July 2010 WSU Stevens County Extension News

Come to our new location Open House! July 14 from 3 to 6 pm, 986 S. Main, Colville, or stop by to see us any time at the west end of Southtown Plaza (between Curves and Rural Resources)

Food and Farm:
July 2, 9, 16, 23, & 30: Master Gardener Plant Clinic held Fridays from 1-3 pm at the Chewelah Farmers' Market held on the grounds of the St. Paul Lutheran Church, N 202 2nd St. W.

July 7, 14, 21, & 28: Master Gardener Plant Clinic held Wednesdays from 12 to 2 pm at the Colville Farmers' Market on the corner of 3rd and Oak, one block East of Main in Colville.

July 10, 17, 24, & 31: Master Gardener Plant Clinic held Saturdays from 9-11 am at the NE WA Farmers Market, corner of Astor and Main in Colville to answer your gardening questions.

4-H Youth Development Activities:
June 26 and 27: Don't forget this weekend is the Tri-Club Summer Classic Performance and Western Games Show at the Arden Arena. Both 4-H and Open classes. Sponsored by Haynickers, Summit Spirits, and Horse 'n Around 4-H Clubs.

June 27: Panorama 4-Paws is hosting a Fun Show for dogs, cats, and other small animals today at 9 am at the NE WA Fairgrounds.

July 22: The state-qualifying 4-H judging contest for cats, dogs, and rabbits is today at 6 pm at the NE WA Fairgrounds. Hosted by Panorama 4-Paws.

July 24 and 25: Save the date - there will be 4-H state-qualifying Performance and Equitation over Fences horse show this weekend in Chewelah at the Melody Riders Arena.

July 31: Panorama 4-Paws will also host a state-qualifying 4-H Dog and Cat Show. Show will include showmanship, type, obedience, and agility. So get your animals ready and be at the NE WA Fairgrounds at 9 am.

August 2: Today is the deadline for turning in Outstanding 4-H Leader Nominations. Your leader can't be recognized for all his or her hard work if you don't nominate them!

Just a reminder the State Qualifying Fashion Revue usually held in July will not be held this year. Instead we will hold the qualifier during the NE WA Fair.

Leaders, I know it's summer and you're busy but don't forget...all enrolled 4-H volunteers need to be inputting their volunteer hours at http://ext.wsu.edu/testVolunteer/logon.aspx. This is a requirement to be covered by WA State Dept. of L&I. It also helps us track the number of hours volunteers contribute to the program. Contact Shannon if you need your log in information.

For a complete calendar of events visit: http://stevens.wsu.edu/enewsletter.htm
WSU Stevens County Extension985 S. Elm Ste. A, Colville, WA 99114509-684-2588 509-684-9790 fax TDD 1-800-833-6388

Cooperating agencies: Washington State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture and Stevens County. Extension programs and employment are available to all without discrimination. Evidence of noncompliance may be reported through your local Extension office. Persons with a disability requiring special accommodations while participating in the program may call WSU Stevens County Extension at 509-684-2588. If accommodation is not requested in advance, we cannot guarantee the availability of accommodation on site. Extension programs and policies are consistent with federal and state laws and regulations on nondiscrimination regarding race, color, gender, national origin, religion, age, disability, and sexual orientation.

More info on RUFES

An Action-Learning Institute for Washington Horizons Communities

November 2-4, 2009

The Opportunity: An Action-Learning Exchange to Advance Rural Family Economic Success

Working together, the Washington Horizons Program, the Northwest Area Foundation (NWAF) and the Annie E. Casey Foundation (AECF) are offering Washington’s Horizons 1 & 11 communities the opportunity to strengthen your Horizons action by advancing local efforts to improve the economic success of low-income families in your communities. The opportunity is to participate in a Rural Family Economic Success Action-Learning Institute that will bring you ideas that work to help low-income rural families get ahead – from your peer communities in Washington and others across the country.

This Rural Family Economic Success (RUFES) Action Learning Institute, being held November 2-4, 2009, will be tailored to the needs and opportunities of the local, action-ready Horizons leadership teams that commit to participate. This is not a typical “conference” – rather, it is a structured working session in which your team will both learn about key RuFES strategies and policies and develop an action plan to take back home. The Aspen Institute Community Strategies Group (CSG) will work with your team and the sponsoring partners to design and facilitate the Institute.

