New York Mills, MN

I want to thank everyone who came to our Round Table discussion last week.  I think we had about 20 participants to discuss leadership, volunteerism, and youth involvement.  It was a great discussion with the ultimate goal of deciding on an action item for the Volunteer and Leadership Future Squads to work on.  We needed something tangible (like a Community Garden or Farmer’s Market).  After some awesome brainstorming, it was decided to form a youth council.  I don’t have all of the specifics (Victoria gathered all of the sheets from that night and I’m sure will be adding an entry here soon) but the Youth Council will plan activities for kids to participate in.

 Again, thanks to everyone who participated in the Round Table discussion.  It was a very energizing night!

Please join us for a Round Table Discussion focusing on these topics:

Leadership ~ Volunteerism ~ Youth Involvement

Thursday, April 3 – 6:30 to 8:30 pm @ the NYM City Hall Ballroom

Everyone is invited!   Please RSVP horizonsteam@gmail.com.

Sponsored by the Horizons Team Volunteerism & Leadership Future Squads

If you have questions, please call 385-2436 or email jadams@newyorkmills.lib.mn.us.

We want YOU to join us for a Round Table Discussion focusing on these topics: 

Volunteers–how do we get them and keep them? 

Leaders—how does a leader become a leader? 

Youth—how do we get them involved? 

We want to hear from you on what works and what doesn’t.  We want you to share with others your ideas on how we continue to make our community strong. 

When: Thursday, April 3 – 6:30 to 8:30 pm 

Where: NYM City Hall Ballroom 

Snacks & refreshments will be provided

Free childcare available provided by certified babysitters 

Spread the word–everyone is invited!

Leadership & Volunteerism Future Squads will be holding a joint meeting on Tuesday, March 25, at noon, in the Library Meeting Room to discuss plans for our upcoming Round table discussion to be held Thursday, April 3, in the City Hall Ballroom.

The UofM Extension website has a series of interesting articles called “Getting Through Tough Times”.  Please click this link to find all of the articles:

http://www.extension.umn.edu/MoneyEveryDay/toughtimes.html

Being a person who helps people find information for a living (I’m a librarian), I found the following article especially interesting:

Community Agencies That Can Help

Several agencies in your community can be a source of help during tough times. This fact sheet describes many of these agencies and includes contact information.

Unemployment Compensation and Job Service Offices

While you were employed, your employer was probably contributing to the unemployment compensation program on your behalf. If there is a chance you’re eligible for unemployment compensation, you can apply at your nearest Minnesota WorkForce Center, over the phone, and online. Their website can provide you with locations, phone numbers, and applications. You will need to be able to list all the employers you have worked for during the last 18 months including their phone numbers and addresses. You will also need to take your Social Security card. At the claims counter, you will receive help on how to file an initial claim. Expect to wait at least three weeks before receiving your first check. The payments are calculated from the first day you file, so filing promptly is to your advantage. However, there is a mandated waiting period of a week for first-time claims. You may be eligible for TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) under the following circumstances:

• There is a delay between when you apply and the time your unemployment checks begin arriving.
• You are ineligible for unemployment benefits.
• Your benefits have run out.

TANF in Minnesota is known as the Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP).The Minnesota WorkForce Centerprovides listings of available jobs. They also provide information on the training and experience needed for different jobs. They can help you to determine the skills and aptitudes needed to succeed at the job of your choice.

Employment Training

Learning new marketable skills may be your answer for increased income. Courses are available through local community colleges and other state and local institutions. Displaced Homemaker programs are designed to prepare former full-time homemakers for employment. Local community colleges have more information on these programs. Some assistance for childcare and transportation costs may be available.The federal government provides grants, work opportunities and low-interest loans to many students for education or training. The State of Minnesota also provides some financial assistance to eligible students. The financial aid office at each school or college can give you more information.

Workforce Investment Act

If you need help finding a job or getting training or work experience, a job-training program may be able to help you. The Workforce Investment Act provides Minnesotans with assistance in finding a job and obtaining training.

