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Copyright of the Bismarck Tribune and used with permission of the Bismarck Tribune. |
Only one award is given, but there are lots of winners
| In the end, we could only pick one winner of the Tribune's
first Hometown of the Year award. But that doesn't mean the other 27 towns
nominated are losers.
Or that the hundreds of other North Dakota towns not nominated aren't special either. The Hometown of the Year award and this publication celebrate and honor all of the state's smaller towns. While places like Heimdal or Hague don't always make the headlines, the values imparted in them and other communities like them are the foundation this state is built upon. The stories in the section are written by the real experts, people who live or have lived in each of these towns. The Tribune received about 40 nominations from readers. We read each essay and selected 10 finalists. We judged essays on the spirit of the message, not necessarily the writing. We tossed the 10 finalists in a hat, and the winner was drawn by Tribune Publisher Julie Bechtel. We left the final choice up to chance, because so many towns seemed deserving of the honor. This section contains portions of as many essays as we could fit. To everyone who wrote or sent photos, thanks for your submissions. In case you couldn't tell from the cover of this section, Wishek won the award, which brings with it $1,000 for a community betterment project and two road signs proclaiming the honor. Wishek may be the 2002 Hometown of the Year, but that doesn't mean the people of Bowman, Beach or Belfield have to feel bad. As with beauty, which is in the eye of the beholder, if everyone believes their hometown is the best place in the world to live, they're probably right. |
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By TONY SPILDE, Bismarck Tribune Otherwise he'll eat everything he sees. Goats are easily distracted. This you learn from Candy Nies upon your arrival in this McIntosh County town of 1,122. Nies brought her goat, Billy, with her from the county seat of Ashley, a nearby (and rival) town. Wishek residents were quick to point out that, yes, they walk goats all the time in Ashley, where the streets are still dirt and electricity should be coming in a week or two. They're kidding, of course. Ashley is a fine town, one the Wishek folks have gotten to know better over the years. The good-natured rivalry has faded as the high school sports teams merged and residents have found it's better to work together in the fight to stay afloat in rural North Dakota. A good partnership, that A&W. The next thing you learn, and -- unless you're an urban goat-herder -- the more important of the two, is you won't find a Wishek resident lazing about on a weekday. You barely see anyone walking outside during daylight hours. They're all at work. A nonmalleable work ethic is a source of pride here. Lloyd E. Rigler, who made a fortune marketing Adolph's Meat Tenderizer, got his start in Wishek. Native son Harley Brandner turned his Wishek Steel and Manufacturing Co. into an international provider of farming implements. Of the town's 471 eligible workers, 468 are employed. And they take only 45-minute lunches. You catch them at Prairie Winds Restaurant on Beaver Avenue. Most of the people here are of German heritage, and they eat things like hot roast beef sandwiches or sauerkraut with "schpeck." Schpeck is like that little piece of pork in pork-and-beans. Brandner claims that, if you eat it twice, you'll be able to speak German. Schpeck is popular at Wishek's Sauerkraut Days, which will return for the 77th year in October. Also at the Prairie Winds at noon was Irene Schauer, who claims one of the prettiest flower gardens in town and its largest collection of rolling pins. She owns 760 pins, no two alike. She'd like to tell you more about her town, which is a great place to raise children, by the way, but you really ought to talk to the mayor. "Haven't you met the mayor yet?" Brandner asked, raising chuckles from the locals at the table. "I'll get him for you. "Hey, Larry," he says to a man at the next table. "This guy wants to talk to you." Mayor Larry Wald proudly directs you around town, highlighting points of interest. You drive by Schauer's yard, which is quite resplendent with multi-hued flora. You don't see her rolling pins, which are kept in the basement. You see the baseball park with its lush grass infield and its electronic scoreboard, the city park with its swimming pool and the Centennial Garden, planted on the city's hundredth birthday in 1998. You see the houses and yards, painted and mowed, everything neat and orderly. You see the two implement dealers, the two auto dealerships, the two grain elevators, the hospital, the nursing home, the manufacturing plant and the school (enrollment 204). You see the future home of the Lloyd E. Rigler golf course and its grass greens. "We're very fortunate to have these things," Wald said. "Every community has its ups and downs, you know, but people here work hard to have a nice community." When Wishek's residents aren't taking pride in their work, they're working to take pride in their community. According to Tom Lovik, with the Wishek Job Development Authority, townspeople have raised nearly $600,000 for community-improvement projects since 1998. The money has built an addition to the clinic, a wood floor in the high school gym, a hard-surfaced track on school grounds, more than $60,000 in improvements to nearby Doyle Memorial Park and about $165,000 for the golf course. "You look at all the accomplishments we've made with donations for things, and you see the pride people have in Wishek," Wald said. "Everyone has pulled together to get these projects done. That's the mark of a good town." Ann Jensen agrees. She grew up in Wishek, but left for Minneapolis in the 1980s. She returns at least once a year with her 10-year-old daughter, Abby. "We take advantage of the local cultural things, and like to visit family," Jensen said. "Wishek is a great town. It's so nice to come back here and see it doing well."
