2021 Rural Fellows—Arapahoe

Haley Burford & Kennedy Kriewald Author

08/12/2021 Added

25 Plays

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Student and Community Fellows talk about the community development projects they worked on during Summer 2021.

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[00:00:00.186](gentle music)
[00:00:05.710]The work that Haley and Kennedy did in Arapahoe
[00:00:07.950]is going to have lasting impacts
[00:00:09.600]way longer than this summer.
[00:00:11.200]One of my favorite things about being a host community
[00:00:14.130]for the Rural Fellows Program is the life
[00:00:16.690]that these students bring into our community.
[00:00:19.330]Haley and Kennedy have gone business to business,
[00:00:21.880]talking to different owners,
[00:00:23.210]and bringing energy and light
[00:00:25.310]into their ideas and their projects,
[00:00:26.960]and helping them feel like they are part of the community
[00:00:29.500]and can collaborate on these big projects and big ideas.
[00:00:32.800]And it's amazing to see the energy change
[00:00:35.740]that has happened just over the summer,
[00:00:37.670]over the 10 weeks that these students have been here,
[00:00:40.110]that Haley and Kennedy brought to Arapahoe, Nebraska.
[00:00:43.200]That's pretty unique and special,
[00:00:44.630]and it takes a lot of time of time and energy
[00:00:47.590]to make a reality, and that's incredibly invaluable.
[00:00:51.920]During my time here in Arapahoe,
[00:00:53.390]Haley and I have had the opportunity
[00:00:54.760]to work on several projects for the community.
[00:00:57.000]A few of the projects, I personally have gotten to work on,
[00:00:59.520]was creating social media posts
[00:01:01.350]for the Arapahoe Economic Development page.
[00:01:03.880]These posts consisted of reminding our community members
[00:01:06.910]to participate in the survey for downtown revitalization
[00:01:10.230]or the charrette event that happened back in June.
[00:01:12.830]I also got to post about Small Business Saturday,
[00:01:15.730]the Digital Facade program,
[00:01:17.080]or vacant businesses in Arapahoe.
[00:01:19.410]I feel that our summer interns from Rural Fellows Program
[00:01:23.470]really helped the town of Arapahoe
[00:01:26.580]by incorporating Small Business Saturday.
[00:01:29.430]One of my favorite events I got to put on this summer
[00:01:32.260]was Small Business Saturday.
[00:01:33.850]I had about 20 businesses participate,
[00:01:35.960]and they each offered a specific deal or prize for that day.
[00:01:39.470]It was so rewarding that day
[00:01:41.000]to see how many Arapahoe community members came down
[00:01:45.010]to support local Arapahoe businesses.
[00:01:47.830]I created a bingo card for that day
[00:01:49.480]that allowed family and friends to participate in a fun game
[00:01:52.570]while also shopping local and supporting our businesses.
[00:01:55.640]Not only did it bring all of our businesses together,
[00:01:58.720]but it really helped make our community feel whole.
[00:02:01.780]One of the main projects we've been working on
[00:02:03.430]is downtown revitalization,
[00:02:05.280]which we held an open house charrette event for in June.
[00:02:08.270]At this event,
[00:02:09.103]both Kennedy and I were onsite and in-person
[00:02:12.170]to discuss different concepts with community members,
[00:02:14.910]as well as assist the design team, however needed.
[00:02:17.720]Additional projects we've been working on
[00:02:19.300]is a Vacant Downtown Business Registry,
[00:02:21.850]which is a collection of one page flyers
[00:02:23.990]intended to give business owners and new entrepreneurs
[00:02:26.640]an organized way to find all available commercial locations
[00:02:29.520]Arapahoe has to offer them.
[00:02:31.000]Additionally, Haley and Kennedy have worked
[00:02:32.945]on the groundwork for several other projects
[00:02:35.760]that are not going to be able to come to life this summer,
[00:02:38.530]but will come to life down the road.
[00:02:41.070]For example,
[00:02:41.903]they've worked on
[00:02:42.736]a Leadership Certified Community application.
[00:02:44.930]The Leadership Certified Community application
[00:02:46.870]is another project we've been working on this summer
[00:02:48.920]for Arapahoe, and, if approved,
[00:02:50.950]will provide the community with a solid framework
[00:02:53.100]for advancing Arapahoe's community and economic development.
[00:02:56.840]They also worked on assisting with downtown revitalization
[00:03:01.020]and putting together a Workforce Housing plan.
[00:03:03.600]I was very impressed
[00:03:05.940]with the housing plan they put together.
[00:03:08.140]They have started the project
[00:03:10.930]of tearing down nuisance properties in our town
[00:03:13.610]that will beautify our town,
[00:03:15.890]make it more attractable to people that are coming in.
[00:03:18.810]I also was very impressed with the academy
[00:03:21.460]that I went through with Dr. Fagan,
[00:03:25.350]and all of the ideas that she brought to me,
[00:03:29.140]not just in a business aspect,
[00:03:31.000]but as a personal aspect,
[00:03:32.920]of how to work with all sorts of people
[00:03:35.760]and how to bring our community together.
[00:03:39.100]This experience has impacted me,
[00:03:41.330]as an inclusive community leader,
[00:03:43.820]because of the way that I've had to shift my mindset
[00:03:46.640]when developing programs for development in Arapahoe.
[00:03:50.260]I personally have learned a lot about myself
[00:03:52.640]with my time here in Arapahoe.
[00:03:54.200]I have learned how to be more of an inclusive leader,
[00:03:56.620]and I have gotten to use these skills
[00:03:58.180]when communicating with business owners
[00:04:00.440]or community members of Arapahoe.
[00:04:02.160]I am also excited for a future career
[00:04:04.000]in the business industry.
[00:04:05.170]I have really learned how much I enjoy
[00:04:07.290]event planning and marketing
[00:04:08.830]with this experience this summer,
[00:04:10.220]and I hope to use that in a future career one day.
[00:04:13.080]This experience provided me with an opportunity
[00:04:15.440]to move to a completely new community
[00:04:17.160]and submerge myself in their lifestyle.
[00:04:19.430]Arapahoe also gave me an opportunity
[00:04:21.410]to work on my professional skills across the board,
[00:04:24.080]which was so enriching,
[00:04:25.130]because I've gained experience
[00:04:26.420]in several professional skills,
[00:04:27.830]from technical writing to building relationships,
[00:04:30.150]which I know will benefit my future ability
[00:04:31.960]to function as an inclusive leader
[00:04:33.630]within the workplace and my future community.
[00:04:36.480]I think this experience has been challenging,
[00:04:38.630]yet rewarding.
[00:04:40.040]I think I will leave here remembering
[00:04:41.870]how welcoming and kind the Arapahoe community was
[00:04:44.410]to Haley and I.
[00:04:45.530]I am very grateful that they allowed us to come in
[00:04:48.060]and bring new ideas to their community.
[00:04:50.210]Arapahoe has some great potential,
[00:04:51.940]and I'm so excited to see what the future holds
[00:04:54.000]for this community.
[00:04:55.407](upbeat music)

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2021 Rural Fellows—Arapahoe

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