Tyndall, SD

Tyndall’s Bargain Shoppe is open on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. Like all businesses we’re trying to encourage more people to stop and see what we have to offer! Some great bargains have already gone to folks who have come by, and often they are reminded of things they have to contribute. So far we have about 10 people who are serving as clerks. If we get more volunteers we could be open more days of the week. If you are reading this blog and have not yet checked out the Bargain Shoppe, do come by. Thanks.

In answering the blog questions for November one can see evidence of the new knowledge of the different faces of poverty in our town…it is also important to note that many of our residents who may qualify as “being in poverty” may not think they are because they are comfortable and have figured out how to maintain things with the services that are already in place in our town, such as an excellent Social Services services ( food stamps and WIC ) and the excellent organization of the food pantry which is run by volunteers. One example of how we know that the community is more aware, is the new column in the Tyndall Tribune that has been started from the Dakota Senior Meals director. Since Horizons started, she has been writing excellent articles on issues that is of concern to our elderly and to the residents in Tyndall. ( She attended LeadershipPlenty ) How has leadership changed ?One example is of the volunteers that have come forward to help at the Cavalier Corner and also at the new Bargain Shoppe. The President of the Shoppe board said they recently made a sizable deposit in the account-yay!!! All because of the volunteers, good organization , and leadership.

All who are able to attend the Tyndall city council meeting  to help support the Horizon’s project in establishing the Round Up program please meet at the City Council room January 7,  2008 at 7:45  PM. Hope to see you.

Ron Wagner explaining the economic development plan.

Some of the people who enjoyed the evening.

A cake to celebrate our progress so far.

The Tyndall Horizon’s team hosted a public meeting at the Cavalier Corner on Sunday Nov. 18 to discuss the projects and the steps needed to finish the Horizon projects. Several speakers reintroduced their projects, spoke on the status of the project, and gave credit to the people who have been working on each project. An opportunity was given for anyone who wished to volunteer for a project to sign up for that project and could speak with each chairman about what needed to be done.

The Bon Homme middle school students have enjoyed the Cavalier Corner at their first dance of the season.  It was great to see the kids out having fun.  It was a place that was theirs for the evening.

The Cavalier Corner have begun the 1st annual fund raising drive to pay for capital investments at the activity center. With Christmas just around the corner, letters were mailed out to the personal of the local communities asking for donations to help reduce the $25,000 capital investment. Donations of all sizes have been coming in for the past 3 weeks and we hope it will continue. It is surprising the people who are willing to donate for something for the youth of the community. Many of the senior citizens of the community see the need for the center and are coming forth with donations of all sizes.

What would you think if someone asked you to stop in to their insurance business and discuss “Do I have a deal for you? I had no idea what Jim Koenig wanted to discuss with me, but it was one of the stops that you are glad you did. He wanted to know if we could get business people in the local communities to donate money to the Cavalier Corner, our youth activity center. For every dollar we have donated, he will match it up to $10,000! It will be spread over 5 years which will give us $2,000 a year for expenses. SANTA IS ALIVE! It gives you a warm feeling knowing that people do care about the youth of their community and are willing to put forth an effort for other businesses to become involved.

Since Horizons began, it seems like more people in the community are aware of the need to help those who are disadvantaged, especially now during the holidays.There already is an existing culture here in Tyndall of helping those who need help, but sometimes there are a few who slip through the cracks and don’t know where to go for assistance.  The establishment of the Bargain Shoppe, for an example, is one big way to provide assistance for those who need to spend less, and also for those who just want a good bargain.  Right now, the Shoppe committee is working on getting the word out.  A flag has been placed by the door to alert people that they are open for business and also an ad and flyers have gone out to the communities surrounding. Now the goal is to get the word out farther.   I think this new endeavor is a huge commitment by the Horizons volunteers who started it and with the support of the Cavalier Corner and the City of Tyndall it will help reduce poverty in our area and show that we mean business. What do you think? Let us know.

If  you are reading the Tyndall blog site for the first time, welcome!!!   An article about the blog will appear in the Wednesday, Dec. 5 issue of the Tyndall Tribune & Register detailing the blog and how to use it.   I would encourage anyone who has not done so, to go to the Armour blog site and read what one person posted about leadership, Horizons,  and how customer service  is related to it.  During the holidays, our small communities need to practice great customer service, because the big box stores cannot brag about customer service!

One of our questions we are to address is ” in what ways has this community’s knowledge about leadership changed? How do you know?” Personally, I think those who participated in the Horizon process are recognizing leadership qualities about themselves and others when they might not have paid much attention to it before. It is recognizable in a heartbeat.  We can see it in the volunteers who have come forward and signed up to volunteer either at the Cavalier Corner or at the Bargain Shoppe so that it can get ” off the ground.” I am sure there are other areas in which volunteers have stepped forward quietly to lend a hand.   Do you have ideas on how to improve and how to involve the younger generation more?   If you have thoughts on this give us a comment back!