Gackle, ND

These Limericks about Gackle’s Horizon milestones were composed by Mary Conrad and read by Tom Isern at the January 19th, 2008 Pep Rally. Thanks to Buck at Tri-County News for the kick-off, conversation circles, and computer chat photographs shown below.

CLICK HERE to see & hear some of the Limericks on VIDEO

HORIZONS PROJECT LAUNCH / KICKOFF EVENT (January 27, 2007)

There once was a town on the prairie

Whose future appeared downright scary

     Till they’d all had enough

     Of that hopelessness stuff

And regrouped in the high school library.

CONVERSATION CIRCLES (January-February 2007)

In small circles, folks shared hopes and fears

With friends, relatives, neighbors and peers

     “We can do this,” they said

     “If we just use our head

“Why, it works just like greasing the gears!”

LEADERSHIP PLENTY® TRAINING (April 2007)

Leadership Plenty®, Horizons insisted,

Would make teammates of those who persisted

     Chad and Deane made folks smile

     Training turned out worthwhile

For all those arms Mary Conrad had twisted.

“ROCK THE PARK” CELEBRATION (July 4, 2007)

July Fourth’s crowd went way past the mark

With its picnic and rocks for the park

     Fun and games, music too

     Merged old memories with new

As the fireworks flared long after dark.

FARMERS MARKET (August-October 2007)

Garden produce and good things to eat

Gave folks reasons to be back on Main Street

     Our Farmers Market can grow

     Into a regional show

That helps business get back on its feet.

“COMMUNITY COMPUTER CHAT” (November 13, 2007)

Our computer chat shaped with precision

Our town’s twenty-first century vision

     We’ve got a plan geared for action

     And we’re not losing traction

To move forward’s an easy decision!

MISSION AND STRATEGIC PLAN (November 30, 2007)

Our best features we’re eager to demonstrate

On the details we’ll gladly elaborate

     The ideas we generate

     Create causes to celebrate

So…collaborate! collaborate! collaborate!

Awesome pictures and articles about the pep rally!  What an exciting way to present a vision and plan  for a community’s future.  I want you to know that I shared your story with our extension staff and administration across the state - Gackle’s enthusiasm is catchy!

P.S. Your blog looks excellent by the way!

Lynette Flage - ND Horizons Director

rock the parkBoy did we have a blast putting this event together! Our Horizon’s food and event committee consisted of Sandi Rivinius, Stacy Ruff, Melody Owens, and Peggy Schroeder. We also had numerous volunteers who helped put everything together. Our community really had a great time for food, games, music, and fireworks. We had over 300 people come out for this event to not only celebrate the 4th of July, but to help the park board literally “rock the park”. It was also a great opportunity to continue to promote Horizon’s involvement in our community and reach out to some people we had not been able to involve yet. We had a booth set up in the park pavilion for those interested more in Horizons.
Earlier in the year, the Gackle Park Board began working on numerous projects in the north and south parks. Numerous trees were removed and some were moved in their place. The north park lies in a low waterway area through town and needed to be relandscaped to be more useful. The idea to rock the waterway came from my own backyard where I did the same thing. Other accomplishments made in the park included cementing a pad and walkway to the pavilion for handicap accessibility, new playground surface and drainage control, and a bridge over the waterway. Other beautification items included a new flower bed, new trees, clean up all around, and a new grill. The park board will continue to have plans for this year, but are amazed at all that was accomplished this past year. A big thankyou to everyone who helped and joined in the fun. Plans are in the works to make this year’s celebration even better!

Despite the below zero weather and sports tournaments, a group of hardy souls gathered in the Gackle School Library to be immersed in energy and enthusiasm for the next phase of Horizons. The ACTION Phase.

The unveiling of the Strategic Plan was interspersed throughout the evening’s program. We were entertained by Horizons-inspired “cheers” led by Gackle Mayor Ritchie Jacobson and some “adult” cheerleaders. Tom Isern, Professor of History, North Dakota State University and Plains Folk^TM self-syndicated newspaper columnist, sang with his guitar and recited Horizons-inspired limericks. We watched an inspirational DVD by National Geographic photographer Dewitt Jones about “taking action.” This is the third Dewitt Jones DVD we have viewed and I highly recommend it for anyone or any organization.

Jodi Bruns, Extension Agent for NDSU Community Economic Development & Leadership discussed upcoming conferences and opportunities Gackle might want to attend. These conferences are posted to the “main” North Dakota Community Blog page. Check back to this link often for updates on what’s happening.

Sally Jeppson updated the group on the Gackle Community Blog site and encouraged participation. Everyone received a business card with the Blog address shown at right.

Russ Pollock discussed Miner County, South Dakota’s revitalization as a “model” we could look to for our own revitalization. Logan County and Miner County have similar demographics so there is great potential! Sometime soon we hope to host a Miner County representative to discuss their process.

Finally, the Strategic Plan was outlined in a Power Point presentation and then distributed to every attendee. The evening was capped off with a delicious assortment of fingerfoods provided by Carolyn’s Cafe in Gackle.

More on the Plan will be discussed in future blog entries.

This advertisement was created by Gackle Mayor, Ritchie Jacobson, it appeared in the Tri-County News on page 4, Wednesday, January 16, 2008. The event announces the upcoming unveiling of the community strategic plan.

This article appeared in the Tri-County News in December. It was written by Mary Conrad–the person who has been the MAJOR! mover and shaker responsible for getting Gackle involved in the Horizons Program.

Thanks Mary! AND Thanks to Kenton (Buck) and Anna Buchholz of the Tri-County News in Gackle for being soooo! supportive of the Horizons project.

Click on the image to read the text.