The Boulder Area Chamber of Commerce
proudly Sponsors
The 1st Annual Country Music & Art Festival in Boulder
Saturday, September 13th 2008 in Veterans Park
11AM-7PM
Music Headliners
Ruf Cut Grass
Erik “Fingers” Ray
Ron Kane & Meghan Merker
Lynn Marie & the Wobbly Boy
* area musicians * local artists * food vendors
Family Friendly Event
Contact Colleen 465-8589 or Cristina 465-2106
On April 10, 16 pre-registered participants attended the initial training at Jefferson High School for community citizens to look at problems affecting the community. The trainings continued over several weeks and included a diverse group of participants. Skills that were developed and enhanced included looking at problems affecting the community, seeing them from different perspectives, sharing opinions as well as solutions and projects that would greatly impact the community.
One of the participants that completed this training, Jason Craft, son of Boulder Chamber of Commerce Members Gerald & Carmen Craft, went on to develop the idea for a Skateboard Park in Boulder. Jason and supporters created a plan of action that included the following success; surveying youth in the community; acquiring approval of the Jefferson County Commissioners and Boulder City Council for donation of land to build the park on; skateboard park members attended a Horizons sponsored Grant Writing workshop and received 2 grant awards after this; rallied ongoing volunteers and supporters to form partnerships to achieve the skateboard park dream.
The recent Pancake Breakfast fund raiser for the Skateboard Park in Veterans Park was a complete success. Many of the participants were happy to be nourished, prior to partaking in the Chamber of Commerce City Wide Garage Sale. Matching funds for the grants are continuing to grow as is community excitement in completion of this project.
A COMMUNITY VIEW
1. There has been a lot of involvement in our community. We have around 20 plus groups that have come out of the horizon involvement. More accountability and they want to be more involved in their community. We have a skate park going up in Boulder. We are raising money for our parks an rec. areas. The education committee is rasing money to help Century 21 after school program so that it can keep going. This is a very good after school program for our kids. Since the horizon groups started the leadership view has changed from individuals, to a community view.
Emily Mathiason Farmers MarketGail Lattin, rancher, BCDOColleen Teeling Boulder 21st CCLC/BDCO
EVERYONE CAN CONTRIBUTE This project has brought out people who now realize that what they can contribute is appreciated. The diversity of people who have come forward have been very specific about projects: i.e, seasonal flags, benches on main street, affordable housing (4 started 7 total and a senior housing project), playgrounds. People with special interests have come forward to help.Dawn Smartnick, Sally Buckles, Dick Norden
LEADERSHIP PLENTY IS FOR EVERYONE Several people have attended the Leadership Plenty Classes. Community members have gone to grant writing workshops. These individuals have brought the information back to the community and has educated others with their knowledge.There have been young people and older people going to workshops and learning leadership roles. New faces are being seen heading up committees.The community would be different with different people taking leadership roles because we all have our own thoughts and ideas and we bring this out when we have new leaders.Carmen Craft Chamber Pres, Steering Committee Member business ownerGerold Craft Pres Boulder Parks & Rec Committee
VOICING OPINIONS More people are speaking up at public meetings, knowing that their voice will be heard. There are more people attending city and county government meetings and demanding answers, not just accepting what ever comes down the pike. Leadership is definitely a community issue. People that never thought they had a voice, now come to meetings and want to be heard and feel that they are being heard.When people know they have a role in leadership and speak up, they begin to listen to others with different ideas and are actually looking at the entire situation and seeking good solutions rather than “just having their way.” Band aid solutions are unacceptable. We are being held accountable—words need to match actions. It matters. Colleen Teeling, BCDO, Linda Norden, BCDO, Steering Committee
GROWING LEADERS New individuals have taken roles as leaders on various committees as a result of the Leadership training provided by Horizons. Today leadership is viewed as a community issue about participating in growth and development. of our community. Cheryl Haasakker, Skateboard Park Chair, Pat Cansler, Animal Shelter, Barb Reiter, Steering Committee
WORKING TOGETHER We see new leaders and more people working together. The attitude towards leadership has changed. We are seeing more educational opportunities such as the grant writing class and estate planning guide. Ellen Rae Thiel, Nancy Alley, Mary Ellen Earnhardt, Denise Grove
WE CAN COUNT - that’s how we know that more people are involved and enthused. There are people turning out to help with community projects and fewer people whining when things aren’t magically happening without them. Horizons have fostered the attitude that if you want something done, you can be the leader and there are plenty of people willing to follow to accomplish the goal. —Gary Craft and Jan Anderson
WORKING HAND IN HAND
A boatload of committees meet regularly and are engaged in a wide range of activities and at reducing poverty.
The community has been working hand and hand with the community governments. Frequent press releases and news articles appear in the Boulder Monitor. Each one invites and encourages people to be involved.
