Opportunities for work on Selling Hartsville

One person who is a life-long resident of Hartsville said she would like to be part of the Selling Hartsville project that is now ongoing. Earlier today I sent her an email about three of the task forces that are now at work. I thought it might be interesting for others to see this and to have an opportunity to assess if they would like to participate at this stage. So, the following is from that email -- not great prose but fairly specific:
OPPORTUNITIES:
There are two task forces that have begun meeting as a result of the initial Selling Hartsville Report.
LEGACY ENTRANCES:
The first meeting of the Legacy Entrance Task Force is Monday afternoon at 4 p.m. at the Byerly Foundation. This task force is looking at the way in which entrances to the city might become legacy themese. The first report noted that the south entrance to the city by the old Butler property and the old Wal Mart was not very pretty. The report also noted that this could be a fantastic place to highlight the African American legacy that is a major part of Hartsville's history. The Butler Heritage Foundation already is working to build a community center on the old Butler property and there may be ways in both the short term and long term to find ways of highlighting this legacy.
IDEA IS BEING DEVELOPED:
Jim Dawson thought about that and came up with the idea that all of the entrances to Hartsville might be able to be featured from a legacy perspective. For example, at the South East we already have the Coker Seed Agricultural museum and the agriculture legacy could easily be featured there; at the West we have Kalmia Gardens and that gives the beauty, gardening legacy; at the North end you can't miss the Sonoco plant on the right and that brings to mind the industrial and entrepreneurial legacy and then on the East we have the new vista area and the educational connection of Coker the GSSM property and what they have called in the report a "Walk of Scholars". The first task force committee meeting on this topic is Monday at 4 at the The Foundation on the corner of Second Street and East Carolina.
MARKETING TASK FORCE --
A marketing task force will have its second meeting on Wednesday at 4 p.m. at the Foundation. They are also looking for additional participation and Johnna Shirley of Mutual Savings is chairing this task force. It is to come up with a marketing concept of the selling hartsville ideas.The third task force has not yet set a meeting date.
RECRUITING TASK FORCE
It is called the Recruiting Task Force and is going to be meeting with those who have reasons to recruit people to the Hartsville area with the first goal of deciding what they need to help sell Hartsville better and the second goal of putting a plan into place to come up with a message framework that can be shared in these major recruiting situations. The primary focus of the Selling Hartsville report is that a large number of people are looking for the "Lifestyle" that is offered in Hartsville, which they call an understated sophistication not expected of a small town. Finding the "facts" to back up the feeling will be another direction for this task force, I assume. Roger Schrum of Sonoco is going to be pulling that task force together.
Do you have an interest?
If you would be interested in any of these, let me know: rapuffer@byerlyfoundation.org This is an interesting project and one we need to make work in our town.

cooperation One Key to Community Building

Politics is politics is one cliche people like to toss around. Politics is more than politics. It is one of the ways that communities get built -- or not.

In Hartsville today (4-7-08) we saw some evidence of politics making a positive difference. The event was the ribbon cutting for the restoration of a Pavilion on the Lake. This was a city project and the city was taking pride in the production. It was time to recongize some of their team, guys who went beyond the call of duty to bring the landscape to life. It was a time to congratulate themselves for making tough decisions. But, today they did not need to congratulate themselves. Representative Jay Lucas told the audience how the vision of the city council is making Hartsville a special place for its citizery, Senator Malloy reminded Council of their tough decision to impose a hospitality tax, which paid for some of the great restoration. They both noted in a low-key manner how decisions need to be made if progress is to be made. the City Council did not have to congratulate themselves, the audience in attendance provided the applause and the State representatives provided the context. The City Manager was able to demonstrate the pride he is taking in the team that accomplished this project. Up, down and all around it was evident that cooperation can make a major difference to success,

Today, it was great to see so many people on the same page. It was even greater to see the fantastic results of the restored Lawton Park Pavilion, a facility that is now truly a part of the entire community.

working on SELLING HARTSVILLE

The selling tag we are working with on the Selling Hartsville project is "Hartsville, The Art of Good Living"

Every time we have a meeting on this subject there are people at the table who provide solid translations on how meaningful they find that slogan. The next step, which is ongoing right now, is for committees to work on specific projects to build up our product - Hartsville.

Last Wednesday, Johnna Shirley, who is the marketing director for Mutual Savings, has volunteered to lead the committee on marketing. The first meeting was held last Wednesday. Two other committees, one for legacy entrances and one for recruiting will soon be holding their first meetings.

The next meeting we have with the consultants will be to view how they see the slogan being used in things like ads, billboards, newsletters and other marketing materials. This project is making headway and we have to make headway so that we can start successfully growing our community.

We are looking forward to moving forward.

Discussion with Hartsville Chamber members about Selling Hartsville

The Selling Hartsville project gets a great opportunity today as we have some time to discuss this project at the All-Member lunch of the Hartsville Chamber.

