Catholic Rural Commentaries

West Nebraska RegisterRURAL LIFE MATTERSMay 2007

Fr. Neal Nollette
Pastor, St. Joseph Parish
Chappell, Nebraska

During the past year, both Chappell and Oshkosh have been working on economic development. Each town is taking a different approach, but both have essentially the same goals: keeping current businesses in the community, developing resources that are already in the community to entice young people to stay, creating a positive ‘can-do’ attitude, and encouraging both young and old to invest in the community.

At a recent Ministerial Association meeting, we ministers were discussing some of the issues (both positive and negative) that people were talking about at the coffee shop. One of the ministers summarized our discussion with the following question: Whose leadership do we follow? Is it the leadership of the "old" who say ‘I am old and I am going to die soon, so why bother with doing anything different than the way it has always been done?’ Or, is it the leadership of the "young" who say ‘I am young and I have my whole life to live, so let’s take a risk and give it a try?’

If we have a "Death" attitude, then nothing will happen and not only will the persons who have this attitude die but so will everything around them—schools, businesses, churches, towns, ideas, hope, and dreams. If we have a "Life" attitude then all kinds of possibilities lay before us—new businesses in town, entrepreneurism, creative approaches to education in a very sparsely populated area, cooperative ways of working together as a regional community to accomplish greater things than what either alone could possibly do, a spirit of encouragement, one successful good idea fostering a spirit and attitude of creativity and growth.

Some have likened the overall situation in Rural Nebraska as a giant vacuum cleaner "whooooshing" and sucking the youth, ideas, resources, and creativity out of Rural Nebraska in an ever widening circle of depletion and despair. This is depressing just to think about it. And it breeds a sense of hopelessness and helplessness to the point where those who stay behind unintentionally encourage the remaining youth to leave and actively discourage anybody else from even thinking about doing anything here.

My brother (Lou) and I have talked about the overall state of farming, ranching, agriculture, and rural on many occasions. He offers an insight that is the beginning step of transformation to truly make a difference. He says what is needed is a "New" Pioneering Spirit for the 21st Century. Our ancestors from 100 years ago had a "Strong" Pioneering Spirit which gave them the stamina they needed to endure the harsh weather conditions of the prairie—wind, blizzards, tornados, and drought. It also gave them a spirit of perseverance which enabled them to tame the land under very harsh conditions. With it also came a degree of tolerance of those from another ethnic background; thus new towns were born. Soon this "Strong" Pioneering Spirit had all of the infrastructure in place—roads, bridges, churches, schools, hospitals, etc. One thing is certain: the vast majority of the pioneers of the 20th Century came west for agriculture, to make their living by farming the land and raising livestock.

This "Strong" Pioneering Spirit is what enabled our ancestors to tame the land, grow roots, start families, and remain on it for 5 and 6 generations. Now agriculture is vastly different; so what worked for our grandparents and great grandparents is not automatically going to work for us. What is needed is a "new Pioneering Spirit" for the 21 Century.

This new pioneering spirit does not mean that agriculture is completely abandoned. Rather, its core philosophy is that we look at what we have from a ‘new’ or ‘different’ perspective. Instead of looking at a tract of land, realizing that it would be impossible to farm, and then declaring that it is worthless (ie, it has no economic value because it cannot be farmed in the "traditional" way), ask yourself ‘how else could this piece of land be utilized—wildlife habitat, growing grapes on its south slope, offering photographic opportunities because of the interplay of the light with the land, etc’.

So the "New" Pioneering Spirit means that we take a fresh look at the resources that we have to see if there is another way we can use them. This means that we be creative in our thinking and imaginative in our dreaming. It means that we dream all of the possibilities, realizing that only some will come to fruition. But in the process of dreaming all of the possibilities, our creativity is set free and our imaginations create other opportunities that otherwise would have been overlooked. After all, one of my other brothers (Greg) says ‘Why look for opportunities elsewhere when there are plenty of them right here under our own feet?’

The "New" Pioneering Spirit means that we use modern tools such as computers, internet, cell phones, e-mail, and faxes. It means that we seek out a "mentor", one who can coach us, and guide us as we navigate various new challenges. It also means that we invest in the community where we live—not just for the present but the future as well. Here are some examples that illustrate what a "New" Pioneering Spirit would look like.

The Buckley Trust has been in Chappell for 25 years now and has given out $12 million during that time. Yes, his initial endowment was significant, but equally good things can be done with smaller gifts like providing scholarships for higher education and "incentive gifts" to those who return to their home town to take over an existing business or start a new one. What a great way to invest in the future of our communities!

A young person says to a retiring farmer ‘I would love to live in my home town but I can’t afford to do so’. Rather than the farmer saying ‘I plan to sell my land to the highest bidder’, the farmer’s response should be ‘That is absolutely wonderful! We need more young people like you living here. I don’t have all of the resources that you need to make that happen, but I do know several other people in the community who would also love to help make this possible.’ One such resource for doing this very thing is Land Link at Lyons, Nebraska (402-687-2100).

At an economic development meeting at Oshkosh, the presenter told the story of a Nebraska high school student who was working at the local newspaper and planned to major in journalism at college. While in college, the budding journalist negotiated a deal with the newspaper owner to purchase the newspaper so she could live and work in her home town!

The Nebraska Sandhills are truly unique. I have traveled all over the world exploring the beauty of other corners of God’s Creation. I am convinced that the Sandhills are just as beautiful as any other place in the world. I have concluded that there are people who would love to come here to see them and experience them—they just yet don’t know that this is what they want to do!! The Sandhills are truly a Photographer’s Paradise!

My younger brothers started a catering business 20 years ago. When they were starting, people teased them if they were going to buy their own meals since Nenzel has a population of 13! Now it is a booming little business and the only advertising that they have done is ‘word-of-mouth’. So small places can do big things!

A few years ago I heard the story of a lady in Kansas who spray painted tumbleweeds and sold them over the internet. Before long, she had so many orders she could not find enough tumbleweeds! Here in Chappell and Oshkosh that would NEVER be a problem!! Who knows—Deuel and Garden Counties could become the "Tumbleweed Capital" of the nation!

And even a longer time ago, I heard of a person who lived at Alliance, Nebraska who sold locomotive and other train parts to every corner of the world. He did this via the internet.

The Kearney area has capitalized on the Sandhill Crane watching business with the 500 thousand cranes that pass through every spring. But did you know that 100,000 Sandhill Cranes pass through Lewellen, Nebraska every spring!?!

With all of the wheat grown here in Chappell I am surprised that there are no micro-breweries for making wheat beer. And I am surprised that no one is marketing specialty breads made from "World Famous Chappell Wheat"!

You say there is no such thing as "World Famous Chappell Wheat"? Well, perhaps there isn’t. But part of developing the "New" Pioneering Spirit for the 21st Century is to think big and to realize that what we do and what we offer is important, extra-ordinary, and in most cases even unique!

If we choose to live by the Attitude of Death, then surely all will die including all of our hopes and dreams. But if we choose to live by the Attitude of Life, then truly a transformation WILL take place because we realize that ALL things are truly possible. With this Attitude of Life, we will be well on our way to developing, implementing, and living the "New" Pioneering Spirit of the 21st Century!