Many people in our community notice a need – public trash cans that need painting, a park that needs playground equipment and youths who need a constructive outlet – but they don’t know how to bring about change in their community to resolve those needs.
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Green Hills Community Action Agency is offering a class in Daviess County to help low-income people become active community members and even take leadership positions in organizations and government. The hope is that through involvement in their communities, people can be instrumental in addressing the causes of poverty.
Step Up to Leadership classes will begin Feb. 19, and will continue every Thursday evening for 12 weeks. During the sessions, attendees will learn how to develop strong working partnerships, how to plan and conduct meetings, how to review budgets and financial reports, and how to resolve conflict. Attendees will learn board responsibilities, tips for speaking effectively and persuasively, and the basics of writing a grant.
Classes will be conducted from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Adventist Center, 207 S. Clay St., in Gallatin. For more information or to register for class, call Phyllis or Chasidy at the GHCAA Daviess County Service Center, 660-663-3211. A light dinner will be served and eligible attendees will receive a stipend to cover transportation and child-care costs.
At the end of the course, each Step Up to Leadership graduate can apply for a $250 mini-grant to support a community organization/group activity. Three graduates of the program last year received a grant to form a community organization for youths who want to build confidence and volunteer to better their community. These youths have worked with the Missouri Department of Conservation in a creek clean-up and worked in the set-up and clean-up details of a community festival. The youths plan to work with a local church congregation this spring to clean up a cemetery. Two other graduates of the program applied for a grant to buy needed equipment for a volunteer fire department.
Another graduate of the program said, "I saw some things in my neighborhood that I wanted to change, but I didn’t know where to start. Step Up to Leadership empowered me to take the initiative to make things better for my community.
By offering Step Up to Leadership classes, GHCAA is fulfilling its mission to work through partnerships to make self-sufficiency a reality for individuals and families, by empowering them to achieve the knowledge, skills, and motivations needed to build strong families and communities.