Human and Social Service

Your County Department of Human Services may provide financial assistance and services as well as information on other community resources. Several assistance programs, such as Food Stamps, Medical Assistance, and MFIP are coordinated through the Department of Human Services. Your financial resources and family income are used to determine if you are eligible. While they process your application, your county Department of Human Services may refer you to other agencies for immediate help. In some counties you may be referred to a township official for general assistance.

Fuel Costs

Help with fuel costs may be available through the Energy Assistance project in your county. Contact your County Department of Human Services and local utility companies for information on how to apply.

Health Services

The county Department of Health provides information on free or low-cost preventive health services, such as blood pressure checks and other screening programs. Flu shots and other immunizations may also be available at a minimal cost. Other health services vary from community to community. Your county or area Department of Health can tell you what is available. There may be clinics, health fairs and other services available free of charge or at a minimal cost.Your preschool-aged children may be eligible for additional health services through other programs. The Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and the Head Start Project are two federal programs that closely monitor the health of eligible children. Visit the Minnesota’s Department of Health web site for more information.

Food

Emergency food supplies may be available at local food pantries. Some churches and community agencies provide free or low-cost meals. Your children may be eligible for reduced-price or free school lunches. Some schools also provide breakfasts. Contact the school office.If you have children under age five, you may be eligible for the Women, Infants & Children (WIC) Program. This federal program provides nutrition counseling and food vouchers to parenting, pregnant and breast-feeding women with children under five.

Clothing

Local thrift shops and garage sales are sources of low-cost clothing. Recycling clothing may be another option for your family.

Veterans’ Benefits

Veterans of U.S. military service and their dependents may be entitled to a variety of benefits from the federal government and the State of Minnesota including:

• Monthly pensions to surviving spouses and to dependent children of veterans who have died
• Monthly payments and/or tuition and books while attending school, receiving training or completing apprenticeships
• “Veterans’ points” added to examination scores when applying to enter state service and various special employment

Family Counseling Services

Getting through tough times can be stressful for all members of the family. During these periods of high stress, family members may have difficulty coping with day-to-day situations. Sometimes things may get so difficult and out of control that you, or other family members, may need professional help. In every community, resources such as the family doctor, clergy, mental health professionals and support groups exist. They can help you deal with extreme levels of stress and the physical and emotional trauma that often accompany them. The County Mental Health Services/Counseling Services provide services and information on what’s available in your area.Coping with the stress of tough times is discussed in two other fact sheets in this series, Controlling Stress and Helping Children Cope.

Financial Counseling

Managing the money you do have requires careful budgeting. Bank loan officers, utility company consumer service personnel, or mortgage companies can also help with planning for payment of specific debts.

Helpful Internet Resources

Resource Management for Daily Life - Highlights University of Minnesota Extension programs which provide trustworthy financial education for informed financial decisions.

Rural Minnesota Life- Provides information for Minnesotan rural families, including the other 16 Getting Through Tough Times fact sheets.

Community Agencies That Can Help

Employment/Employment Training

• Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry
• Minnesota Department of Health
• Minnesota WorkForce Center
• Minnesota’s Job Bank
• Minnesota Jobs
• America’s Job Bank
• Jobs Wizard
• Displaced Homemakers Programs
• Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs

Family/Financial Counseling Services

• Banking/Financial Institutions (local)
• County Mental Health Services (local)
• Minnesota Attorney General Office - 1-800-657-3787
• University of Minnesota Extension
• YMCA - YWCA (local)
• Minnesota Family Investment Program

Fuel/Housing/Clothing

• Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
• Minnesota Energy Assistance Programs
• American Red Cross (local)
• Salvation Army (local)
• Goodwill Industries (local)
• Minnesota Housing Finance Agency
• Department of Housing and Urban Development>

Health/Human/Social Services

• County Department of Health (local)
• Emergency Food Pantries (local)
• Minnesota Department of Human Services
• Minnesota Department of Children, Families & Learning
• Minnesota Department of Human Rights
• Minnesota Help
• First Call for Help Minnesota
• Faith/religious communities (local)

Are you a farmer in the Mills area?  Do you grow fruits or veggies,  organic eggs, grass-fed beef, make honey, maple syrup or anything else agriculture related?  Then sell your goods at the new Farmers Market in Mills!  We have a vision of a well advertised market close to highway 10.  Come be part of the development of the Farmers Market.  Next meeting is March 17 at 10AM at the Creamery in New York Mills.  All potential vendors are welcome!