The general plan I am using for this particular talk is to enhance something I said to the Lions Club of Hartsville a couple of weeks ago: "Change Favors the Prepared Community." I am borrowing some of Walt Whitman's words and changing a little for this theme. Last summer Harris DeLoach, president and chairman of Sonoco told this same All-Member lunch that Hartsville was losing potential residents and that Hartsville appeared to be losing some of its competitiveness as a community. He gave some very specific examples.

Today's message is that the alarm sounded in the DeLoach talk is being answered and one of the answers is the Selling Hartsville project that has begun. We will discuss how the Selling Hartsville project helps to connect some of the dots of recruiting new residents to Hartsville as well as enhancing the overall quality of living.

The consultants ended up telling us what many who live here already feel -- there is a strong lifestyle based on small town values and small town advantages that many people are aspiring to in many locales. They also pointed out in their findings that while there are a lot of people who feel the positive environment that Hartsville offers, there is no central theme or script from which the community is operating. The Selling Hartsville project, we hope, will provide the umbrella under which many community marketing efforts can flourish.

Today, I am going to review the need for this overall umbrella and share with this group the findings that have moved the Selling Hartsville project from a research phase into the implementation phase. The ultimate objectie will be to develop more awarness of the messages and, I would hope, more involvement by many chamber members in the conscious effort to sell Hartsville as "The Art of Good Living."

Selling Hartsville Moving from concept to action

The following post was sent out to the people who were at the last Selling Hartsville meeting on March 18 and to others on the Hartsville Steering Committee mailing list. It gives a pretty good overview of the move from presentation to implementation. This is a big rock in the Hartsville pond and we are hoping to have a large number of intersecting circles continue to spark sweet spots of activity for lots of people:

March 18, 2008

There were more than 30 people at the March 18 meeting of the Selling Hartsville Task Force. You can see, we have gone from calling the group a steering committee to the name of Task Force. The name is not just semantics. We are now actively in the implementation phase of the Selling Hartsville project. Thank you for all your input, your efforts and your desire to see Hartsville continue its trend of positive, forward growth.

Here is another story that demonstrates how well the target of "Hartsville, The Art of Good Living," summarizes our lifestyle. Parents of a person who has moved to Hartsville to work are visiting this week. After only about a day and a half they began to seriously wonder if they might not speed up their retirement plans and look to Hartsville as their next place to live. Everything we reminded ourselves of in the report that Carolina PR provided they explained in a conversation. They talked about the "feel" of the community. They talked about the community of the community. They talked about the ease and accessibility of so many different things like the walking trail at Byerly Park, the beautiful scenery of Kalmia Gardens, the downtown that was really alive and the YMCA and all it had to offer. They understood immediately when I told them of our efforts and before I could say more they filled in all the blanks about how while this is a small town it is not what they would describe as a small town from what they could see being offered.

Task Force Info --
We have a marketing task force and Johnna Shirley is going to be bringing that group together to begin thinking of the various places throughout and across Hartsville that we can begin to use, for and with an umbrella marketing strategy. They will also be working with the agency on graphic suggestions as well as many other areas.

There is another task force that will be composed of many of the organizations that recruit people for jobs in Hartsville. They are going to be meeting to discuss the impediments of people moving to Hartsville, the tools that might be needed to help better sell Hartsville and even some very hands-on tactics that might be devised to implement an aggressive, recruiting effort to educate those people who might really like the quality of life Hartsville offers. Roger Schrum is taking an initial lead on this task force.

The legacy entrances to Hartsville is a concept that has evolved since the consultants strongly recommended that the former Butler School property be thought of as a major part of the South entrance area to Hartsville and that it be made into a legacy entrance to highlight the African-American history and tradition in Hartsville. Jim Dawson, Coker President, then thought the legacy theme might be a great way to devise improvements for the Hartsville entrances with a manufacturing legacy to the North, an educational legacy to the east; an agricultural legacy near the Coker Pedigee Farm museum and the natural resource legacy at the Kalmia entrance to the west. Jim Dawson is pulling together this task force.

While there was not time for as much discussion, it is apparent that some good movement is taking place in the Vista area and the parties most associated with this area, the City of Hartsville, Coker and the Governor's School are going to be continuing progress in this area.

This is a short synopsis of activities. Anyone who has not signed up for one of the three task forces or who would like to begin to call another together should reply to this message and that work can begin.

We have pretty much decided on The Art of Good Living and now we have to continue to find ways to even better define this "product."

The meeting this past Tuesday was held at the new meeting hall of Jerusalem Baptist Church on Sixth Street and this is a beautiful facility and we appreciate their allowing this community-building meeting to take place in their Fellowship Hall.

