Newsletter - May 2022 Edition
IN THIS ISSUE:

  • PRIDE Community Happenings
  • Attend the National Rural Grocery Summit
  • Sponsor Highlight: Evergy
  • Reminder for Reporting and Grants/Awards Deadlines
  • Continuing Opportunities Section
  • External Funding Resources
  • Up for a Community Visit? We Are, Too!
  • Catch Us on Facebook & Facebook Live!
  • K-State Garden Hour Spring Schedule
  • Events Calendar
  • 2022 Kansas PRIDE Communities
PRIDE Community Happenings
Potwin PRIDE volunteers cut 50 pounds of potatoes in March then planted them in the Ken Whittington Memorial Community Garden. They've also been busy working on funding for a playground project and replacing some signage around town.
Alton PRIDE recently honored Wilda Carswell, outgoing president of the organization, serving in that role for 28 years! Wilda will serve as grand marshal in the August 27, 2022 Jubilee parade. Congratulations to Wilda and thanks for your service to Alton!
Perry PRIDE built benches and added them to the gazebo in the park as part of the Visioning 2030 project there. They've also been planning for the Perry 2022 Fall Festival, cleaning the stone welcome signs, and producing a Facebook history video.
Norton PRIDE reports that they've been working on downtown beautification. See the photo for some of the spring decor they've added to flower pots. They've also been communicating events and projects with the help of local radio station KQNK.
Assaria PRIDE has been busy preparing for their Fall Festival later this year. Work has begun on volunteer recruitment, planning new children's games and activities, a car show, and tractor demonstration. It sounds like it'll be a great time!
Attend the National Rural Grocery Summit
The Rural Grocery Initiative at Kansas State University is hosting the seventh biennial National Rural Grocery Summit, to be held June 20-21 in Wichita, Kansas. The summit is the premier networking and resource-sharing venue for independent grocers and rural food access stakeholders. Join us to learn from and strategize with one another about sustaining rural grocery stores and improving rural access to healthy foods.
 

Early Bird Registration Rates (February 15 - May 15, 2022):
  • Grocer Registration (up to two representatives per store): FREE
  • General Registration: $150
 
Late Registration Rates (after May 15, 2022):
  • Grocer registration: $85
  • General Registration: $185
Sponsor Highlight: Evergy
We'd like to highlight one of the continuing sponsors of the Kansas PRIDE Program – Evergy. Evergy has supported Kansas communities with their sponsorship of the program since their time as Kansas City Power and Light and Westar Energy. Evergy offers innovative and safe energy solutions across central and eastern Kansas and parts of Missouri. Thanks to the great people at Evergy for their support! You can visit them online here: https://www.evergy.com/

To see how your company's or organization's support can benefit communities throughout the state, visit our Sponsors and Sponsorship page to find out how to donate.
Awards Reminder

Just a quick reminder that the Kansas PRIDE Awards deadline for Round 1 of 2022 is May 1.

If you are in good standing (enrolled, resolution submitted, and quarterly reports up to date), feel free to peruse the award opportunities and apply!

For promotional awards, such as Project Excellence and Rising Star, CLICK HERE.

For grant opportunities, CLICK HERE.

And don't forget your Folios! Click here to access the Folio Page!

Find yourself needing some coaching/education on the awards applications? Awards videos on our Education Page are extremely helpful for such a need. CLICK HERE to visit our Education Page.

Best of luck to you all, and don't hesitate to reach out to PRIDE@ksu.edu with any questions!
CONTINUING OPPORTUNITIES SECTION
From K-State Research and Extension

GRANT WRITING WORKSHOPS
K-State Research and Extension Grant-writing workshops are now online. The online workshop is designed to be presented to participants in two 3-hour courses and will cost $60. Local Extension agents are the hosts for the workshops, but since workshops are online, you can attend any workshop in the state. There are two ways to participate: go to our website (https://www.ksre.k-state.edu/community/) and under "Events" on the right side you can register at a scheduled workshop or ask your local extension agent to host. For more information, contact Nancy Daniels: nkdaniels@ksu.edu
FIRST FRIDAY E-CALLS
K-State Research and Extension offers entrepreneurship webinars every first Friday of the month.  Visit our Webpage for all past sessions. Registration information for upcoming sessions can be found HERE.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Ever wonder what people visiting your town think? First impressions are important as the community works to improve the overall quality of life and develop its sense of place. Interested in First Impressions for your community? Visit our Webpage to learn more.
External Funding Opportunities
Want to put your new grant writing skills to use? Here are some opportunities for project funding outside of the Kansas PRIDE grants:

Cenex offers a Hometown Pride grant for up to $5,000. If you have a Cenex store in your community, talk to your local dealer on how you can apply for their program. Find out more details here: https://www.cenex.com/giving-back/community

The Wendell & Doris Rogers Foundation offers grants in the priority areas of youth programs (particularly those focusing on "at risk" youth), and programs for veterans and their families. Grant awards range from $10,000 to $30,000. You can access application information here: https://www.wdrogersfoundation.org/apply/

The Kansas Volunteer Commission is offering a Volunteer Manager Support Mini-Grant, due May 18th. Grants of up to $1,500 are expected for training to enhance the volunteer experience or training to increase capacity of volunteer managers to better support the volunteers. More here: https://kanserve.org/Grants-and-Funding/2022-Mini-Grants-Series/Volunteer-Manager-Support-Mini-Grant

Additional Funding Resources
Is your Kansas PRIDE community looking for funding to help with certain projects? Let us know what the project is, how much you're seeking, and what your timeline looks like. We have access to a grants database and likely can give you some links to potential funding sources. Just email us at PRIDE@ksu.edu with your request and project idea. Not a Kansas PRIDE community? This resource is a great reason to join! You can also reach out to your local Extension office which should have access to the database as well. - Jan Steen, Kansas PRIDE Program Co-Coordinator, jmsteen@ksu.edu
Up for a Virtual, or in Person, Community Visit? We Are, Too!
Our offer at the end of each newsletter is to engage your community remotely, or in person!

Our model has changed slightly - we prefer virtual for initial steps as our introduction videos can be shared widely throughout the community. We would be more than happy to host a Zoom meeting where your PRIDE group members, city council members, chamber participants, Masonic Lodge, or other groups could individually log in to see the presentation or discussion and ask questions. In person is a great way to get assessments or other community planning done, and we are happy to do a survey read out as a neutral party, or help you through a Strategic Doing session. Just e-mail us at PRIDE@ksu.edu to set up a schedule.

To view pre-recorded webinars giving an introduction to the program, step-by-step instructions on how to enroll or report, fundraising, recruiting volunteers, and more, head over to our Education page for more. Keep your eye on that page, as we will be updating our Toolkit soon! - Jan Steen and Jaime Menon, Kansas PRIDE Program Co-Coordinators, PRIDE@ksu.edu
We often post items of interest on our Facebook page between newsletters. Grants, volunteer training, project ideas, and even the occasional Live stream will pop up. Click the button below to like and follow the program activity there:
EVENTS CALENDAR
Quarterly Report Dates:
  • January 15th, April 15th, July 15th, October 15th

Awards Deadlines:
  • May 1st, September 1st

2022 Kansas PRIDE Communities
The following communities are currently enrolled in the Kansas PRIDE program for the 2022 program year. To enroll your community visit our Enrollment and Reporting page and click on the light blue "Enroll" button to get started.
  • Admire
  • Alton
  • Anthony
  • Arlington
  • Ashland
  • Assaria
  • Axtell
  • Basehor
  • Belleville
  • Blue Rapids
  • Bushton
  • Caldwell
  • Caney
  • Clifton
  • Columbus
  • Conway Springs
  • Delia
  • Dover
  • Dwight
  • Elk City
  • Ellis
  • Erie
  • Florence
  • Fort Scott
  • Glasco
  • Grainfield
  • Grinnell
  • Harper
  • Haysville
  • Herndon
  • Highland
  • Hugoton
  • Humboldt
  • Iola
  • Kinsley
  • Lakin
  • Larned
  • Lecompton
  • Leon
  • Leonardville
  • Lewis
  • Lincoln
  • Lucas
  • Luray
  • Macksville
  • Marion
  • McFarland
  • Melvern
  • Moran
  • Mount Hope
  • Newton
  • Norton
  • Olsburg
  • Osawatomie
  • Ozawkie
  • Perry
  • Portis
  • Potwin
  • Quenemo
  • Randolph
  • Riley
  • Riverton
  • Rossville
  • Rozel
  • Russell
  • Saint George
  • Savonburg
  • Scranton
  • South Central Neighborhood (Wichita)
  • Stockton
  • Toronto
  • Vermillion
  • Wakefield
  • Wilson
  • Yates Center
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