Washington County selected for project Program to focus on community’s needs

MACHIAS – Representing “one community,” Washington County has been selected as one of two pilot projects for Harness the Wealth, a new community initiative from the Maine Rural Partners organization.

With the support of the Washington County commissioners, a group of community leaders submitted a proposal earlier this month. They learned Wednesday that Washington County was selected as one of two communities, along with the town of Strong, population 1,500, in Franklin County.

“This recognizes that we are a county of great people and it will broaden our horizons,” said Barbara Drisko of Columbia Falls, one of the group’s two coordinators.

“I emphasize the great people, because our prime resource is the people. We already know how great the natural resources are. This will get people better acquainted on both ends of the county.”

Drisko said the public is welcome to join in the planning, which begins Aug. 28. Anyone interested in diving in and learning more can meet for a 90-minute meeting at 3 p.m. at the Machias Career Center.

“The more people we can get involved, the stronger the program will be,” she said.

Four communities applied to be selected as pilot projects when the program was announced earlier this summer. Maine Rural Partners specified that the communities would be within Oxford, Franklin, Somerset, Piscataquis, Aroostook and Washington counties.

Nate Michaud is the program’s overall coordinator. He will attend Monday’s meeting in Machias.

“We are excited by the energy in both Washington County and Strong, and it’s an opportunity to try this project on two different scales,” Michaud said Friday.

“Washington County already has some good partners in place, with the University of Maine at Machias, the Sunrise County Economic Council, Eastern Maine Development Corp., and a new county manager coming on board. It’s a chance for us to help them coordinate and take things to the next level.”

Maine Rural Partners, housed at the University of Maine in Orono, will provide its network and resources toward each project. Also, one dedicated AmeriCorps volunteer will be hired to work on the Washington County project, and a second one will work on the Strong project.

According to the Harness the Wealth Web site (www.mainerural.org), the outreach program will form intensive one- or two-year partnerships with individual rural Maine communities.

Building on the community’s existing strengths “will create the capacity to lead to a healthier economic and social future,” the description reads. Community members through the program will develop:

. A widely shared sense of common identity and proud connection to place.

. An agreed-upon, feasible community vision and strategic plan for attaining it.

. A plan and commitment to engage youth in meaningful leadership roles.

. A community investment plan to support long-term strategic work.

“Part of the power of the approach is also what’s scary, that it’s open-ended,” Michaud said. “We are not coming in with a model or a set of approaches for a community to adopt. We want to make sure this program is grounded in the community’s needs and desires.”