Horizons, NWAF and AECF are partnering to sponsor this Institute because they share both passion and goals to help reduce family poverty and to help rural communities thrive. Horizons, with the support of NWAF and the assistance of Washington State University Extension, has engaged and organized hundreds of people in Washington’s rural communities in building their capacity to examine issues, lead, work together and pursue a new vision for their communities – always toward the end of reducing poverty. AECF’s RuFES Institutes engage action-oriented community-based teams – like Horizons teams – in learning about and adapting the best available strategies to help low-income working families in their communities do better – today and into the next generation.

The Content: Strengthening Rural Families

The Institute will engage each team in understanding AECF’s Rural Family Economic Success framework in depth, and in using it to make more – and more strategic – progress in improving outcomes for rural children and families back home. Specifically, the framework will address how communities can help low-income and low-wealth rural families get ahead by pursuing three outcomes:

§ Earn It: Working families earn a living that allows them to survive, thrive and raise their children in their community. This means that a family’s working members can qualify for a job in the region, they can find and land that job, they can keep it, they can create their own businesses locally, their jobs produce enough income to meet at least a basic family budget, and they advance in careers and income over time.

§ Keep It: Working families have access to and make good choices that safeguard their family income and lower their cost of living, forging stable and predictable financial lives. This means that a family sets financial goals, builds a mainstream banking relationship, improves its credit record, obtains affordable financial services, accesses available tax benefits and public and private support to close the gap between income and expenses, and obtains their family’s essential goods and services at reasonable prices.

§ Grow It: Working families accumulate and maintain assets that gain value and advance family and community prosperity over time. This means that family members are saving, advancing their education, buying homes and acquiring other assets that improve their financial prospects over generations; they are caring for and maintaining those assets; and that civic engagement and local investment increases the value of family and community assets over time.


Adapting to the starting point of the participants, this two and one-half day Institute will include a mix of sessions that build on each other, from a RuFES overview, to program and tactical approaches that work to make progress on specific RuFES goals, case stories and tools that help you move policy, service delivery, and standard business practice to create better Earn It, Keep It and Grow It outcomes for your families. The Institute also will also feature small group and peer advice exercises that help participants develop a specific, trackable, What Will We Do? RUFES agenda and Next Steps workplan.

Who may participate?

The RUFES Institute will be open to up to seven action teams of five to six members each from Horizons II communities in Washington. The ideal team will include key doers, thinkers, opinion leaders, and decisionmakers who can – and will – make the difference in moving a RUFES agenda back home. It can draw key members from your Horizons steering committee, include your Horizons coach, and be rounded out with a selection that makes sense in your community.

For example, one team might include an educator, a workforce development specialist, a community action agency director, a banking or credit union director, a low-income family advocate, an active youth leader, and a chamber of commerce representative. A different team might bring along an economic development director, a community foundation staffer or board member, an influential local business owner, an elected official, a spiritual leader, and a health care administrator. The exact mix for your community depends on who makes decisions, has energy, exerts influence and/or really must be at the table to make a local action plan succeed and stick. You know who they are!

The Washington Horizons and Aspen CSG staff will work with each team to ensure the selection of a balanced and action-oriented team that will work well with others – and themselves! Other Institute participants will include a Resource Team, selected both to offer specific Earn It, Keep It and Grow It expertise and experience, and to assist individual teams in their RUFES analysis and action planning.

What is expected of participants?

Participating teams are expected to:

§ Select/work with a team leader. The Team Leader (or co-leaders) will be your communication point person before and after the Institute, will ensure that the team prepares for the Institute, and will help convene you to keep your RUFES action plan on track.
§ Prepare in advance. CSG will conduct a two-three hour interview of your team a few months prior to the Institute. A few weeks before the Institute, each team will receive an assignment to prepare in advance that will help them come to the Institute informed and focused on their RUFES challenges and opportunities. Aspen CSG designs this assignment as structured questions for you to answer and present to your peer teams, and to take only a few hours.
§ Attend the entire Institute. Dropping in and out will detract from the flow of the event and the quality of the outcomes for everyone participating. Because the Institute is designed to take teams through a process that builds from session to session, all team members are expected to attend the Institute from start to finish.
§ Develop a RUFES Action Plan. The Institute prepares you to take action back home on at least two RuFES Action Ideas. The agenda includes time for your team to devise a three-month RUFES Action Plan and accompanying steps.
§ Advise and inform your peer teams. In some cases, you may be asked to give teams from the other participating locations frank and caring critique and advice about their RUFES challenges and plans – or to present a story about a particular successful approach being used in your community.
§ Advance and report on your Action Plan. Teams are expected to carry out their action plans back home, and to share details of their RUFES progress with AECF, NWAF, CSG and the Horizons staff as part of the Institute follow-up.

Timing, Location and Support

The Institute will begin at 10 a.m. on Monday, November 2, 2009 and wrap up at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, November 4, 2009. The Institute will be held at the Cedarbrook Convention site near the SeaTac airport..

The partnership will cover the costs of travel, lodging (single rooms!) and meals for teams participating in the Institute.

If you want to participate or have more questions …
Please contact your community coach or
Doreen Hauser-Lindstrom
WA Horizons Project Director
509.358.7686 (office)
509.435.3381 (cell)
Doreen@wsu.edu

Rural Broadband Meeting

NEWSFLASH!!! There is a boatload of stimulus money about to be launched to solve “rural broadband” issues.

The application was to be available on July 7, 2009 (has not yet been posted) and the deadline for submission is August 14, 2009 – yes, a folk, that’s five weeks away.

Here’s what we know:

The deadline is short. Washington State projects will be approved through the Governor’s Broadband Advisory Committee, and we in the Northeast Washington region have an opportunity to participate.

There are two sides to this issue and how the money will be allocated:

Supply Side… where is the bandwidth and where are the gaps?

Demand Side… if you supply the bandwidth, what will people and communities do with it? and how will they access it?

I invite you to a meeting on Thursday, July 16th from 9-12 to discuss, plan and refine our approach to this opportunity. Here’s the agenda:

9:00 – 9:30 Realities of the grant, the money, the deadlines
9:30 – 11:00 Split into two groups to discuss:

Supply Side: Redundancy, capacity needs, and gaps

Demand Side: Broadband to anchor institutions (i.e., schools, hospitals, libraries) throughout the county. We will share our concept of information/library centers that aligns rural libraries, social and medical services, county government, economic incubators and distance learning (see attached flyer)

11:00 – 11:30 Report back
11:30 – 12:00 Discuss grant approach and potential team members

Again, I invite you to participate if you are interested, and forward this to anyone you think may be. Please RSVP if you plan to attend so we can arrange the meeting rooms.

The meeting location on Thursday, July 16th from 9-12 is at the Ambulance Training Center in Colville (425 N. Highway 395 – next door to Ronnie Dee’s.)

Debra Kollock, Director
WSU Stevens County Extension
985 S. Elm, Suite A
Colville, WA 99114
Phone: (509) 684-2588
Fax: (509) 684-9790
http://stevens.wsu.edu

Extension programs and employment are available to all without discrimination. Evidence of noncompliance may be reported through your local Extension office.

Farmers Market Classes for August 15th

10 am to 1 pm - Canning, taught by WSU Master Canner Bonnie Stichart12:30 pm - How to select and eat vegetables and fruit/market walk-through,taught by chef and organic caterer Susan Henson2:30 pm - Backyard Chicken Raising, taught by farmer Dean HydenMarket is open from NOON to 6 pm. Pastor Ed PaceSt. Paul Lutheran Churchhttp://chewelahlutheran.organd FINGERPRINTS preschoolhttp://fingerprintspreschool.org

"Mystery Shopper" Comes to Chewelah

What Does Your Customer Want?
Let’s GET REAL!

Are your customers returning?
What impressions are you making?
What do you and your community offer?
Why do people visit Chewelah?
What are others saying about you?

Visitors to your community include commuters, family or friends of local residents, as well as out-of-town recreational or business travelers. And good customer service, provided by your business, helps to secure and retain that visitor "wallet share”.

