Action on Poverty

Several concrete actions are being taken in Whitehall to reduce poverty. The study circles process, with over 125 participants, was step one in getting the community moving in one direction. We have 21 trained study circle facilitators in Whitehall, 10 of them selected from the high school, and we have 50 Leadership plenty graduates, 20 of those from the high school. The LeadershipPlenty course worked with people to teach them how to get moving on the project ideas that emerged from the study circle process. The resulting actions are below:

1. A project with the National Affordable Housing network has been undertaken to provide seven new affordable housing units. This effort was spearheaded by MSU Extension, but has the full support of the Community Development Board, the Town of Whitehall and Jefferson County.
2. The ugly noxious weed slope at the I-90 entrance to town across from the high school has been cleared, cleaned up, trails built, and picnic tables purchased for a new park. Key organizations in this effort are the Whitehall High School Interact Club, The Whitehall Veterans’ Group, the Whitehall Booster Club, the Whitehall Garden Club, and the Town of Whitehall Parks, Trees and Cemetery Board.
3. The Montana DUI Task Force has been granted an expanded presence in Whitehall, including a full-time staff position. The community’s involvement in the Horizons Project was critical in receiving this grant. This effort has focused on educating youth about the consequences of drinking and driving. The person selected for the staff position was an active member of the study circles and the LeadershipPlenty class.

Action on Leadership

4. The Community Development Board (CDB) has been created as a formal Board of the Town Council, to continue the work and momentum of the Horizons Project. Board seats were designed to tap into existing resources within the community and to create a source of up to date information and ideas for the community.

5. The community of Whitehall is aware that if something needs to be discussed or acted upon, the monthly CDB meetings is the place to go to get the ball rolling. At several of the meetings, community members have brought up ideas for input and discussion, and left the meeting better informed.

6. A new elective, “Communication for Civic Change” has been established in the high school that includes the LeadershipPlenty curriculum, so new leaders will be trained among our youth. Two graduates from this class (both currently seniors) sit on the Community Development Board as active, voting members.

This elective allows students who would never self-identify as leaders to learn that they do in fact, have what it takes to make change in their communities. Through this class, we can draw more leaders in from more diverse backgrounds, and teach leadership skills early on.

The Whitehall Community is eager to listen to the input of the youth, and suggestion and ideas that come from the Communication for Civic Change class are taken very seriously.

7. The Horizons Project has given Whitehall an opportunity to include youth in leadership, and Whitehall has done an excellent job of that. The youth that were trained as study circles facilitators were paired with an adult facilitator, but were equal partners in leading the groups, with equal reporting expectations and responsibilities. The study circle participants were impressed with the intelligence, maturity, focus and professionalism exhibited by Whitehall’s youth, and since that time, high school students’ participation has been sought by the DUI Task Force, The Animal Shelter and Care Committee, and the Community Development Board.

8. High School student in Interact Club are in charge of the Silver Tower Park effort, and they have done an excellent job. Students also gave thoughtful input on the community visioning process. In general, by acknowledging the skills and existing leadership capacity of our youth, we have added significantly to our pool of leaders.

Action on Community

9. The Community Development Board has brought together segments of the community in a meaningful manner so that they can work together, share information and resources, and have a common goal of community betterment. The Board will also continue the momentum that the Horizons Project generated.

10. Since the inception of the Horizons Project, more people are aware of what is happening in town, and more accurate information is flowing about upcoming events, ongoing projects, and real problems with poverty. There is still work to be done, but the attitude in the community is more positive, less elitist and it is full of hope. The fact that everyone was invited to participate in the study circles, regardless of tax bracket, number of generations in the valley, or age seemed to demonstrate that the call for open communication and new leaders was genuine.

Since the study circles process was the first step of Horizons, that cornerstone of inclusiveness laid the groundwork on which the Community Development Board will continue to build.

11. The City of Boulder is 35 miles away from Whitehall. It is also a Horizons Community, and it also has a Class B high school, which makes for an in-county rivalry. In spite of that, the Horizons Project has allowed both communities to learn from and about each other, and to work together to mutual benefit.

