Posts Tagged ‘Hazelton ND’

Everybody’s got a story

March 26th, 2010

A Florida family leaves a small, rural North Dakota town; not because they couldn’t stand the cold weather, but because they couldn’t stand the cold shoulders of the town’s residents.

Many of our rural fans are familiar with the above story.  I’ve written about it in the past.

For whatever reason, the story travelled with great velocity.  It wasn’t long after I’d written about it that a friend informed me that Minneapolis radio talk shows were ripping rural communities as places filled with narrow minded people who don’t like outsiders.  Sadly, the story reinforced negative stereotypes and harmed rural communities everywhere. 

I had already purchased my ticket to OTA Session when this story emerged, but it reinforced my desire to use what I learn at the event about storytelling and technology to help rebrand Rural America.  

Stories matter

“Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me.”  Hey right!  Words do hurt, and when they are used to tell stories, their damaging effects grow exponentially.  Case in point, the Hazelton, ND story mentioned above.  

But stories can be equally powerful for the positive.  Let me give you an example.

The Miner County Cash Flow Story

At the Rural Learning Center (RLC), we love telling the story about the Miner County Cash Flow project.  Back in 1995, young people in our community ignited a movement of community revitalization.  After studying local spending habits (which were disappointingly low) through a community survey, the high school students set out to change people’s behavior.  They shared what they had learned with the community, and challenged residents to spend 10% more within the community in the next year.  Long story short, their efforts paid off.  Sales increased a whopping 40% the next year.  

The story could have ended there, but it didn’t.  Residents banded band together to figure out what else they could do. They attracted the attention of the Northwest Area Foundation in St. Paul, MN, forming a 10-year partnership with them; they developed an economic development strategy that produced over 200 jobs in a community of 2,800 people, and they continued to support the local economy producing record sales tax growth.  

We love to share the story, not because we want to brag about what has been accomplished, but because the story communicates the RLC’s values, in a fun, entertaining fashion. People understand that we believe:     

In short, people “get us” after hearing the story.  They understand what we are trying to accomplish, and they begin to develop an emotional connection to our work.  I’m convinced that without this, our efforts in Miner County would not have been nearly as successful as they have been.

(Note:  The Cash Flow project story is so captivating that Dan & Chip Heath used it as a story in their latest book Switch:  How to Change Things when Change is Hard.)

Everyone’s got a story

Over the last few years, I’ve had an opportunity to travel across the region and work from other rural communities. I often ask the community members I meet; “What’s happening in this community?  What makes this place special.”  Their answers amaze and frustrate me. 

Usually, their responses reflect the “humble approach” OTA Sessions organizer Hugh Weber talks about; they tell me, “Nothing special ever happens here. We’re just a small, town that’s a pretty good place to raise a family.”   I’m not inspired. 

But as we talk further, I often stumble across some pretty interesting ideas; they do have remarkable stories; they’re just not telling other people about them.   In other words, they are just as special as Miner County — perhaps more so.  

But perhaps they need help unearthing their remarkable stories.  And then they need to work harder at sharing them with other people. 

Luckily, technology has made this job a lot easier.

Technology is part of the answer

Before ending this rather long post, I want to share one last idea; technology is a big part of the answer.

The more I’ve learned about social media, the more I’ve come to understand the incredible opportunity it presents us living in rural communities.  Social media enables people to tell their stories:

The bottom line is that never before have rural communities have been better positioned to tell their stories.  If we can unearth the stories that communicate who we are (our brand) and then use technology (like social media) to share our stories, small, rural communities have an incredible opportunity to rebrand themselves as places of opportunity. 

I’ve got a lot to learn today at OTA Sessions. I’m so thankful that people like Chris Brogan, Mitch Joel, Julien Smith, Spike Jones, Tim Brunelle, and Jonathan Harris are willing to share their wisdom with everyone at OTA Sessions

 

Photo Credit:  I shot the above photos at the groundbreaking ceramony for the Buffalo Ridge Resort & Conference Center in Gary, SD.  Talk about an amazing story.

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Hazelton, ND – And the stereotypes grow

February 18th, 2010

Something I didn’t mention in my post yesterday was that my heart goes out to the Hazelton, ND community.  It’s probably the only time Hazelton has made the national news, and it’s a negative story.

The story of a family leaving a community when they don’t feel comfortable could be told about most every community across our country – large and small.  It hardly seems fair to tag it on Hazelton.

But what troubles me most about the article are the stereotypes the article perpetuates.  For instance, the author writes; “Besides cash and free land, Hazelton had little else to offer except elbow room.”  A quick trip to the community’s website and blog shows that they’ve got a lot more going for them than free cash and land! 

