Montrose, SD

Wow, it is amazing what can happen when you bring people together. This past year we have seen many wonderful things happen in our small town. Before Horizons sparked the interest of the people in Montrose, it was hard to get things accomplished. This was not due to the lack of ideas or because there was no one willing to help, but because there was no one to help us set goals, organize our thoughts and ideas, and solicit volunteers. With help from Horizons, we put the pencil to paper and set our goals and objectives.

Many people of all ages attended the Horizons meetings. In those meetings, we learned how to tap our leadership skills and organize our ideas. We also learned the many aspects of poverty. I have never thought of Montrose as being a community of poverty but after the meetings we discovered there are many sides of poverty.

After attending these meetings I knew that I wanted to be part of something big that could make a difference in Montrose. And, what a difference it has made. Just one example is the community garden we started last spring that was located a few miles out of town. The community garden was an ideas and goal that came from the Horizons meetings. Many of us gathered for a few planning meeting. From those meetings, we determined what to plant, what night each of us was going to work at the garden and what our plans were when the crop was ready for distribution.

We worked many, many hours on the garden which turned out to be very rewarding. We planted, weeded, watered; then when the produce was ready, we pick it and got it ready to give away. The greatest reward was giving the fresh produce away on Saturday mornings. I feel we made a difference in many people’s lives. We not only fed the elderly and the people that needed it but we gained new friendships along the way. Although the work was hard and we got a few blisters along the way, we had fun and laughed a lot.

Our plans are to continue with the community garden. The new location of the garden is in town by the softball diamond at the west end of main street and behind the elevator. If you were not involved with the community garden last year, please join us this year. We’d love to have you and you’ll find your rewards will be endless. Look for more information this spring in the Montrose Herald.

Without Horizons, this project as well as many other projects may never have happened. Thank you Horizons! We appreciate all you’ve done for us.

It was great to see a large group of Montrose community members show up Tuesday, January 15 for our first monthly Horizons’ ‘Progress Report’ meeting at the Community Center. We even had brand new faces–people wanting to know more about what’s happening in our community and how they might become involved.

As Martha Landes, our Horizons Community Coordinator, ticked off the various goals and committees, it was exciting to hear many of the committee members reporting that progress is truly underway. Even in the midst of the holiday season, people were beginning to make positive things happen. And, after the general meeting, various committees were setting dates when they will meet again and take more steps forward in our attempt to reduce poverty and increase opportunities for everyone in our community.

We’ll be reporting on some of the things that are underway, so keep checking into our blog and find out what’s happening.

This ‘thank you’ is long overdue, but I wanted to thank our community’s churches, school and city for their support of Horizons. The Montrose United Methodist Church welcomed Horizons, inviting us to hold our visioning sessions in the church’s fellowship hall this past fall. The church allowed us to use the facilities–kitchen, dining area and side rooms–in order to dream and plan–during the three meetings.

In the earlier stages of Horizons, St. John’s Lutheran Church opened its doors for study circles and meetings. And the Montrose Public School gave us the use of its gym, dining hall and help setting up and taking down, for our large community meetings. The city’s Community Center played host to many of our study circles, Leadership Plenty classes, and now our monthly meetings. We appreciate the community’s willingness to make us feel welcome as we strive to bring about a recognition and reduction of poverty in our community. Thank you.

She may have come from Oklahoma, but our Horizons Community Coordinator Martha Landes really can ice skate. Martha braved the cold temps and took a brief, but convincing spin on the new Montrose Ice Rink before our first monthly Horizons’ meeting Tuesday, January 15. And no, she didn’t fall!

OK. All excuses are used up. Christmas is over. We’ve celebrated the New Years. It’s time to get back to work. That’s certainly true in our everyday jobs. It’s also true with our Horizons’ program.

Our Horizons’ Coordinator, Martha Landes will be in Montrose on Tuesday night at the Community Center. (That is, if we can get her out of her ice skates and off the ice rink in town!) We’ll be sitting down with her and others involved in various committees formed during our Celebration Event way back on December 2. It will be time to see what’s been done to date. If you’re like me, it’s been hard to get much done on Horizons programs during the past month. But, some of you have been busy. The ice rink is just one example.

So, don’t feel bad if you just haven’t had time to schedule that meeting, or call others on your committee, etc. But now it’s time to get in gear. We’ve got too many great ideas to let up. Feel free to come to the update meeting on Tuesday night. Find out what’s been done and what’s going to be done. And, if you’re not already on a committee, we can always use an extra hand or two!

I finally did it! I got a copy of the Montrose Vision Plan on this blog. It should have been here long ago. No excuse except for busy work and holiday schedule. But I’ve placed it on its own page. Just go to Montrose Vision Plan and hit the link. It will take you to the word document.

If you’ve been active in Horizons, or attended our Celebration Event December 2, you received a copy of the Vision Plan. If you weren’t able to join us, you can read over the document. You’ll find a brief introduction about how we developed the plan, a survey of 60-plus residents that helped direct the plan, and our four major goals. Under each goal, you’ll find a list of objectives and suggested implementation steps. If you aren’t familiar with the plan, please go to that page (over in the top right-hand panel) and read through it. If you’d like a hard copy to have in your home, we have plenty to share. In fact, we want them in your hands! Stop in at the General Store and ask for one.