A Joint Initiative Between     Heart of Wisconsin     Business & Economic Alliance and     Community Foundation of     South Wood County

Home About Us B2B Club Breaking News Contact Donate Events / Programs Feedback Ideas Incubator Industry Clusters Links / Resources Progess Funds Progress Teams Public Art / Murals Publications		Breaking News February 8, 2006 - Ford grant a sign of Initiative's success By: Editorial, Daily Tribune Make no mistake. A new $240,000 grant from the nonprofit Ford Foundation to the Community Progress Initiative will not directly create any local jobs. The Community Foundation of South Wood County and the Heart of Wisconsin Business & Economic Alliance, creators of the Progress Initiative, will not spread the cash across the landscape in a glorious drop from a hot-air balloon (although that would be cool). Instead, organizers this week said they will use the money to support a series of programs that will continue to build upon -- and enhance -- the magic that already has started in south Wood County and the town of Rome. Primarily, they will use the grant to create more and better-trained local leaders. And when initiative organizers say "leaders," they don't mean just the people voters elect to sit in board meetings or well-connected citizens who are appointed to positions of power. They mean anyone who lives in this area and wants to have a voice in its future. By giving nearly a quarter million dollars to the Community Progress Initiative, the New York City-based Ford Foundation is recognizing it as one of the best rural development projects in the nation. Those who are unfamiliar with the initiative should take notice, because something quite special is taking place in the Wisconsin Rapids area -- right when it's needed most. And it promises only to get better. Ford Foundation money will kick start two high-level programs called the Advanced Leadership Institute and Innovative Industry Leadership. In addition, the grant will fund ongoing projects such as study tours to communities that serve as models of success; expert presentations through the "New Ideas" speaker series; grassroots community leadership training everywhere from Pittsville to Rome; and efforts to market the south Wood County and Rome area near and far. In effect, the grant helps to ensure that the crisply planned and organized Community Progress Initiative will stay on track. Will more well-paying jobs result? Indirectly, yes, that is a sure bet. How? Job creation will occur gradually but significantly as more people become more effective leaders ... as a well-spring of new and fresh ideas for community development bubbles to the surface ... as the conversation continues to evolve from one of despair to one of hope and optimism ... and as word of the Community Progress Initiative reaches people who are looking for places in which to invest. That is the expectation of the Ford Foundation and of Progress Initiative leaders, and it ought to be the responsibility of everyone who calls this place home.
		Copyright © 2005, Community Progress Initiative, South Wood County & Town of Rome