But it’s not just about good customer service it is about GREAT Service. Businesses and communities will spend thousands of dollars attracting the customer but little time and energy training their staff to assure their return. Are you building LOYAL customers or just SATISFIED ones? The satisfied customer may tell someone who asks about your business, if convenient. The loyal customer tells everyone, and always return. How are you doing?
This class offers a fun and interactive experience.

• What is the WOW and how do I get it?
• Why the customer will return.
• How important is Body Language?
• What your customers are actually thinking?
• How to deal with difficult customers and turning them into WOW’s.
• It’s not what you say…it’s how to say it.
• What makes you stand out from the other businesses or areas?
• Why the visitor will spend 4 times the amount if they stay overnight. This does not include lodging.

FACT:
The number one reason customers spend more, stay longer and return to most businesses is because they were pleased with the customer service they received.

Saturday, June 28, 2008
Chewelah City Council Room
1:00pm to 4:00pm

Light refreshments will be served. Gas cards and child care reimbursement available upon request.

Chewelah's Farmers Market - Opening Day

Friday July 25, NOON to 6 PM
"creekside" at St. Paul Lutheran Church, N. 202 2nd St. W., Chewelah

*Chili lunch NOON - 2 pm
*Master Gardener available NOON - 2 pm
*FREE classes at 2 and 4 pm: 2 pm Farmer's Market Shopping 101, taught by farmer Gerry Weythman; 4 pm Cooking What You Bought 101, taught by chef and organic caterer Susan Henson

Study Circles, LeadershipPlenty Action Steps and the Community Visioning survey all mentioned the desire to have better access to food in Chewelah, this Farmers Market and the free educational workshops that are being offered are one way to create a better food community. Two of our current Horizon members are helping with planning and organizing this market.

COLVILLE HORIZONS “BIG IDEA” CONTEST KICK-OFF

April 23, 2008

Colville HORIZON Board
Dana McDowell
(509) 685-6125
Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Colville, Washington

COLVILLE HORIZONS “BIG IDEA” CONTEST KICK-OFF

In an effort to bring more livable wage jobs to the Colville area, the Colville Horizon board is hosting an invention, innovation or marketable idea seminar on May 31, 2008 at the Community Colleges of Spokane, Colville Center from 8:30 am until 3:00 pm The seminar is the kick-off for the “Big Idea Contest” which will be held sometime this summer.

Joe Harris, Supervising Manager of the WSU Innovation Assessment Center will be the key-note speaker at the “Big Idea Contest” Kick-off. He will speak about the Innovation Assessment Center which reviews inventions, innovations, and marketable ideas to help develop them for patenting and marketing. He will answer the question, “What are the qualities that make an invention, innovation or marketable idea appropriate to bring to the WSU Center?”

At the May 31 event, there will be a call to potential inventors to submit their “Big Idea”. Their idea or invention will be reviewed by a judging panel of experts for specific qualities such as: feasibility to be patented, marketability, ability to be produced locally, potential for the number of jobs that it would create, and the ability to be shipped from our area The three or four top selections from the reviewing panel would then be awarded scholarships towards the $795.00 fee to enter the WSU Innovation Assessment Center. The panel reviewers will sign non-disclosure agreements with each inventor on their idea and will keep the inventions from being disclosed until the process is complete and the new ideas are ready to be revealed.

Because of our rural nature it is difficult to attract business to our area such as manufacturing or production of marketable ideas which could provide more livable wage jobs in the Colville area. Dana McDowell, A Horizons group member, says, “We are appealing to folks in the area who have been dreaming of an idea or who, due to necessity have already come up with an invention that makes their life easier.”

The Kick-off will also include some local business entrepreneurs who have built successful businesses in our area. There will be short presentations from other business services like Tri-County Economic Development District, SCORE, Stone Soup, and WSU Extension Ag Department. In addition we will have a track that showcases in-home businesses or “virtual jobs”. Lunch will be provided.

This event was birthed out of the Horizons Project funded by the Northwest Area Foundation that is being sponsored by WSU Extension. Seven communities in Stevens and Ferry counties have been participating in this 18 month project. For more information check out http://www.colvillewa.org/ . Additionally you may call Dana McDowell at (509) 685-6125 or Lynn Harris at (509) 675-2246.


Persons with a disability requiring special accommodation while participating in this program may call WSU Stevens County Extension, 509-684-2588. If accommodation is not requested in advance, we cannot guarantee the availability of accommodation on site. Extension programs and policies are consistent with federal and state laws regulations on nondiscrimination regarding race, color, gender, national origin, religion, age, disability, and sexual orientation. Evidence of noncompliance may be reported through your local Extension office.

Steering Committee Meeting Minutes- May 13, 2008

Present: Gary McNiel, Karen Lyson, Tracey Rice, Brenda Gregerson, Angie Tipton, and Rose Walter

• Went through the meeting minutes from April 29
• The "How To Kit/Book" has been ordered
• Angie reported that the Chewelah Library was very happy that we're sponsoring their "Teen Night" in June, and she'll post it to the blog when the flyer is available
• Angie will forward the volunteer email back to Rose and Tracey, so they can add any information to it
• Flyers for the "What Does Your Customer Want?" workshop with Sue Price were handed out, and Tracey volunteered to hand deliver a stack to the local businesses
• Currently there is not a flyer for the "Volunteer Recruitment and Training" workshop on May 29 with Ann Hennings, so Tracey will email Debra about the flyer, so that we can advertise and get it in the paper
• Rose will email Debra about food that could be provided at the volunteer training

Meeting Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Angie Tipton

Steering Committee Meeting Minutes- April 29, 2008

Meeting Agenda

• Report on Workshops and upcoming Conferences (Debra)
• Determine Grant Application for Chewelah
• Report from Chewelah Economic Alliance (Ralph Walter)
• Approve Vision Statement
• Other

Present: Gary McNiel, Karen Lyson, Penny Murphy, Sarah Haden, Krisan LeHew, Ralph Walter, Angie Tipton, and Debra Kollock (Chewelah's Community Coach)

• Gary reported about meeting with Rural Resources
• The Grant Application was tabled until a future meeting
• Brenda volunteered to take all three grant versions home and read over them since she'd just attended the Grant Writing workshop with Susan Howlett
• Discussion about the middle of May deadline to submit Strategic Plans to NWAF about all of the projects we're currently working on in Chewelah
• Debra will write up the Strategic Plans, and email them to us to embellish on
• Discussed wanting to develop a "Local Business and Services Directory" that would include local area cottage industries and possibly a locality rating system
• Talked about initial framework being 6-18 months
• Would help keep money in the community, and could lead to increased local businesses and purchasing power
• Ralph talked about the Michael Shuman workshop, and about wanting to do a "Local First" approach, and he talked about a recent trip to Bellingham with Rose to check out their community
• Karen made a motion that we buy the "How To Kit/Book" for $100.00, and Brenda seconded, and the motion carried unanimously
• Angie spoke about the "Sustainable Connections", and the 5th Annual Spring Business conference & Expo on May 15th at 8:00 am-5:30 pm that could be very beneficial for members to attend, and bring back valuable information that could be put to use in the community
• Angie circulated the flyer that she'd printed out, so interested members could copy down the information
• Krisan stated that maybe her husband and her would attend
• Ralph handed out "Local First" information, and Chewelah Economic Alliance brochures, and spoke briefly on the possibility of partnering in a way with the Chewelah Economic Alliance who's been dormant for a year, and currently is a 501C6, but maybe in the future they could change to a 501C3, and center around "Local First", and include us (Horizons) in their bylaws as a subcommittee. They'll have a meeting at the end of May, and Ralph will bring this option before the committee of the Chewelah Economic Alliance (Entire Steering Committee Approved)
• Tabled the approval of the "Vision Statement"
• Krisan is going to nail down Patrick Malone Grant Writing workshop, but if they have it at the WSU Extension Building there's only room for 14 people, or teams of two to each computer
• Angie spoke about the "Teen Night" at the Chewelah Library, and Whitney saying that would be great if we could sponsor the event, but the cost would be about $350.00
• Karen motioned to approve that we sponsor the "Teen Night", and Gary seconded, and the motion carried unanimously
• Angie will contact Whitney, and tell them we're sponsoring the event for teens
• Debra spoke about the only date for Ann Hennings to do a local workshop is on Thursday, May 29, 2008, and could possibly be from 1-4 pm, and all agreed that we want to book that workshop
• Debra will email out "Marketing Checklist" to Rose and Angie
• Debra stressed the importance of getting better stats and data on Chewelah Volunteer organizations and will email a list to Angie to keep forwarding so that everyone can add any information they have to it (Penny does not want this emailed to her)
• The information will be used to invite people and organizations to our "Volunteer Workshop"
• Krisan mentioned that the only dates available for the Sue Price workshop is Friday, June 27, and Saturday, June 28, and asked if we had a preference, and it was agreed that if it was important to people they'd find a way to attend even if it ends up being on a Friday
• Reminded everyone about the "Big Idea" workshop set to take place on Saturday, May 31 at the Colville Community College (time of event to be decided)
• Debra handed out copies of Rural Resources...in Action newsletter that features a story about Head Start and Angie Tipton and her son- in the article it talks about her becoming involved in a grant-funded project to reduce poverty in the Chewelah area, which of coarse is the Horizons project that's funded by the NWAF that we are all so lucky to be involved with

Meeting Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Angie Tipton

WHY SHOULD WE READ TO CHILDREN??

WHY SHOULD WE READ TO CHILDREN??

The Horizons project of Colville is offering a FREE 5-hour workshop on
Early Literacy

Friday, May 16
10 am to 3pm
at the Rendezvous Theater
at the Community Colleges of Spokane, Colville Center

Contrary to popular belief, children prepare to read long before they
enter kindergarten or first grade. What children know about reading
and writing before they can actually read and write is now called
early literacy.

Parents, teachers, daycare workers, nurses, school staff, library
staff, Horizon participants and potential literacy volunteers are
invited to attend this free Early Literacy Workshop. Lunch will be
provided. Participants can attend either the entire five-hour training
or any of the three sessions (10-12, Brain Development and Current
Research, 12-1, How to be an Early Literacy Advocate, 1-3 How to Read
Aloud to Childre).

The speaker at the workshop is Ms. Sunny Strong, an early literacy
consultant with the Washington State library and former manager of
Children's Services for the Snohomish and Island County Libraries.

Attached to this email are 2 flyers about this event. One is for
parents, the other for teachers. We ask for your help in getting the
word out about this wonderful opportunity.

Those who RSVP will receive a free lunch and a packet of information
about early literacy at the workshop. Clock hours for teachers and
Stars Credit for daycare workers are available. Fuel vouchers and
money for daycare or eldercare available upon request.

For more information or to RSVP, email whitney@scrld.org

Thank you.
Sincerely,
Whitney Edwards
Horizons Early Literacy Focus Group


Debra Kollock,
Phone: (509) 684-2588

Grantwriting Workshop

Trish Miller (left) and Brenda Gregerson from the Chewelah Horizon group work on exercises that help refine their writing skills so their grants are more appealing to funders.



Grantwriting workshop creates new capacity in Chewelah area

Twenty one people from the Chewelah and Addy communities have a set of new skills thanks to a 2-day workshop in April. They joined 156 people from the tri-county area to learn how to write grants for their creative ideas.

This Horizons sponsored Grant Writing Workshop was free to all who attended because of the financial support from the Northwest Area Foundation and WSU Extension. The Horizon programs are in our communities to create leadership and reduce poverty.

The presenter, Susan Howlett, has consulted, trained and spoken to hundreds of non-profits nationally over the last 20 years made the following statement about the training, “It gives me hope and spirit to work with people like you who are doing the right things for the right reasons.”

Several people commented that it changed their thinking about grants and the foundations that fund them.. “Funders don’t ‘give’ us money because we need it, we need to find funders who’s goals align with ours – consider the giver first,” said one participant.

“This workshop was very informative, interactive. Best part, you made it available to all citizens, regardless of their financial ability. In a rural community like ours, even a class fee of $50.00 can be too hard on family budgets. So many thanks to those who made this opportunity at no charge,” stated one participant.

The goal of the workshop was to increase grant writing skills for community members. Of the 177 that attended, 116 have never written a grant before.

“We hope that the increased capacity and enthusiasm will result in many grants being written – and many also being funded,” said WSU Extension director Debra Kollock. “There are many opportunities to find money, and now we have 177 people with more skills and knowledge.”