development
Grocery Store Summit
Opportunity knocks!
Local grocery stores represent a critical infrastructure for our rural communities. These stores are an important part of the economic engine that sustains rural communities, providing essential jobs and taxes. They are a vital source for nutrition and health, providing a supply of fresh fruits and vegetables, dairy, and protein. Grocery stores, like schools, restaurants, and post offices, are community assets used to recruit and retain citizens, providing a symbol of community health. Unfortunately, it seems every day we hear about another store closing shop and shutting their doors. In Kansas alone, 82 grocery stores in communities of fewer than 2,000 people have closed since 2007. Although, we have several strong grocery stores in Phillips County, we need to encourage them, support them, and give positive comments as to how they might improve.
Because the loss of a rural grocery store threatens the health of local citizens and the very existence of that community, Kansas State University and a broad range of partners have been working to assist rural communities and their grocery stores. They been collecting data on rural grocery stores by surveying store owners and rural grocery consumers, identifying and archiving the latest research, and talking with store owners, policy makers, and funders about grocery store challenges and their best practices.
They have put together a Rural Grocery Store Summit where owners can discuss issues, but also investigate options to keep their stores viable in the rural economic climate. For more information on this summit, visit www.dce.k-state.edu/conf/ruralgrocery or www.ruralgrocery.org
Submitted by: Jeff Hofaker
Helping your Business & Community!
The end of the year is very quickly approaching. Have you considered a business donation toward a local community foundation? It is a great way for a business to get some tax deductible benefits, while helping out the community. Most of the community foundations in Phillips County have specific projects they are currently working on. A business or individual donation can be given directly to a specific project “designated” or given to the foundation in general. Both types of donations given by the business/individual is tax deductible, the only difference is how the community foundation can utilize your donation (specifically or generally). In any economy, the more dollars a business or individual can keep locally, the stronger the economy is. In the case of giving to a local cause through a community foundation, the benefit is expanded. The donation actually is used toward a project which improves the atmosphere (business or community environment), which in the long run helps bring more people and businesses to the area.
The community foundations in the area, which are currently working on projects are the Phillips County Community Foundation, the Logan Community Development Foundation, the Huck Boyd Community Center, HOPE Foundation, and the Kirwin Community Foundation. Make contact with these foundation’s board members and see if their projects may be something that you may be compelled to support. If they are not currently working on a project that you may have interest in, make that project suggestion to them and a donation to that specific cause. Projects take a while to complete or even start working on; especially since all these foundation’s enlist volunteer time to raise the funds and work on projects. Al-in-all though, they are very excited when businesses and/or individuals suggest ideas with donations of funds and volunteers to get the job done.
The overall point is: Giving to a local community foundation helps the community, its residents and YOU!