Boulder has already broken ground on their affordable housing project, and Whitehall was able to use the lessons learned from Boulder’s process to expedite their own. Butte has a new up-and-running housing complex with a former Whitehall resident in it, and invitations to tour the new complex were made available to the housing committee and interested residents of Whitehall.

Boulder and Whitehall have also come together to build a much-needed animal shelter for the county, since both communities are too small to warrant a shelter for its exclusive use. MSU Extension took the lead in bringing together interested parties for the meetings that began in November 2007, but the group is off and running now.  The majority of members in the Animal Shelter and Care Committee took part in both the study circles and the LeadershipPlenty class, which is evident through the way the meetings are run, goals are set, and priorities established. That common experience has helped make the group extremely effective.

12. The Community of Whitehall now has an effective means of getting the word out, fast. During the Horizons Project there were several occasions where community leaders needed to be reached. The first effort was study circle recruiting, then LeadershipPlenty recruiting, then Visioning Sessions, and finally the blog training.

This repeated attempt at communication has brought about an informal phone tree, which was further facilitated by the publishing of the community guide in the local pone book. 

This ability to communicate rapidly to a large number of organizations, and through them, individuals, is a boon to the Whitehall, and it will continue to come in handy.

While things at the park site don’t look appreciably different, there is notable progress.

In the first phase of park creation, the picnic table locations and the lower trails have been laid out, excavated, smoothed and weed fabric and gravel have been placed.  The next step is to have old road millings placed on the trails and picnic table pads.  The picnic tables are in storage waiting to be put to use and they look fantastic.

The Community Development Board, in keeping with the Horizon’s goals and objectives, always looks for ways to partner with organizations and bring additional resources to projects.  The Board recognizes that every penny and every ounce of effort needs to be leveraged to the fullest degree possible to make things possible in our small town. 

Since it has been awhile since progress on the park was last reported on, we’d like to take this opportunity to remind everyone that the Silver Tower Park is a partnership, led by our young people in the Whitehall High School’s Interact Club which is affiliated with the Rotary Club.  Also partnering on the project are the Town of Whitehall Parks Trees, and Cemetery Board, the Whitehall Veterans, the Whitehall Alternative School, the Whitehall Booster Club and the Garden Club. 

In addition to some Horizon’s grant money that used for the purchase of the picnic tables, the Whitehall Booster Club stepped up to the plate and assisted with funding for the Whitehall High School Sign, a much needed addition to the town.  The Garden Club is allocating some grant money they received to assist with native plantings once the ground is ready.  The Veterans will be financing a portion of the park and providing some labor where there will be flags placed.  The Town of Whitehall, who not only allowed the use of the land but will supply the necessary water and electricity (if needed), is assisting with the millings, gravel, etc.  The Interact Club and the Alternative School has supplied plenty of labor and funding.  Terry Reed (Four Seasons Construction) and Calvin Johnson (Johnson Custom Fencing) have assisted with providing equipment and skilled operation of the equipment, Chris Wagner of Wagner Nursery has provided expertise, a sketch of the park and recommended plantings.  Many members of the community have volunteered their time, equipment, knowledge and sturdy backs to the effort.  It is truly a community project in every sense of the word. 

Hang in there everyone.  The park will continue to take shape.  If anyone wants more information or would like to volunteer to help at the site, just post a comment or attend a Community Development Board meeting.  There is always something that needs doing. 

PS  If I have forgotten to name anyone who has assisted, I apologize.  It is not intentional I can assure you.  Let me know who I have missed so I can make certain that no person’s contribution goes unnoticed or unrecognized.

As we reach the end of another phase of the Horizons process that has been focused on capacity building, it is time to evaluate our community’s progress on stated desired outcomes of the Horizon’s project. It has been a busy and interesting process. Sometimes visible progress seems slow in materializing. However, many, many people have been working very hard and though it may not always be readily apparent, Whitehall is making headway.

The Community Development Board is evaluating our progress based on the following: