Group forms to boost hometown growth

Concerned because of population losses and declining retail sales, McCook has launched a program called HomeTown Competitiveness.

The program, conceived by Nebraska community development leaders, helps towns meet challenges with a program featuring four pillars: Leadership, Entrepreneur-ship, Charitable Giving and Young People.

To prepare for the second phase of the HomeTown Competitiveness program, a group of McCookites gathered Thursday for training at the Republican River Valley Event Center.

After receiving a briefing on HomeTown Competitive-ness, the McCook group took part in breakout sessions to plan local programs for economic development, youth retention, increased charitable giving and leadership training.

With the help of a grant from the Kellogg Foundation -- matched with local funding and in-kind contributions -- the groups now will begin work on projects to uplift the community.

Those taking part in Thursday's sessions were Stacie Shaddock, Denise Ringenberg, Stan Goodwin, Dannette Miller, Pam Harsh, Susan Broomfield, Norma Stevens, Kim Schilling, Tor Olson, Gene Morris, Bill Burton, Jim Ulrich, Jerry Smith, Dennis Berry, Mark Graff and Rex Nelson.

Andela Taylor represented Cambridge, which is working with McCook on a $60,000 grant made possible by the "Building Entrepreneurial Communities Act," known as BECA for short.

The training session in McCook was presented by Craig Schroeder, representing the Center for Rural Entrepreneurship; Jana Jensen, representing the Nebraska Community Foun-dation; Connie Hancock, representing UN-L Extension; and Milan Wall, representing the Heartland Center for Leadership Development.

A major focus of the HomeTown Competitiveness program will be on development of small businesses.

There's a reason for that, "Seventy percent of the jobs in America are created by small businesses," Schroeder said.