Econmomic Development for a community

Currently in Hartsville there are several citizen committees working on the required updating of a strategic plan for the city. The State apparently requires the update and the city has implemented the process for updating. Citizens, when they are working for the good of their community, do so with the trust that the people who are in charge and who have the ultimate decision-making authority value the work and the thinking that the citizens are putting forth. Citizen input from the community conversations and other venues along with investments in Hartsville say that our community has a lot going for it. Those working on the update of the plan hope this is one way to find a way to focus on growth and progress and the continuing quest of making this community one of the best in South Carolina, if not the nation.

The Economic Development planning group is going to try defining economic development in a frame that fits within the context of the city or greater Hartsville area. So, if you were defining economic development, what would you be thinking about? In a series of add-ons to a string on hartsvilletoday.com there was an extended discussion about the types of businesses some people would like to see. The one requirement for nearly all those businesses is a population with money to buy the products and services those businesses have to offer. That population with money is one of the things being thought of in terms of economic development. There were a number of other factors that covered a range of issues. Rather than list those, let's have the question remain: When you think of economic development for the greater Hartsville area, what are the ideas that come to mind?

The committee is meeting weekly and this blog (or Hartsvilletoday posting) is way I thought of to develop a little more input from the community. If inclined, I hope you will donate your proverbial "two cents."

Firefighters -- God Love Them

My father was a fireman. My grandfather was a fireman. An uncle or two were volunteers. The fire service has been integral to my life. As I listen to Mayor Riley honor the nine firefighters who lost their lives, and the firefighters who daily protect Charleston, I can't hold back the tears, nor can I hold back thoughts of service.

Some of my earliest memories are hearing fire sirens and then making the sign of the cross and saying a quick, heart-felt Hail Mary (I was Catholic). The families understood, as did the firefighters, that this is a dangerous business. I don't know of a fire fighter who thinks of heroism as a part of their job description. All the ones I have ever known saw fighting fires as job that had the added plus of being service to their community. Most just say it is a job someone has to do and they feel fortunate to be among those who are called to do it. But they never think of themselves as heroes -- that is up to the rest of us to consider.

When I hear the fire siren, I am still quick with a prayer for the people answering the call. Their families also need a prayer because they do understand that each call has its own danger -- being a fire fighter is not a routine job, under any circumstances. One of my father's worst injuries came at a grass fire when the smoke obscured a hold and went down with a heavy water pack on his back.

Here in Hartsville we are fortunate to have a strong fire department that is a combination of paid fire fighters and volunteer fire fighters. Their presence is our protection and has been for 99 years in this community. They will appreciate your prayers but will be embarrassed if you talk about heroism -- that is not in their self concept. They serve and protect. Like most of you, in Hartsville, SC, or in other communities around the world, I am thankful they are there!

Speaker Provided Lots of Thought Food for Community Building

Lee Bussell was in Hartsville the other day. Lee is CEO of S. C. largest marketing communications agency and an active citizen in Columbia, SC and the State. He shared some thoughts at an All-Member luncheon sponsored by the Hartsville Chamber.

We really needed to have another 50 or so people in the room to hear some of the exciting ideas that Lee shared but most importanly so that those exciting ideas could ignite some thinking that would help Hartsville better envision its growth.

I was not taking notes, so this is not a verbatim account of Lee's talk but rather some of the connections that I was making while he discussed the direction they have been taking in Columbia.

** One idea I like a lot was the "Good to Great" committee that they established. His key message here was that this committee is working toward defined metrics for committee performance and working toward defining the core idea of Columbia. If you are one of the few who has not read the Jim Collins book, his central message is for an organization to adhere to a "Hedgehog Concept." In short, this concept is to determine what your organization can do better than any other organization and focucs all activity on making that happen. I don't think we have determined this in Hartsville and would love to see that type of discussion taking place.

** Another key message that was included in this talk was the need to build from existing strengths. He suggested that most successful community building efforts are not inventing something from nothing. During his talk he happened to mention biofuels and that got me thinking about Hartsville's strengths as a community built on agriculture, manufacturing and education and how well the concept of biofuels seem to fit this core of basic strengths.

** So, we often talk about our core and our strenghts in this small town but few of us in our various organizations put these strengths (and weaknesses) on paper where we might let them mix together to help ignite some creativity. Education is one of our strengths. We have a four-year college that provides an excellent college education for hundreds of students and most of them are from this area. We have the Governor's School for Science and Math, which provides a superior high-school education for juniors and seniors from schools across the state. We are fortunate to have a strong technical college that works closely with industry and others (Florence-Darlington) and we have pretty strong support for the public education system. But, I think this is an exercise for a cross-responsible group that could determine what they were going to deliver and then deliver as the first step in laying out a VISION for our area.

