ABCDE
Monday Messenger
January
7, 2008
ABCDE
– Better Together
Greetings!
This is the ninety sixth edition of the Monday Messenger.
Its purpose is to bring you current information about the ABCDE
project and area. ABCDE consists of local residents from
Atlanta
, Burden,
Cambridge
, Dexter and
Eastern
Cowley
County
working together for community development. If you have
anything to submit for the newsletter, please send it to shannonthom@hotmail.com.
ABCDE
Election Meeting - TONIGHT
The
annual business meeting of the ABCDE organization will be held
tonight, January 7th in
Cambridge
. The nominating committee is presenting a slate of board
members for the organization to consider. A board meeting
will be held following the business meeting in order to elect new
officers for the year.
Nominating
Committee Recommendations
The
nominating committee has made the following recommendations for
new or returning board members -
Melissa
Fraley
Shannon Martin
Joe Haggard
Julie Headrick
Roger Black
All of these people will fill the open positions on the board.
Phillip Headrick and Carol Black have decided not to run again.
Rising has also elected to give up his seat on the board since he
is now living in the
Kansas City
area. We thank them
for their service.
AGRITOURISM:
Your Next Cash Crop?
Call
it what you want – agritourism, ecotourism, or nature-based
tourism. Travelers from all over the
United States
and the world are coming to the Flint Hills of
Kansas
. And, they are willing to pay handsomely for authentic
rural experiences and the related dining, lodging, shopping and
entertainment.
Flint
Hills visitors are looking for such things as farm and ranch
vacations, riding a combine cutting wheat, or sitting atop a horse
while a rancher moves cattle. They are looking for vineyards
and wineries, farm fresh eggs for breakfast, bird watching at a
Country Inn, hiking, biking and riding trails. They are
looking for opportunities to hunt, fish, camp or just sit around a
campfire and stargaze while someone tells stories of the history,
culture and traditions of the area. Our tourists are seeking
high quality art, music, foods, clothing and other products
representative of the Flint Hills.
To
learn more about Agritourism and how it might work for you, there
will be two informational meetings in our area. The first
will be in
Emporia
on January 9, 2008 at the American Legion, 2921 W. 12th,
from 6:15 pm until 8:30 pm and the second will be in Council Grove
on January 10, 2008 at the United Methodist Church Fellowship
Hall,
21 N. Mission Street
, from 1:15 pm until 3:30 p.m.
Who
should attend these meetings? Farmers, Ranchers and anyone
interested in starting or expanding a business in which rural
tourism would be an important source of income. Each meeting
has three parts. First, Abby Cash, Director of Oklahoma
Agritourism, will give an excellent illustrated presentation about
the characteristics of the clientele, the kinds of experiences and
products they want, and how to get started in your business.
Second, a panel of Kansas Agritourism providers will describe
their businesses and answer questions from the audience.
Finally, an upcoming business development class will be explained.
The class will consist of five consecutive Wednesday class
sessions that will begin in late January and end in February.
These classes will be offered at
Flint
Hills
Technical
College
and will be co-sponsored by the Flints Hills Resource Conservation
and Development Council and the
Kansas
Small
Business
Development
Center
at
Emporia
State
University
. The weekly sessions will feature an easy-to-use workbook
in which participants can take their business ideas “From Dreams
to Reality.”
For
more information on the meetings in
Emporia
and Council Grove call Jan Jantzen or Bruce Wells at The Flint
Hills Resource Conservation and Development Council, 620-340-0113,
ext. 9 or The Kansas Small Business Development Center at
Emporia
State
University
at 620-341-5308.
QUAD
Update
The
next QUAD meeting will be held on January 10th at 5:00
p.m. in
Yates
Center
at the Fire Department. The
QUAD Annual Meeting will be held March 1st in
Atlanta
.
Cowley
County
is responsible for coordinating the meeting. “Do you know
Jack?” QUAD T-shirts are available for the cost of $15.00.
Please contact Donna Martin to obtain a shirt.
Do
you have an idea for a business?
Jack
has assisted many businesses in
Eastern
Cowley
County
since ABCDE joined QUAD.
Business
owners and those with business ideas in
Eastern
Cowley
County
have access to a Professional Business Coach. His name is
Jack Newcomb and he is available for free, confidential advice and
he will even come to you. Through the ABCDE program, we have
joined the QUAD EF project and have access to their business
coach. Many local banks, businesses and Cowley First
assisted to pay the QUAD membership fee through December of 2008.
For more information contact Jack at (620) 249-2108.
ABCDE
Website
Don’t
forget to visit www.cowleynet.com
for information about the ABCDE project.
Upcoming
Activities/Events
January
7 ABCDE Meeting,
Cambridge
January
10 QUAD Meeting,
Yates
Center
To
submit information for the newsletter, send an e-mail to Shannon
Thom Martin at shannonthom@hotmail.com