We Empower Small-Town Leaders
In rural Dubuque County, neighbors are coming together for a campaign that will establish priorities for community vitality and raise funds to implement them.
On a foggy morning in early-February, Denise Grant, Denise Simms and Judy Knowler walk into the Red Roof Diner in Peosta, Iowa, and scan the room for a table.
Anyone who has lived in a small town has probably visited a place like the Red Roof Diner. It’s a hub for neighbors to gather and discuss what’s important to them, from grandkids to politics. On this day, Peosta residents have come together to talk about Community Heart & Soul®, a grassroots community visioning process. Through Heart & Soul, the people of Peosta will codify what’s important to their community and use “value statements” to guide programs, services, development and fundraising.
“The work we do now could be critical to where Peosta goes in the future,” Judy says.
As the facilitator of Heart & Soul in our region, the Community Foundation supplies the tools and training for small-town residents to engage their neighbors. What do they love about where they live? What are their hopes for the future? What are their concerns? The goal is to involve everyone in the participating community.
“A lot of times, local leaders have good intentions when planning projects, but it can be the same people coming to the table each time,” says Jason Neises, the Foundation’s community development officer. “With Heart & Soul, everyday residents are at the helm of the planning process. One of the tenets of the process is that they intentionally reach out to both the people who are highly engaged and those who aren’t.”
Jason has coached 14 other towns to do the same. Denise, Denise and Judy welcome the support.
“It’s an ideal time for Heart & Soul,” Denise Grant says.
The town has experienced rapid growth in a generation, with its population jumping from just 650 people 25 years ago to 2,000 today. Although this growth has brought much needed services like a grocery store and medical providers, there’s still opportunity to build community cohesion.
“There’s been a lot of housing growth,” Denise Simms adds. “But things like park growth have been slower.”
“We want to think about how growth can be strategic and thoughtful,” Judy says. “Not just a developer coming in because of a quick and easy opportunity, but rather does a project serve the residents? Does it serve the community?”
Once the Heart & Soul process is complete, the community will begin our Small-town Dreams Initiative, through which they can receive a $100,000 challenge grant. Communities that participate raise matching funds from their neighbors and eventually build a $450,000 endowment fund that will grant out approximately $25,000 a year to support local projects and address the needs of the day. The grant is funded by an anonymous donor.
“We want to take the Heart & Soul process to the next level,” Judy says. “We don’t want the information we gather or the momentum we’ve built to fizzle out.”
“Because of the input we will have gathered through Heart & Soul, we will be able to tell prospective donors exactly what the community needs,” Denise Grant says. “Then, they might be willing to donate to support something that is for the betterment of their community.”
Facilitating community engagement and inspiring generosity are easy in a place like Peosta, though. Ask Denise Grant what she loves most about the community, and she beams: “The friendliness. Everybody cares about everybody.”