We have noted before in this newsletter, if you have an article your community would like to share, don't hesitate to reach out and ask us to feature your amazing projects! The following was submitted by Lynn Schafer, of the KCE community of Friends of Vermillion:

An amazing evening's entertainment was held Friday night, September 27th, at the Vermillion Community Center as the Sounds of Soul performed. They brought to the community the soul music that allowed everyone to view a performance which will be remembered for many years to come. The audience fully enjoyed the lyrics as well as the enthusiastic members of the group who entertained those of us attending. Our southeastern Marshall County community wishes to thank the Marshall County Arts Cooperative and Wayne Kruse who made it possible for the "Friends of Vermillion" to offer this outstanding entertainment. Guests from around eight surrounding towns enjoyed the delicious smoked pork chop dinner that was served prior to the entertainment. The "Sound of Soul" group sextet also entertained Cambridge nursing home residents from Marysville who were brought down to listen to a live rehearsal on Friday morning. 

Content for this section comes from emails, quarterly reports, and community website/social media updates. If you'd like to highlight recent activities or promote an upcoming event in a future newsletter, email us at: ksce@ksu.edu.

A 2021 Community Conversation has resulted in the Erie Community Childcare Center, addressing the desperate need for childcare services. A board was created to begin fundraising efforts, and now in 2024, a new grant, and the community of Erie, has funded a facility open to 70 plus little ones - the results are very rewarding! Members of Energize Erie include the daycare director, the mother that connected with the director early on to raise awareness of the need for childcare, the board secretary (chair of Energize Erie), and others who helped with the grant writing and fundraising. It truly is a Community Childcare Center in Erie. The ribbon cutting was on KOAM News and the picture was featured in the Erie Record weekly newspaper.

From Lakin's 3rd Quarter report: As of April of 2024, Lakin's KCE organization has officially become a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. As such, we've been applying, and have received grant funds that we were not able to apply for in the past. As a result, we can accomplish bigger projects like the construction of a double-battery Pickleball court. Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in the US, and soon our Lakin Pickleballers can take their game from driveways and parking lots to official courts, where their balls will be corralled by fencing. Others that drive half an hour to play, can save their time and gas and stay in town for a game.

The following article has been provided to us from our partners at the Kansas Department of Commerce through their Office of Broadband Partnerships Coordinator, Shelley Paasch.

BRC Broadband Ready Communities (BRC) is a key initiative to signal to providers your community is ready for infrastructure investment, especially with the significant amount of funding coming to our state from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program.

BRC is a signal to providers that the community is ready for investment and the designation will give providers easy access to communities.

In 2024, Kansas Office of Broadband Development (KOBD) launched the Kansas Broadband Ready Communities program (KBRC).

• To address broadband access challenges in unserved and underserved areas of the state.
• To assist communities in preparing for future grant funding opportunities by providing an efficient and accessible path to broadband readiness.
• This is voluntary for communities.

The goal of this program is to limit community barriers to broadband infrastructure projects by aligning cities and/or counties with the minimum requirements outlined:

• Single point of contact
• No fee beyond K.S.A. 17-1902*
• Applications responded to within 30-days
• Moving towards an electronic filing system
• Nondiscriminatory permit procedure

For an example ordinance/resolution, see this document. For more details, check out the KBRC webinar, and for questions, contact Shelley Paasch at shelley.a.paasch@ks.gov - Thank you Shelley, for sharing such a great resource for our communities!

Local Giving Through Masonic Lodges Continues

In October we featured a story of local giving from our Masonic partners in Morland, and after that we began to think that maybe for inspirational purposes it might be a good idea to feature news from our partners when there is a donation from a local Lodge to projects in any of our KCE communities. This can give your communities an idea of what types of projects our partners contribute to, and if you have any similar projects, it might be an opportunity to connect and start a conversation with a Lodge near you to see if there are opportunities to partner or learn more about their funding opportunities.

This month we're going to share an example from Russell, a KCE community in Northwest Kansas.

From the Kansas Masonic Foundation News:

The Kansas Masonic Foundation has partnered with Russell Lodge No. 177 to donate $500 to Backpacks for Kids, an organization providing necessary supplies to local students in need. 

The Russell lodge has 150 members and supports various community organizations, including providing scholarships to local students, hosting a haunted house fundraiser to benefit community projects, hosting a First Responders Breakfast, aiding with the Community for Classrooms Golf Tournament, supporting the local Rotary Club, and playing an active role in the Kansas PRIDE Committee. The lodge Brothers also recently donated to the Junior Trap Shoot Team to teach local youth the importance of firearm safety, sportsmanship, and respect. 

“Our lodge is continuing to grow our presence in the community,” said Russell Lodge No. 177 Secretary Daron Woelk. “We are dedicated to promoting projects for kids, families, teachers, and first responders, which is why we have decided to donate to this exciting Backpacks for Kids initiative.” 

Continuing with their support of the local community, the Brothers at Russell Lodge No. 177 have teamed up with the Kansas Masonic Foundation to provide a monetary donation of $500 to Backpacks for Kids. The organization loads backpacks with all the required items for students’ respective grade levels and provides them to students who don’t have the means to get them for themselves. All funds donated will help purchase backpacks and additional supplies for distribution.

Making connections with new partners and funding entities might seem intimidating, so don't hesitate to utilize our Story Telling Template (you can find that template, and other resources on our Partner Resource page on our website).

For more information on local Masonic Lodge giving, don't hesitate to visit the Kansas Masonic Foundation website, or follow them on Facebook.

If you're interested in further resources, contact us at KSCE@ksu.edu. We're happy to learn about your community needs and help connect you with partners that might have guidance or other resources to support you through your community improvement journey! - Jaime Menon, KCE Co-Coordinator and Community Vitality Specialist for K-State Research and Extension, jmenon@ksu.edu

We still have 4 reimbursement scholarships available for this particular workshop. If you are a representative of a KCE community group, when you register and complete the course, you will be eligible for a $60 reimbursement scholarship. The registration link can be reached by clicking on the image above. Once you enroll as a KCE community representative, email jmsteen@ksu.edu with your community affiliation.

Office Closures

The Kansas Community Empowerment office will be closed the following days in November:

• November 11 - Veterans Day
• November 28-29 - Thanksgiving Break

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