Submitted by Heather Cassidy

Reminder to all involved with in the Leadership and Volunteerism Future Squads:

We will meet on Monday, March 10, at 4 :30 pm, in the NYM Public Library Meeting Room. 

We will be discussing plans for the Round Table Discussion to be held on April 3.  More information to follow soon with more details.

Horizons Meeting
Monday, February 11, 2008, 5:30 pm,
NYM High School Media Center

Present: Pat Fredley, Lori Rothstein, Julie Adams, Lynn Kasma, Pam Robinson, Janet Malone, Heather Cassidy, Elise Korentayer, Karen Oelschlager, Pat Buerkle, Victoria McWane-Creek, Kevin Cederstrom, Connie Warner, Bill Warner, Todd Cameron, Michelle Helmeke, Beverly Backstrom

Meeting began at 5:40 pm, Todd Cameron welcomed everyone.

Because Pat Fredley had to leave the meeting early, the Economy Future Squad report was moved up in the agenda. Pat reported that the Economy Future Squad has three new members and met two weeks ago. They met with Dallas Flynn from the Detroit Lakes Farmers Market. He gave them information on grants, an outline on how to set up a Farmers Market, etc. Their goal is to have the Farmers Market up and running mid-to-late summer. They have 3 more meetings scheduled, the next one being February 18, 10 am, at Subway. Their main goal will be to find a location and to find 4 or 5 committed vendors. They are writing a grant for signage.

Lori Rothstein gave an overview of the Horizons program.

The minutes from the last Horizons Team meeting on Friday, January 11, 2008 were reviewed.

Todd and Lori gave information on the financial structure and the process for allocating funds. There is $1,729.03 in the account, $1,500 of which is the first part of the $10,000 Northwest Area Foundation grant to be used for the final Work Plan. The remaining $8,500 is coming later. The $2,000 in Barrier Elimination Funds is expected soon. Lynn Kasma also reported that a $1,000.00 grant in conjunction with Youth Service Day was received. This grant will be administered through IMPACT to be used for the Community Garden by the Quality of Life Future Squad. Todd said there is a one page requisition form for Future Squad members to use when requesting funds. All allotments will be signed off by the Horizons Team.

Different aspects of marketing the Horizons program were discussed. Lynn will be organizing a booth for the Trade Show coming up on March 29th. Victoria McWane-Creek handed out copies of the brochure she put together. After discussing how many to print and for what reason, it was decided that Victoria will look into getting a modified quote. Julie Adams discussed how each Horizons Team member plans to meet with an organization or two in the community to discuss the Horizons Program. Todd will be on “Talk of the Town” on Lakes Radio next week. Kevin Cederstrom writes articles pertaining to Horizons as the need comes up.

Lori showed the group the Horizon’s sponsored Minnesota blog http://minnesota.communityblogs.us  and explained the different features. Julie showed the group the New York Mills blog at http://newyorkmills.communityblogs.us. Lori explained that it is very important for us to blog all of our activities as the Northwest Area Foundation uses the blog to track the activities of each Horizon community. Julie gave a brief outline on how to use igoogle to see the latest entries in the blog.