At least one committee has also scheduled a meeting at which the public health office, clinic, senior citizens’ center, schools, churches and others will be invited to help inform potential human service users of the available resources. In addition a community resource guide has been published and has undergone two printings for wide distribution.
Gary Craft, BCDO and Jan Anderson, newspaper publisher and Boulder Housing Authority Board
THINGS ARE HAPPENING
The Housing program has been started, the skate board park has been approved by the Town Council of Boulder, grants have been written and awarded, new recreational equipment has been sought that will go in the city parks. This will help children of all income levels involved. Remember, Healthy Kids make Healthy Communities
SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE
The Resource Committee published a Community Resource Guide to help inform lower income people and others that need assistance of any kind of services that available in Boulder without having to travel out of the community. Hopefully we will bring in even more.
Carmen Craft, Chamber President, Steering Committee
Linda Norden, Steering Committee, BCDO
WORKING TO BETTER OUR COMMUNITY
We have over 23 committees working on the betterment of our community—not all are directly related to poverty, but all are related to the betterment of the community and communication with others which in turn will help, in time, reduce poverty in many different ways.
COMMUNICATION AND COORDINATION
The BCDO was developed to continue communication and to coordinate the community. One of the goals is to meet with the various factions and get everyone on the same page, through our action plan and vision statement. We also hope to start a community foundation program to help sustain the programs over the years. Our local newspaper does a tremendous job of covering all of the things that are happening and the meetings—above and beyond what most newspapers do. Faces are put with the programs so people feel connected. Colleen Teeling, BCDO, Linda Norden, BCDO, Steering Committee
GROWING LOCAL JOBS
Our community is trying to bring in more jobs that would be local. The Steering Committee has asked for individuals to join in and help with all of the various groups that have emerged from the Horizon program. In this way each of us will be given an opportunity to voice any ideas, needs, and help that we need. Every person in Boulder is being given an equal opportunity to speak up.
Emily Mathiason, Gail Lattin
SUCCESS IN NUMBERS
The first step we made was in having a large amount of people attend the Horizon program. We have all worked together in sharing our thoughts and ideas in building a better community. The core committee has been developed to help us follow through with our plans.
Mary Ellen Earnhardt, Ellen Rae Theil, Denise Grove, and Nancy Alley
ITS REALLY HAPPENING
The fact that many committees and follow-up activities have happened attests to how much mobilization has taken place. Committees that were started during the Horizon program continue to function and work together for the overall good of the Boulder community.
Cheryl Hassakker, Skate Board Chair, Pat Cansler. Animal Shelter, Barb Reiter, Steering Committee
AWARENESS
The Boulder Horizons program made many more people in the community aware of the level of poverty in the community. People often quote the rate of poverty and are now far more accurate about that figure than before with many expressing surprise over the high level.
LISTENING
There is less finger pointing with fewer people expressing the opinion that it is the attitudes of those in poverty that caused the situation. Perhaps there are people who still think that, but they do not express it like before.
CHANGE
Evidence and understanding of how public policy affects poverty is clear in carrying out the affordable housing project. The city and county became involved in backing the National Affordable Housing Network effort and a Boulder Housing Authority Board was formed. As the Horizons program comes to a close in Boulder, we currently have roughly a half a dozen houses going up (or at least under excavation).
Gary Craft, Boulder Community Development Organization and Jan Anderson, Boulder Monitor newspaper publisher and Boulder Housing Authority Board
MORE THAN ECONOMICS ALONE
More people are now aware of the fact that poverty is not just about economics but comes in many forms and can affect us all at one time or another.
Linda Norden, Boulder Community Development Board (BCDO), Steering Committee Chair
SUCCESS IN NUMBERS
The Horizons program has had great success at all of the community events it has hosted. There has been an attendance of over 80 plus people attending. This has brought more awareness just through people talking to other people. I believe that this has made people more compassionate and more tolerant of each other. It has brought a lot of pride to Boulder, enough so that other communities are noticing a “difference” in Boulder.
MORE HOUSES
The Housing program has started with a projected 5+ houses being built for families in need. Just having the visual of things happening in Boulder are making people believe that things really can change here.
Gerold Craft, Pres. of Boulder Parks & Rec.
Carmen Craft, Chamber President, Steering Committee member, business owner
CHANGING PERCEPTIONS
Perception before: It is their problem, not mine. Perception now: It is my community, it is my problem also, and my responsibility to help make a difference and create the best possible place to live for everyone. The “Not in my backyard” attitude is gone or at least diminishing——and it did not take a tragedy for this to happen! We also realize that this is a long term process that will not happen overnight. There are no quick and easy fixes, the process has to be continual and we have to continue building leadership and pride in our community.
Evidence that the community understands how public policy can affect poverty—-approval of the school mill levy plus grant money received to sustain the after school summer program. The United Methodist Church even donated their building for the programs use during the summer. There is more involvement in city and county government—more voices being heard.
