Oldham, SD

For sometime now the Convenience Store Committee has been working hard to find a place suitable for this endeavor.   Lots of time and hard work has gone into this.   Until very recently an answer to our prayers happened.   Glen Albers announced his intentions on purchasing the old Laudermat/Meat Market building downtown and his wish to turn it into the new Convenience Store/Morning Cafe.   He is in the beginning stages of securing the building.  Once that has been accomplished then it will be the Committee’s responsibility to help Glen clean up and beautify the building.     Those of you who signed up for the Convenience Store back in the circles, here is the chance to take part in your communities growth!  Stay tuned for further updates as we get them. 

On April 25 (I know I am a little late, but graduation is only two days away!) the OR Band traveled down to Kansas City, MO to perform at Music in the Parks. Friday morning in the sleet and snow, the band hopped onto a chartered bus and relaxed for about eight hours. After our arrival, we went to Kauffman Stadium and watched the Kansas City Royals defeat the Toronto Blue Jays. Following the game, we watched a spectacular display of fireworks. On Saturday, April 26, the band rose early and performed two songs at a local high school. We then spent the remaining part of the day at Worlds of Fun. However, we did go back to the hotel in time for one more Royals game, which they defeated the Blue Jays again. Sunday morning we sadly made our way back home to over a foot of snow. We sure did miss that 70 degree weather back in MO.

Another school year is rapidly coming to a close and we will be honoring our graduates and sending them off on the next phase of their lives. Our big challenge is to create opportunities for our young people so they can be encouraged to return home and live here to raise their families. A big challenge indeed, but vital to creating a vital and prosperous community.

The community has designated May for the Food Pantry. The Pantry is in need of non-perishable non-food items such as toothpaste, toilet paper, shampoo and other personal care items. We hope to get the whole community involved to restock the food pantry. Postal workers will be collecting items from the mail route also.

Pictures provided by Darlene Duffy. You can view the before pictures in a previous blog entry. Just scroll down the page to see what it looked like before           

This is one of the first steps by the Horizons group and the OAIC toward accomplishing our strategic goals. This is the first house to be demolished to make building lots available free to anyone who will build a house on the lots. Once the clean up is completed there will be 4 lots available with room for 2 houses. The OAIC is also looking into the governor’s housing program and some other possible funding sources to get a jump start on development of affordable housing options. Check back later for more updates and after pictures.

The key to sustaining changes made is to support the people who have stepped up into the leadership roles and try to get more people involved in projects. Many hands make light work.

With the newly formed Oldham Area Improvement Corporation we will be able to apply for resources to accomplish the goals we have made in our strategic plan. The board of the OAIC will make decisions on which grants or loans to apply for. The committees of the various strategic plans will be able to make recommendations. Everyone is encouraged to be on a committee.

This house has been demolished in the past week and the lots will be cleared and fill hauled in to make them ready for new houses. Our Horizons groups are moving ahead with the objectives in the strategic plan. The new OAIC has obtained these 4 lots from the county and will make them available for free to anyone that will build a new house and the committee is also looking into placing a governor’s house on two of the lots. It takes 2 lots to build a house so we now have room for 2 new houses. We are working with the county commission and some absentee landowners to obtain more lots in town. There has only been one new house built in Oldham in the past 35-40 years so we want to encourage development and hope that free improved lots will attract interest in building in the community. There would be some after pictures but we are currently snowbound with this late spring snowstorm so I wasn’t able to get the after photos. Check back later and track the progress.

Through the Horizon’s program the community has recognized the need to have an organization to seek resources for programs and projects identified through our Horizon’s strategic plan. We created the Oldham Area Improvement Organization and sought 501c3 tax exempt status. We received that in February. With that OAIC will be able to seek out and obtain resources to carryout the goals outlined in the strategic plan. Todate we have not obtained funding for any of the projects but are working on ways to obtain resources from several organizations.

I think people have become more aware of leadership in the community. People are taking more of an interest in the community. They recognize the need for changes to reverse the trends that have been going on for the past several decades. We had a very good turnout for our city elections. We have a new mayor and councilman that will be taking office in May. Both people have been active in the Horizon’s program.