Future Squads Updates:
Economy—report was given earlier
Quality of Life—Lynn reported that they have narrowed their focus to working on the Community Garden. They have written an Action Plan and have received a Youth Service Learning grant. They want to start the Community Garden this spring. Right now they are looking at locations. They also hope in incorporate the school and the Cultural Center in on some activities such as having “green” classes, canning classes, and art classes using items from the garden. Todd suggested that he would be interested in teaching a “square foot gardening” class. Their next meeting will be soon.
Leadership—Julie reported that they have met and are looking at sponsoring Leadership Plenty, but in a modified form. Lori had agreed to help teach if her schedule allows. Julie reported that Denise Peltier has been doing research into mentoring programs.
Volunteerism—Victoria reported that her and Connie Warner have met and are putting together a form that will be mailed to all the organizations in the community. They information gathered from the form will help them but together a registry so that connecting people to volunteer opportunities will be easier. They are trying to include youth in on their project. Victoria asked if it is possible if students could get Service Learning credit for volunteering.

Lori reported there will be regional training sponsored by Horizons coming up this spring—the dates and location is to be determined. The topics they hope to cover are Non-Profit 101, Youth Engagement, Resources, and Committees that Work. Lori will get more information out to us as soon as possible.

Lori also reported on the Community Education Fund. There is $1500 in that fund. There is a form to fill out and can be used for trainings and workshops to help the Future Squads jumpstart their work. The applications for those funds go to Lori.

Discussion about the status of the Thrift Store idea that had come from the Study Circles—it was decided that it would be a project that the community would support, so if we find the right person to start this, it could be very successful.

The date for the next Horizons Team meeting was not decided.

The meeting adjourned at 7:05 pm, with the room available for any Future Squads that wanted to meet.

Kevin Cederstrom, New York Mills Herald–Published Thursday, February 7, 2008

The New York Mills Horizons community vision group is holding a meeting Feb. 11, 5:30 p.m., at the school. The meeting is open to the public including all past and present participants in the program, as well as a chance for new people to get involved in this community vision process.

The agenda includes an overview of Horizons and what the group has accomplished to this point, marketing, discussions on the blog site, the Horizons Team Work Plan, and Future Squads update. The Future Squads, four focus groups formed earlier in the Horizons process, consist of Economy, Quality of Life, Volunteerism, and Leadership.

The purpose of these groups is to find ways to better serve the community through ideas such as improving the economy, promoting energetic leadership in the community, helping various volunteer groups to work together, and how to carry out specific ideas such as starting a community garden in New York Mills.

Economy – support and assist agriculture, entrepreneurship and established business support

Leadership – Locating, training and mentoring visionary leaders for NY Mills’ future

Quality of Life – Addressing outdoor recreation, culture and arts, and other issues impacting quality of life

Volunteerism – Unify volunteer efforts, support service organizations, engage new volunteers, mentor youth and volunteer recognition

The public is invited to attend the meeting and encouraged to get involved with one of the four Future Squads.

The Horizons program, sponsored by the Northwest Area Foundation and brought to New York Mills by the University of Minnesota Extension, is a community leadership program aimed at reducing poverty in rural and reservation communities with populations of 5,000 or fewer. The program is about the changes a community can make to move from waiting to leading, from talking to action, from control by few to the participation of many, and from indifference to pride. Ultimately, it is about community leadership that can act to reverse a community’s economic and population decline and move toward prosperity.

It explores the perceptions and the sources of poverty, recognizing that it isn’t always just about lack of money. The program focuses on poverty, because poverty impacts everyone in a community. Horizons builds stronger community leadership, acknowledging that leadership is as important as good roads, great schools and clean water.

Last night 20 community members got together to decide how to work towards the Vision that was created on Oct 27.  After some lively discussion and debate on how to organize the elements within the Vision, 4 Teams or Squads were developed to address action issues.

1. Economy - Agriculture, Entrepreneurship and Established Business support

2. Volunteerism - Unifying current volunteer efforts,   engaging more volunteers from the young and the young at heart, and mentoring

3. Leadership - Locating, training and mentoring visionary leaders for NYM’s future

4. Quality of Life - Outdoor Rec, Culture and Arts and other issues impacting quality of life

Any of these 4 areas spark your interest?  If so, join in you can play a vital role in creating the plan that makes the NYM Vision a reality.  So choose a Squad and get active!  Stay tuned for Future Squad meeting details.