** One of the quotes that often gets into talks I give around the community comes from something the former CEO of Sonoco often repeated inside and outside the company. That uote is, "When you stop getting better, you stop being good." One way that Lee Bussell highlighted this state of affairs was to note that 15 to 20 years ago Columbia, SC, Austin, TX, and Raleigh, NC, were about the same size municipalities. Can you guess which of those communities had the highest income ratio? Back then it was ......Columbia, South Carolina. Today, Columbia only wishes it could compete in the same area as Austin and Raleigh. There is a moral to that story for Hartsville and one that we need to wrap our heads and hearts around before it is too late.

** Some things are happening in this town and there are several projects that might be on the verge. Is there a connection? Is there a thread that brings them together? This is where that vision thing comes in again and while there may be a thread, it is pretty thin and not very visible to many in the community.

** Another major part of Lee's message is the same refrain we heard from Rich Harwood when he was in town to talk about the role that citizens must play in their communities. According to Harwood, it is the citizens who can make positive things and positive change happen. Also, according to Harwood and to Bussell, it is only those citizens who will make the change happen because other people have other priorities and really don't care all that much about Hartsville, or, for Lee - Columbia. So, who are those citizens who should be joining together to make things happen?

** Building community and building communities within a community is the work of the citizens of that community. It is OUR job. Let's do it!

Momentum is important

Momentum is important to a community because it means movement is taking place. The worst thing, in my view, that can happen to a vibrant community is to allow "status quo" to become the goal. Complacency is a contagious virus. Complacency has few symptoms. Complacency can even provide a type of feeling well that can mask the sickness until so much damage has been done that it takes major intervention to get the community back on a healthy track.

Communities with a lot of activies that are ongoing may suffer from growth pains and may even have some stress and strain as the programs are implemented. Those who have spent time in the gym or on the practice fields understand this condition in the adage, "no pain, no gain."

In the Hartsville community we are beginning to see some momentum building. Just yesterday, Senator Joe Biden brought his Presidential campaign bid to our Coker College. While those in larger communities see this as little to nothing, for a town of 7,500 in a wider community of about 40,000, a candidate stopping by is noteworthy. It is also appreciated. Senator Biden treated Hartsville as he would have treated Columbia, Greenville or Charleston and those in Hartsville, on all parts of the political spectrum, appreciated his contribution to the national debate. Later this month William Raspberry of the Washington Post will be in Hartsville as part of statewide education conference investigating poverty and education. That March 30 event will be discussing a topic crucial to the ongoing question of improving education, not only in South Carolina but throughout the nation.

While on important events that demonstrate momentum, the Coker College Center for Leadership and several other organizations are investigating the question of gang activity in the Darlington County area. Gang activity is not all that prominent an issue and the meetings that are going to be held, with noted community authorities including Stedman Graham and Ron Carter, are to draw some attention to the question before the issue becomes an out-of-control problem.

"Imagine and Act for the Public Good" is the underlying theme of The Harwood Institute, an organization dedicated to helping communities re-engage their citizenry. Richard Hawood, founder of The Harwood Institute, will be in Hartsville on March 28 and 29 to talk about his views, findings and ideas on re-engaging citizens in the well-being of their communities. His public speech will be March 29 at Davidson Hall on the Coker College beginning at 5:30 p.m.

For a small community, there is quite a bit going on in Hartsville, SC. This note did not even discuss RENOFEST, which is a Bluegrass Music Festival that has become one of the mainstay events bringing Bluegrass fans from many states to this town March 23, 24 and 25.

Mostly it is the little events that provide the momentum but it is leadership that must be envisioning those events and bringing them to reality. Communities need their citizens to be involved in all types of momentum-creating events. Get involved!

Thinking About Thinking About Community

She participated in the community conversation we held at the library on Wednesday evening and stopped outside the coffee shop this morning to tell me how much she enjoyed the experience. Her visit interrupted some thoughts that were along the track of 'is the effort for these conversations really worth the time invested?" Her comments and observations from her participation don't just affirm, they shout 'keep the conversation going."

Even today, after a lot of time observing, I continue to be amazed at the way we receive or attune to messages about how we maintain or ignite motivation. My decision to spend more time than normal at the coffee shop and enjoy the outdoor chairs seemed pretty random. Her crossing the street at that point from her morning Y workout, while not so random, was still unplanned. My thought about the value of the conversations at that point of the morning might not have been all that unpredictable, since these conversations are a focal point since the students have left for the summer. But the thought coinciding with her stopping by and the genuine enthusiasm she showed for the process of questioning how we continue to improve the quality of living in this community was fuel I needed to get me ready for next week's public innovator lab at the Harwood Institute.

Serendipity can take a lot of shapes but when it is a woman in her eighties, who has just left her Y workout, who is excited about building the future of the community she has called home her entire life -- you have to know there have to be ways of igniting that enthusiasm in the age groups who have so much more riding on the outcomes of these engagements. (May 19, '06)