The Heartland Center for Leadership Development is a Lincoln, Neb., nonprofit that counsels and advises small towns. Over the years, the center has listed 20 characteristics that set successful small towns apart.
These "20 Clues to Rural Community Survival" hold the key to why some towns make it and others don't, Heartland's staff believes.
And the story of Michigan, N.D.'s new grocery store shows a fair number of the 20 clues at work.
Consider Clue No. 3, Willingness to invest in the future. Here's a quote from Herald staff writer Kevin Bonham's story in Friday's Herald, "Michigan, N.D., store to reopen":
"Some 17 Michigan-area families contributed $1,000 each to the effort," Bonham reported.
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"That $1,000 donation is the equivalent of adding $19 to each family's weekly grocery bill for a year."
Or consider Clue No. 16, Sound and well-maintained infrastructure: "(Michigan Mayor Allen) Orwick said the local development group will paint the building, update the store's electrical system and purchase replacement cooler and freezer equipment," according to the story.
Clue No. 19, Willingness to seek help from outside: "Half of the money came from a U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development grant. The community raised the rest in less than two months."
Clue No. 20, Conviction that, in the long run, you have to do it yourself: "The business, which operated as Johner's Fairway, closed May 30, leaving this community of 345 without a grocery store for the first time in its 125-year history. ... The community immediately launched a successful grassroots $140,000 fundraising campaign and a search for a new operator."
Clue No. 5, Cooperative community spirit: "Polar Communications, based in Park River, N.D., recently announced a $15,000 contribution, which put the campaign over the top. Michigan's W.L. Cowper American Legion Post No. 238 also has agreed to donate $5,000 to the cause. ...
"Other corporate donors included First United Bank, Michigan Implement and Nelson County Job Development Authority, which donated $10,000 each. Fargo Assembly Co., a bus wire harness manufacturer located in the former Michigan School building, donated $5,000. Choice Financial contributed $1,000."
And Clue No. 6, Realistic appraisal of future opportunities, the effectiveness of which is clearly shown by the campaign's success: "The only grocery store in Michigan, N.D., will reopen, perhaps as early as Oct. 1," the story reported.
Congratulations to Michigan for providing such an inspiring example of successful small-town development. The Heartland Center should contact Michigan to get and publicize more details, because the town's effort is a textbook example of the power of the 20 Clues.
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-- Tom Dennis for the Herald