In short, the community is portrayed as the bad guy, and the family as the victim.  As I wrote yesterday, “None of us, as outsiders, will ever know the complete story,” and I’m sure blame goes both ways. 

I could go on to identify other stereotypes, and I bet our readers can as well.  But the problems with the stereotypes don’t end with the story. 

 

It’s just the beginning

After posting my thoughts on the article yesterday, my good friend Marc Rentschler left me a message via Facebook saying that the Minneapolis radio stations were ridiculing small towns saying, “Of course they (the Tristani family) wouldn’t be welcomed. Small towns don’t want any change and fear anything new.”

I didn’t need to hear the exact words being said on Minneapolis radio stations to understand the negative things being said.  I’d already read them in the comment sections of newspapers and blogs from across the county that had published or commented on the story.  And the comments there are much worse!  No wonder rural communities have such difficulty attracting and retaining residents.  (see this post to see some of what’s being said elsewhere.) 

 

Problems do exist

Problems in rural communities obviously exist (much like the problems of large cities).  What I fail to understand is why people are so quick to place blame and tear others down.  It’s like people relish in the problems existing in small towns.

Don’t get me wrong.  I don’t want to let Hazelton or any small town off the hook, which was largely my point yesterday.  This story can be used as a great learning experience.  And that’s where I would hope the conversation can be focused.

 

Where do we go from here?

I don’t know what can be done to overcome the stereotypes perpetuated by stories like this.   But I’m going to spend some time thinking about that very subject, and I hope you will too.

 I’m going to begin by reading a study conducted at the University of Minnesota Morris titled “Media Messages of Rural: Lessons from Minnesota.“  I got the lowdown on it last week when I met with Ben Winchester and Neil Linscheid, two outstanding Minnesota Extension Educators who played key roles in producing the research. 

In a nutshell I expect to find that reporters draw on their urban expectations and definitions of rural as they write their stories.  My guess is that I’ll see the majority of the stories have a negative slant, and that the reporting seldom digs in deep. 

I hope, however, that reading it will help me get beyond placing blame on reporters and get to real solutions.  I’ll let you know what I find, and I hope you will share as well. 

 

Note:  A friend of mine reminded me that there’s also a danger in the stereotype of idyllic rural communities.  As he noted, perhaps the Tristiani family had unrealistic expectations for life in Hazelton.  Anyone who expects Mayberry RFD is bound to be disappointed. 

 

Update (2-21-10):  The Bismarck Tribune has published an updated story titled “Period of adjustment: Some transplants to Hazelton say they’re here to stay”

 

Photo Credit: Tom T – Flickr

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What are others saying about Hazelton?

February 18th, 2010

As I noted yesterday, there’s quite a bit of online conversation about the Hazelton story.  I thought I’d highlight some of it for readers so they don’t have to go looking for it.  Some of the comments are thoughtful, but most lack sincerity and understanding.  Hopefully we the conversation deepens over time.

 

Madville Times blogger Cory Heidelberger raises the argument that small towns can’t afford to picky in his post titled “Small Town Development:  You’ve got to want it” because small towns need every resident possible.  It’s a good point.  All small towns need to be open to new people and ideas.   

When I first read the comments posted about this article in the InFargo Forum, all I could this was, “Wow!  I can’t imagine the story generating this much interest.”  As of my writing there are over 250 comments about the article.  My second response was “Why are North Dakotans so negative about their small towns?”   Am I missing something or what?  I don’t have a problem with people pointing out issues with small towns, but the venom with which many of the comments are made is discouraging.    And the bickering, well that’s just embarrassing.  (Readers have a limited time to see this article before it’s archived.)

Jon Trouten offers some thoughtful comments in his post titled “What would it take to relocate to Small Town America” on his personal blog title.  It sounds like Jon grew up in small town Minnesota, and the idea of moving closer to his parents is appealing.  But as Jon notes, being married to another man with biracial and handicapped children would present some challenges.  Sort speaks to Cory’s point, doesn’t it? 

Perhaps the most radical blog post comes to us from the Miami News Times.  In an article titled “Small-Town Values? Miami Family Shunned After Moving to North Dakota,” the author makes fun of “small town values” saying “But we’ve always had a feeling that was a crock. We’d much rather live in welcoming, sunny South Florida than a judgmental small town any day. We’re not saying we’re angels here in Miami, but — damn it — we don’t shun anyone down here.” 

Shawn Fury, a freelance writer uses the Hazelton story to write about his hometown of Janesville, Minnesota. Titled “Small Town Blues,” the article is deeper than most small town reminiscing.  Shawn now lives in Manhattan, and doesn’t see much future in small towns.  But I appreciated his thoughts.

