda Williams. What was it like to work with us/them? What did they do here? How could Linda and Ava have been of more help to you here? What could they do differently? What should they provide that they did not? What difference did it make to work with Ava and Linda? Could you have done (implemented) this program without their help? What would be different if they had not been involved? Ava and Linda were highly influential to our success in Horizons. They provided needed information, forms, and materials and checked and double checked to be sure we had what we needed. To have all the materials provided right down to refreshments, child/elder care, and gas cards made the project more do-able with no out-of-pocket expenses. When we reached low spots, especially with Leadership Plenty, they carried us through, obtained more acceptable deadline dates, and lots of encouragement. Their leadership was firm but friendly and sincere. There was no doubt that they wanted us to succeed. They did some wonderful editing of the reports we provided. The project had so many valuable spin-offs which allowed us to attend Small Community forums, speakers, and workshops that would have easily passed us by without their omnipresent emails!! Their friendly reminders of deadlines kept our goals in front of us and deadlines met. I know I speak for all of Trout Lake in expressing our appreciation to Ava and Linda for keeping us on track and on task through to the successful end of this project!
11. Will the community continue the work you started in Horizons? We have the confidence we need; we have discovered new leadership; we have a sense of community pride; we have more knowledge about available grant money and the skill and resources to make successful applications; we WILL continue the work started by Horizons!! What will you need to make sure that happens? We have already experienced new leadership that has a passion for a certain community betterment project and is willing to put their passion into action. Some of these folks will carry out large assignments; some will carry out small assignments; some will follow. It will be important for us to have projects of some size to work on together for the next five years to keep the momentum going; to keep the confidence up; to keep the community pride going. There still are some leaders in the business community that need to “buy in” (not literally) to the concept of planned community growth and what it can mean to their business. We found many of these folks were so busy with their business that they did not have time for community action at a major level. We need to get the school administration, youth, and lead teachers involved in future community improvement projects.
12. If you were talking to someone from another community who is thinking about participating in Horizons, what would you tell them? I would encourage them to find a few leaders who will be dedicated to the time needed to succeed. What would you tell them was the most important thing that happened in your community because of Horizons? The community dialog, on a positive, “can-do” attitude, which reflected the “good” things about our community on which we want to build the future. What do you think might happen in the future? Trout Lake is a great place to live and, as more people are finding out about what life could be like here, we are going to experience continued growth. I think the Horizons project gave us tools to guide and plan this growth. We probably will never be a “large” town because the value of the organic agriculture and dairy is well established on well-planned large parcels of land. However, our Planning Commission has allowed for development on non-agricultural which will probably lead to smaller lots and more affordable housing. Trout Lake will always be a community with a lot of pride and will see to it that it remains that way in the future.
13. Put on your big picture hat. What difference does it make in the state or the region that (23) small, rural communities participated in Horizons? I think the usual “small, rural community” mind set is “Oh, we can’t do that—it’s never been done that way—and besides, who cares?” Well, now these 23 communities know better. The Northwest Foundation cares; the WSU Extension Service cares; and now the people in each of these communities care as well. This is sure to make for a healthier financial, social, psychological, and physiological rural strength for the State of Washington. I believe this will have a big impact on the “Green” life that will be our future.
Respectfully submitted by,
Trout Lake Steering Committee
Doug Anderson, Co-Chair, Nina Pochna, Co-Chair, Ray Thygesen, Founding Co-Chair, Dorothy Franklin
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Trout Lake Youth to 4H Leadership Conference
Here are the names of the students who have signed up for the June 29-July 1 leadership conference in Pullman.
Stephanie Irving will be the chaperone and has made arrangements for these students to attend.
Students from Trout Lake (and grades they’ll be in next year)
1. Lauren Hoodenpyl (9)
2. Gunnar Hoodenpyl (8)
3. Rick Cantwell (9)
4. Grace Anton (8)
5. Sebastian Mael (9)
6. Dana Kavanagh (11)
7. Katie Yarnell (11)
8. Megan Mersereau (11)
9. Lucas King (9)
10. Alex King (8)
Stephanie Irving will be the chaperone and has made arrangements for these students to attend.
Students from Trout Lake (and grades they’ll be in next year)
1. Lauren Hoodenpyl (9)
2. Gunnar Hoodenpyl (8)
3. Rick Cantwell (9)
4. Grace Anton (8)
5. Sebastian Mael (9)
6. Dana Kavanagh (11)
7. Katie Yarnell (11)
8. Megan Mersereau (11)
9. Lucas King (9)
10. Alex King (8)
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