RISON - One evening of highlighting a decade of accomplishments for Kickstart Cleveland County reignited a spark for Dr. Mark Peterson.
The retired professor of community and economic development from the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service had more wisdom and ideas for the kickstart initiative.
After speaking at the celebratory banquet, the professor stayed in the county for a special episode of the Free Range Conversations podcast with hosts Britt Talent, Douglas Boultinghouse and Roy Phillips. Former extension agent Les Walz and current agent for Cleveland County David West also joined the episode.
Talent and Walz, with the help of Peterson, were instrumental in the formation of the Kickstart Cleveland County Community Development Initiative which serves as an umbrella organization over Rison Shine, Kickstart Kingsland, Re-New-ing Edinburg, Pioneer Village, Community Theater, Fair Association, and at one time, Wake Up Woodlawn.
“What I find impressive is that Kickstart Cleveland County is for the whole county, and nourishes and supports community development groups in each of the smaller communities,” said Peterson. “Each of those communities have their own agenda. They have their own action group. They're making things happen.”
Peterson said that he and other extension directors take note of how the groups recognize and award their volunteers, creating something special.
“Those folks, they work together, they make things happen. And it's it's just a great example for other rural communities around the state,” he said.
Looking back over the decade, Peterson reflected on his early impressions of Cleveland County. According to the professor, one of the keys of community development, is some people look at problems and they see problems and they are overwhelmed and some people see assets.
“When I came to Cleveland County I just saw all these assets,” he said. “I saw people who were willing, who had a vision, 'How could I do better?', willing to come together and work to develop those assets. Cleveland County has many assets, some of which are really unique.”
He considers the Pioneer Village one of those assets. According to him, it is not just a place to visit, it has potential to be a venue for a variety of activities.
Another asset is simply the people of Cleveland County, which he said was evident at the previous night’s banquet.
"You all don't have an agenda that you tell people what to do. It's like you release them, you empower them, and you encourage them, and they become proactive,” he said.
Even with proactive volunteers, sometimes ideas and motivation become stagnant.
Though retired, Peterson still has something to teach.
During the podcast, the professor shared ideas to continue to grow and spark change in the community.
He recommended connecting with other towns across the country and holding workshops to brainstorm ideas to model next steps after other successes.
He gave examples of the Swamp Gravy Theater in Colquitt, Georgia turning its unique stories into a thriving community theater, or how the town of Walnut, Iowa branded themselves as Antique City, USA after a string of antique stores opened, luring traffic off the interstate into their small town.
According to Peterson, “Sometimes we need to look outside and get other people's ideas and learn from other people's experiences.”
Walz brought up a point that many of the volunteers within the Kickstart groups have at one time been outsiders, either those that grew up here and moved away and returned, or some who relocated here and wanted to get involved.
The brought ideas with them, he said.
Talent credits that return and attraction of new residents to the low-key lifestyle.
“We're not Bentonville. We're not trendy. We're not Fayetteville. We're not Northwest Arkansas which screams cutting edge community development,” he said.
“We're still on the backwoods when it comes to that stuff. But I think they like that, that’s what they are all looking for.”
To hear more of the conversation with Dr. Mark Peterson, including ideas for welcoming new people, marketing to attendees of larger events like the Rison in the Fall Festival and more, stream the full episode of the podcast.
The episode is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and ClevelandCountyHerald.com