Background
We opened the Center in March of 2008 with the goal of being a place for community connection and community development. Jason and Della Wiedel and Josh and Sarah Cardman dreamed of a little shop where folks from our small town could get to know each other and we could also help the needs in our area.
We provide free computer and internet use in an area with very limitted internet access and many young people who don't have computers at home. We also invite folk to hang around, talk with us, and play some games. In a town that has very little activity, this meets a great need.
Keys to Success
Free internet use has been our greatest draw. Sometimes we have kids waiting at the door before we open and staying until we have to kick them out in the evening.
We also find that people need personal connection. People keep coming back because we show interest in their lives. For us this is not just a key to business success. It is a key to developing people's lives and creating a strong community.
Special Events
We regularly host game nights for young people and adults, movies, film and book discussion groups, art and music classes, and live music.
Target Customers
While we want to be open to everyone, we get more teeagers than anyone else.
Challenges Faced
The greatest challenge in this town is overcoming people's assumptions about what we are. Some have assumed that we are a place only for young people. Some have assumed that we are a religious location. We have found that the only effective way to counter this, is just to talk to people about what we do and be more involved in our community.
We also face continual financial issues. We are a non-profit venture and have relied completely on donations for building renovations, equipment, furniture, and supplies. This is a difficult way to operate, but we have seen all our needs provided for so far. We continue to look for new ways to raise the money needed for expansion and programming.
Where We're Headed
Our goal is to be a life-altering, community-changing organization in our little town. We want to help young people go from hopeless, stagnant life to an exciting, challening life. We want to be a unifying force in our area, that brings people of different ages and backgrounds together. We want to help people out of lives of poverty and emotional pain to lives of health and prosperity.
In coming years we want to grow our facitlities to include more space for classes, counselling, computer stations, tutoring, and a used bookstore.
