Sherry Frick (Blandin Leadership alumna), and her husband Paul, have owned and operated Minuteman Press in Grand Rapids for 20 years. Sherry is a driving force behind the Itasca Strong initiative, supported in part with a $5,000 Blandin Foundation grant. “Working through Covid19 has had many challenges for us, as it has for most. We …
Susanna Elsen is a childcare provider in Hill City. In 2020, Blandin Foundation awarded three grants totaling $50,000 to support childcare providers in the Itasca area. “As I think through the biggest impact that COVID-19 has had, there are many small things that pop into my mind. These small things combined have created a unique …
For pioneering work to put community vision and benefit at the center of rural broadband deployment efforts and his strategic and supportive contributions to the Blandin Broadband Strategy Board and the Governor’s Broadband Task Force. President and CEO of Hiawatha Broadband Communications from 1998-2013 Inducted into the Winona County Fair “Hall of Fame” for his …
What We Fund Grantee organizations and projects must align with Blandin Foundation’s mission and meet the following requirements: Located in Minnesota and benefit rural towns/cities with populations under 35,000 including Native Nations. Find the size of your community using the U.S. Census. Used for charitable purposes. Authorized by the Internal Revenue Service as having Section …
As part of their participation in the Get Broadband Program, some of the communities created videos. Here they are!
October 13, 2021 | Session Notes and Video A series of fast-moving presentations about efforts across Minnesota to improve access and adoption and advocate for broadband investment. Presentation and Discussion. Moderated by Bernadine Joselyn, Blandin Foundation Minnesota Broadband: Land of Ten Thousand Connectivity Solutions Minnesota communities have found an array of creative, practical solutions to …
Is your community’s tech sophistication keeping pace with the world? You can find out by using the benchmarking tool of the Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) which measures six inter-related indicators of a community’s competitiveness in the digital economy. The ICF benchmarking tool is used to measure progress against other communities and over time. To give …
More to the story Itasca County, like much of rural Minnesota, sees “brain gain” For some, the perception of rural Minnesota – indeed of rural America –is of decline and stagnation: abandoned farmsteads, boarded storefronts, shuttered schoolhouses. Books proclaim a “brain drain” and the demise of rural America when young adults leave. But Ben …
Oct 8 Census deadline update Itasca County Census Partners – Thanks to your leadership, Itasca County’s self-response rate is at 55.5% today and the Bureau is reporting that 99.1% of households in Northern Minnesota have been counted. Thank you!!! Counting will continue through October 31. A federal court has ordered the Census Bureau to keep …
James Bowyer Responsible Materials Program Director – Dovetail Partners, Inc. Our mission is to provide authoritative information about the impacts and trade-offs of environmental decisions, including consumption choices, land use, and policy alternatives. We seek to challenge concerned and motivated “thinkers, effect positive change and quickly as possible, and provide objective information in an accessible …