Tyndall, SD

At the end of May, three Tyndall Horizon participants went to Bloomington Mn to the Grassroots & Groundwork Conference, sponsored by Northwest Area Foundation.  We spent two days there, going to all the break out sessions which dealt generally with the issues of poverty, business regrowth, entrepreneurial ventures, and good food and networking.  Speakers included Dr. Beegle, a woman who grew up in dire poverty in a family of six, and who has accomplished a doctorate through the help of people who helped her get going.  Another speaker, Chip Heath, talked about how his book “Making It Stick” came about and our delegation got copies free as we were registered early for the conference. It is a great book, full of ideas that took hold and some that didn’t. Tyndall Horizons thanks the NWF for funding this great opportunity for towns such as ours, who wouldn’t normally be able to take advantage of something like that.

Tyndall Horizons will meet with Dave on June 10 at the Cavalier Corner and firm up the strategic plan for Tyndall ( we have two more goals!) and also plan a little more on the last community meeting to be held on June 24. There have been some exciting things happening since the last meeting, so it will be great to announce those. Committee members are encouraged to come and report on their project.

The Horizon planning meeting for Tyndall was held on May 13. We enjoyed a light lunch of pizza and then the committees reported on progress of the last several weeks. 

Chad reported for the newest project we have adopted-the daycare. He has been working with state officials and District III. The Governor’s Daycare program is what they are working towards.  The committee has also set up a board, elected officers and opened a bank account. A name has been selected - Little Cavs Corner.   Right now they are working on submitting the grant applications.

The Bargain  Shoppe was able to give $850 to seven different community functions, including four youth activity programs.  They still are welcoming volunteers to help staff during business hours and looking at advertising better.

The website committee is working to get businesses on line now, setting a goal for the end of May.  They are tweaking other sections on the website. The committee meets monthly which has kept the project on track.   One more  thing they added was the Tyndall Business & Service Directory.  Check it out at www.tyndallsd.com and click on Community Directory.

Mark reported that the policy forum held in April was a success with about 50 people attending.  There were good questions and lots of information was extended to the participants.  They will continue to relay new information to the public.

Janet reported that the Cavalier Corner is going about the same. They could use more kids to come in, but the center is being used a lot more for meetings and parties.  One can rent the Cav Corner for a small fee-call 589-3097 to reserve your party.

Tyndall will have its May planning meeting on May 13 at the Cavalier Corner. 6:30 pm is light lunch and meeting is at 7 pm. All committees encouraged to attend and report. We will have a report on the Day care project - Governor’s Daycare. The committee has been going full steam ahead on that project as daycare availability has become an issue in Tyndall. Everyone welcome.

The Tyndall Business & Service Directory is finally ready to go out to the public.  It is a 3-fold brochure prepared by volunteers and printed/copied  locally by donating businesses in small amounts to start off. This will allow for inevitable changes down the road.   The brochure was initially set up by a Chamber business several years ago and has been scooped up by Horizons and Chamber ( partnering), improved with additions of better listings of social services available, organizations, apartment contacts ( none are listed in the phone book except for Northpoint Apt. !), tourism information and shopping opportunities.

At this time, it is free to be listed in the brochure and it includes any business, service, or organization in Tyndall ( that we are aware of ). It is great to have by the phone and it will eventually be available for the public to pick up at participating businesses. It is already included in our “Welcome Basket” and will also be available at the city offices and at the Social  Services offices.  We have over  100  listings of  companies, businesses, services,  individuals, and  government  offices-not to mention  contact info for doing fun stuff in town!  If you didn’t see it in print, you would not believe it!    If other towns want to see it, call 605-589-4050.

Anyone interested in obtaining daycare for their children should attend a meeting Thursday night, May 1 at 7:00 PM at the Cavalier Corner. Chad Jodozi will be discussing the surveys which were sent out to all current day care providers, local businesses, and letters to the local people by the school banner. A needs assessment is being determined and your input would be appreciated. Everyone is invited to attend.

Save the day……Tyndall  will host city-wide garage sales on Saturday,  June 14.  Our new youth center, Cavalier Corner, will be the site for the indoor tables this year and the table rent will go into their funds. Our Bargain Shoppe, right next door, will benefit from all the visitors to the other garage sales.