Colleen Teeling, BCDO, Linda Norden, Steering Committee, BCDO
UNDERSTANDING POVERTY
The community is now more aware of the poverty level that is currently in our community. We are talking to each other and in our various groups and committees. We have seen various actions and decisions that have taken place within our community that have taken away services and programs that would have benefited the poor. We do not have enough housing for low income person and families, but we are now working on it. If we all better understood poverty, than we could deal with the matter more effectively, and we would have more compassion and understanding for people in those situations.
Gail Lattin, BCDO, Emily Mathiason, BCDO, Farmers’ Market
COMMUNITY EDUCATION
The education committee has made the community more aware of its poverty awareness through booklets that they have developed. We have gathered data to demonstrate our level of poverty for the purpose of obtaining funds. Awareness through education programs. We have spoken to various community groups making them aware of the poverty needs of our community.
Mary Ellen Earnhardt, Education committee, Nancy Alley, Ellen Rae Theil, Denise Grove, Heritage Center
LACK OF SERVICES
Funding cuts have almost completely eliminated human and social services to small rural communities. A Resource Committee was formed to work with agencies, county commissioners and JLDC (Jefferson Local Development Corporation) to bring the much needed services back to Boulder. The lack of services has been a hardship for many of the folks who need extra assistance. They have all felt that they were forgotten. Now there is hope and involvement.
Cheryl Hassakker, Skate Board Park Chair, Pat Cansler, Horizon participant, Animal Shelter, Barb Reiter, Steering Committee, Resource Committee
City Council Second and Fourth Monday of each month 6:30pm at the City Hall.
Boulder Skate Park Committee meetings are the 2nd Sunday of the month at 3:30 p.m. in the Methodist Center.
Boulder Horizons Parks & Recreation Committee meetings are the 2nd Tuesday of the month at 7:00 p.m. in the Methodist Center.
Jefferson County Genealogy Society meets every 3rd Thursday at the Boulder Community Library at 7pm.
Horizon members are working on specific strategies to implement ideas and make dreams for the future become a reality!
STRUCTURAL CHANGE:
1. Area of Boulder Citizen Development Committee activated.
2. Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with city/county government, area committees, and organizations on vision statement.
3. MOU with city/county government, area committees, and organizations on action plan, stressing that it is a “living document” subject to change with growth.
4. Set up a nonprofit status for Boulder Development Committee and other interested local organizations/committees.
5. Continue to reach out to low income individuals and families by offering free educational opportunities and community social events.
1. List three things you are satisfied within this community.
* Peaceful, friendly and healthy atmosphere for individuals and businesses.
* Surrounded by scenic landscape
* Quaintness of the town
* Great variety of businesses
* Community Resources Available
* Lots of Opportunities for Jobs and volunteers
* New Housing Options
* Small town atmosphere–low population
* Low crime rate–safe
* Drinking water
* Friendly people
2. What three things in this community would you change?
* More health care and Other Resources Needed
* Youth programs and Resources for all Ages
* Housing availability, living conditions, affordability
* Additional communications about Boulder and what is available
* Additional businesses to provide missing services
* Government plan for future growth
* Continue general improvement of Boulder appearance
* More Jobs and Living Wage for Employment
* Develop and improve parks
* Drug and Alcohol Prevention
* Consumer dependence on Helena/Butte business
(Promote shopping locally)
3. What one project ……should (community) undertake to promote a thriving community?
* Community/Education Center with resources for all ages
* Central Development Committee
* Continue all aspects of housing development
* Wind Energy project
* Living Wage Jobs
* Improved communications across the board: businesses, government, individuals
* Encourage “unique” businesses to develop in the area
i.e. Saturn Car Dealership, Organic Growers, Cottage Industries
* Skate Park, Youth Center
* Walking, Hiking, Biking Trails throughout the area
* Services for the Elderly, i.e. townhouses, home health care, assisted living opportunities
* Educational opportunities for adult education, job training, budgeting
4. ….most important to improve quality of life in Boulder.
* Affordable Housing
* Livable Wage Jobs
* Improved Economy
* Education
5. Describe Your Vision or Hope for the Future for this Community.
* Preserve natural surroundings/Retain small town atmosphere
* Develop and encourage new businesses: Dairy Queen, Tire Fix-It Shop,
Pharmacy/Drug Store, Bakery
* More support for local businesses/promote cottage industries
* A community where everyone’s basic needs are met: food, shelter, safe environment
* Build on sense of pride in our community, agricultural resources, and natural surroundings
* Remain agricultural in essence, preserving a compatible mixture of small town services, wildlife, and a sensible plan for development
* A community that values all ages and encourages public involvement
* A community culture that provides a senior friendly environment and encourages youth involvement