 

Update: Here are a few more posts I’ve stumbled upon since originally publishing this post.

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What can we learn from Hazelton, ND?

February 17th, 2010

“Did you hear the story on the radio about Hazelton, ND?” 

Those were the first words Lindsey shared with me yesterday morning as we hopped into a car before heading out on our day trek across South Dakota yesterday.  I hadn’t, so Lindsey explained. 

A family had moved from Miami, FL to Hazeton, ND (pop. 240) four years ago to take advantage of an incentive package for new residents.  Two housing lots and $20,000 were given to this family of four to move to the ND community.  The family started a business (which has since closed) and moved into a new house, excited by the opportunity to move from a crime laden, urban neighborhood.

Now four years later, they are ready to move back.  Not because of the much maligned North Dakota winter; but because they felt the community had given them the cold shoulder.  Michael Tristani, the father in the family, is quoted in the article saying, “It hasn’t been easy. No one really wants new people here.”  (source:  James MacPherson, “Small-town life fails to live up,” Associated Press via Yahoo News, Feb. 15, 2010)

Hearing Lindsey describe this story almost caused me to turn around and skip the meeting we were driving to.  Needless to say, she didn’t let me, and I was finally able to read the story this morning and learned that it’s being discussed all over the blogosphere. (see links at the bottom) .

Rather than focus on the details of situation, I’d like to offer some thoughts about what I think rural communities can learn from the story.  As I write, however, I want to be clear that I am not passing judgment on either the Hazelton community or the Tristani family.  None of us, as outsiders, will ever know the complete story. 

What can we learn from Hazelton?

1) Don’t assume that newcomers will know how to live in your small town. That concept crossed my radar a couple years ago in a book titled Get Urban. (I wrote extensively about it here.) The book’s author, an urban enthusiast, developed his thesis around the concept that many people who move to urban, downtown environments don’t recognize the nuances of life in the city. Their mental models are so tightly fashioned around living in suburbia that they think they have to drive out to suburbs to buy their groceries at Walmart, rather than stopping off at the local grocery while walking home from work. My guess is that we’ve all seen numerous more serious examples of this play out in our rural communities. But what have we done to help these newcomers?

2) Develop a “hosting concept” as a part of your community’s marketing plan. I touched on this over a year ago when I wrote a post titled “What if Starbuck’s marketed like a rural community?” A fun, insightful video embedded in the post pokes fun at how churches welcome new members. The point being, Starbucks wouldn’t be in business if its marketing strategy didn’t include efforts to “welcome” new customers; so why should churches expect anything different? I’d contend the same principle applies to rural communities; why spend money advertising your community if you don’t have a strategy to make people want to stay? At the Rural Learning Center, we’ve been developing a more robust “hosting concept,” which I’ll describe sometime in the near future.

3) Accept the mantra “The customer is always right.” I think communities who develop programs like this must be prepared to treat it like a business. The town is the product, the community is the owner, and the new resident is the customer. If the customer is upset, figure out why and do something to fix it – because the customer is always right. At the same time, most business owners will tell you that sometimes the customer may not be worth the headaches they create, and you have to find a way to let them go.

4) It’s about the relationship. For a long time, I was conflicted over the concept of offering incentives to people moving to rural communities. On one hand it feels like the strategy of offering incentives to businesses to move small, rural communities; maybe they come, but will they stay? On the other hand I appreciate the moxie of a small town who is willing to try to do something about their future. What I’ve come to believe is that the decision about offering incentives to recruit businesses and recruit people is a community-by-community decision. There’s no universal right or wrong. The chance of the initiative succeeding, however, is probably dependent on the ability of residents to build a relationship with the newcomers. Incentives may open the door, but the bonds of friendship are lasting.

5) What about the people who don’t receive incentives? This case is drawing a lot of attention, but my question is, “has your community been paying serious attention to the people who already live in your community?” My point is, try to make sure that everyone is satisfied. If you gain two new residents, but lose four current residents, you are destined to fail. Pay attention to the people who are living in your community now, and when someone leaves, have a conversation with them about why. And try to dig in deep–often the first response will not be the real reason.

There are a lot of stereotypes being thrown around in this story that worry me.  That might be worth discussing later.

Stereotypes aside, however, the story provides a good lesson for all rural communities.  If we want to grow our population, we have to get serious about how we interact with newcomers.  Hazelton is probably no better or worse than other rural communities, and there’s definitely more to the story than was reported.  They just made the headlines today.  Hopefully, your community is doing something to make sure it doesn’t make the news tomorrow — at least not in this way.

 

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