If you need to rent an indoor table call 589-4050.  If you want to be included on the residence map and garage sale listing it will cost $8.00, payable to Tyndall  Chamber.  Sign up at the Art & Antique Gallery  or 4-PAWS SPA.   We hope other communities come to Tyndall for the fun morning of shopping for treasures!

Work is being done at this time to set up a Community Foundation, much like many of the other Horizon communities have done and are doing.  This will ultimately be the “system” in which contact is kept with those partnering organizations and with the Delivery Organization. Right now, we know who to get in contact with. New information is regularly sent to the local paper and key people are notified of workshops that are scheduled in particular interest areas.   The community foundation will  work to procure new resources to assist in the work of the community. It will take time and diligence.

That’s the big news! Pretty old….people are living longer due to great medicine, healthier lifestyle, hobbies and social interaction, according to the presenters at the workshop on Aging Population held recently at Mitchell Tech.   Presenters Jim Seeber ( NSU Regional Aging Council), Renee Oscarson ( SDSU Extention Specialist Gerentology) and Linda Nussbaumer (SDSU Professor of Interior Design-effects of baby boomers on housing) relayed current statistics on the aging population, the importance for social support for the aging generation ( we need our Senior Centers!!!), transportation issues for elderly in getting to medical appointments or for shopping, and the various Social Services programs that are available to the people of retirement age.  They said the key to support of the aged is to provide ACCESS - be that with more handicap parking, better access to shopping and restaurants, and education about the various programs available such as tax preparation help, food assistance, and help with insurance ( Medicare Part D for one….), creating social activities and getting them there, and encouraging healthy diets and exercise. 

  Renee’s substitute, Sandra Aamlid, recounted great experiences in helping the attendees at the senior center in S.F.( called The Center for Active Generations) and how important the social aspects of participating at the center  was in the health and mental welfare of the people.  She talked about how a church in the region built an exercise center onto the church campus and that it was used alot.

The biggest thing that I learned was to include the aging population in town activities and projects, as they have experience and multiple talents to share.  When the baby boomers turn 65, there is still lots of living to do.

Nearly 50 people attended a public policy forum in Tyndall on April 16th addressing the issues of jobs, low income assistance through the state, the legislative items concerning low income, and some information on tax relief. Carla Brechtelsbauer, volunteer for Bread for the World, spoke about inconsistencies in taxes for the rich and the low income. According to Brechtelsbauer, did you know that we do not pay tax on food for hospitals but we do on nursing homes???? Did you know that we do not pay taxes on food for ostriches but we do for baby food? She had examples of inconsistency in property tax assessments and many other interesting factoids.

A guest panel of Bon Homme Social Services, County Health Nurse and our local legislator gave information on the many services that are available to those needing assistance. Some of the programs include WIC ( Women, Infants and Children) which includes free immunizations to those who qualify, plus lots of other assistance to new moms.

Available through the Social Services office are fuel assistance, food assistance ( formerly known as  food stamps - which many people qualify for, but do not take advantage of, even though the WIC is available at our local grocery store!), and other programs. We also learned more about the free and reduced meals that are available at school. This program benefits the school and the teachers who have taken out state and federal loans. More information can be obtained by contacting Joyce Bittner at Bon Homme School District-see link in the green box on the right of this post.

Residents should follow the legislative issues in Pierre, according to Frank Kloucek. He also suggested that a time be set up to help elderly with the paperwork that needs to be filled out when applying for government assistance programs, as the paperwork is usually daunting. He also urged elderly citizens to be aware of scams that pop up, either through the mail or over the phone. Frank suggested more use of blended gasoline….but we don’t have one of those pumps in Tyndall yet…seems they cost about $17,000. If people went out of town to buy their gas, I would hope that they still spend their grocery, gifts,and pharmacy dollars back at home with our local businesses!

We have to thank Mark Nelson and Joe Kostal for their persistence in getting this forum set up, with a LOT of help from Kari Fruechte and staff at SDSU. 20 people took advantage of free blood pressure screenings by St. Michael’s and many attendees picked up hospital brochures, Social Services brochures,  and also the new Tyndall business & service directory that is ready as a result of a partnership between Chamber and Horizons.