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By TOM LOVIK As a 24-year benefactor of the wonders of small-town life -- which I fully understand does not qualify me to say "I'm from Wishek" since I wasn't born here -- I'd like to share my thoughts about why I believe my small town is worthy. In my first career as a weekly newspaperman that spanned most of that quarter century, I had the honor of witnessing and chronicling many events that are now our history. In that profession, you are trained to be an objective, detached observer. Still, during the four days Wishek hosted its party of the century in 1998, I viewed it through the lens of a camera and swelled with unparalleled pride watching us trot out the best we had. It measured up with any party I've ever attended. That is the starting line for this story, and what I've seen this community accomplish since then continually astounds me. What I'd like to share is -- on the surface -- measured in dollars, but it takes just a little imagination to understand how those fabled North Dakota values of honesty, hard work, friendliness and family of which you wrote give Wishek its character. I would like to add two more traits -- determination and dedication. In the four years since our Centennial, an event that often signals the beginning of the end for small towns, past and present Wishek residents have generated nearly $600,000 through cash contributions and grant applications for a variety of community improvement projects that have made our city a better place to live, work and play. These efforts have provided for a beautiful addition to our local health clinic, a new wood floor in our high school gym, a hard-surfaced track on school grounds, more than $60,000 in improvements to Doyle Memorial Park near Green Lake, which has grown that facility into an outstanding family camping and fishing destination, and nearly $40,000 in improvements to the local swimming pool. Additionally, a $165,000 project is currently under way to renovate our golf course with new grass greens, tee boxes and an irrigation system. A group of parents has taken on a major project to replace archaic playground equipment for their children, and is about a third of the way to its $50,000 goal after just a few months. At a time when small towns are withering away, Wishek's Main Street has been bolstered by the construction of an insurance company and a fast-food restaurant, and a cafe that had been closed for nearly a year has re-opened. Add to this the statistical demographics -- that I won't bore you with -- which indicate the local economy is relatively sound, bucking a national trend. But set aside the numbers and take a look at the big picture. What I'd like to emphasize is that the people who are meeting, planning, figuring, arguing, shoveling, talking, lobbying, writing and worrying to make these things happen are doing so with the common bond of determination to make Wishek a better place. Most are volunteers who could choose to sit on the sidelines of life here and wait to see what happens. But instead, they take the energy of their concerns, desire and commitment to make a nice life for their families and channel it into constructive efforts that will benefit everyone who lives here or simply passes through. And the neatest part about it is that they just do it. Nobody spends much time reveling in how gracious they are for donating their time and money. The attitude is so prevalent: "We need it. We want it. Let's get it done." Aside from the dollars mentioned, the community's spirit is demonstrated in the elderly lady who's seen weeding the Centennial garden on Main Street, the men who sweat the night away after a hard day at their jobs to make our fairgrounds more attractive and the scores of folks who walk or bike on a nice evening and take an hour to travel a half-hour path because they continually stop to visit. It's about the neighbor who moves my tractor sprinkler when I'm away from home because the wheels are stuck and digging into the wet earth. And it's about sending our young children to the pool alone without fear. Do we have our warts? Sure we do, just like everybody else. And do we have those who choose to ignore the individual efforts and complain that nothing is happening in their town? Sure we do, just like everybody else. But when I sat down recently to put a dollar figure on the accomplishments of my community, I was stunned just a little at the total. But I was stunned a lot when I tallied the benefit to the quality of our lives because so many chose to get involved and get things done. By the way, I don't think we're done yet. |
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By MISSY WALTH AND MARY WALD In the past couple of years, improvements include a new hardwood floor in the school gym, a paved track and asphalt at the airport. A grass greens golf course is in the works, and a committee is working to get new playground equipment for the elementary school. These businesses and community members have worked together to improve the city of Wishek. Wishek also celebrated its Centennial in 1998 with more than 10,000 people attending. Also, the Wishek Association of Commerce sponsored numerous activities throughout the year. To get people together, it put on Summer Fun Days, which included a kiddie parade, Duck Races, Bingo and CakeWalk and concluded with a street dance. Then there's Santa Claus Days, which start with a free movie for all youngsters, followed by drawings for free gifts for young and old. And every spring a community rummage sale brings in people looking for a good deal, with about 20-30 sales. Easter brings many egg hunters to City Park in search of about 1,100 candy and toy-filled eggs. And the annual sauerkraut day features a free lunch, prizes, craft fair, free show and Bingo. The event draws about 1300 people and has been a great success for the past 76 years. New facilities and new buildings draw many people to the Tri-County Fair. It has something for everyone -- carnival rides, bull-a-rama, enduro races, craft fairs, 4-H and FFA exhibitors and lots of entertainment throughout the weekend. We think our small town is the best because our community joins together and participates in the events and projects that have made Wishek the city it is. |