(Festive music) Hey everyone, I'm Sheila Jenkinson and you are listening to the Growing Small Town Nebraska Podcast where my co-host, Marcie Sextro, and I ask community leaders and business owners about their efforts in revitalizing the Cornhusker State. If you love your small town and you're looking for ways to make it even better, or maybe you're interested in what this revitalization movement may mean for you and your family. Join us as we talk with small town Nebraskans making our state the definition of "The Good Life."
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Hello everyone. Sheila and I are visiting more of our wonderful state of Nebraska. Today we are in Potter, where we are chatting with Potter's Tin Roof Creative District Committee. We have Claire and Jennifer with us. Welcome to the podcast, ladies.
Thank you.
Thanks. Thanks for coming to Potter.
The village of Potter has a population of 342 people but big things are happening here. Tell us how the idea of having a creative district came about.
We were interested in the Creative District When I first heard about it, I thought it was a great experience to add some fun things to our town, make some improvements and continue some of the good projects we already have going. We have a lot of artwork and community art, and I just thought it was a great way to continue that and carry on the tradition and make our town look nice.
I think I became interested in participating in the project, hearing the rationale from the Nebraska Arts Council about how it is utilizing the arts and sort of promoting the arts which we don't have a lot of here. So I think that's what drew me into participation.
We were able to tour Potter today. We had a fantastic time, and there were so many fun things that we took part in duckpin bowling, we did some painting, Jennifer, with you and the Art Loft. That was a fabulous fun time. We got to just go in all these great shops and look around the area. Great tour! So you need to tell the other people to like what unique adventures do you have for your visitors here in Potter.
Probably our most unique item is the Duck Pin bowling alley that I know you guys also saw. From the research that we have been able to do, we think we can't get ultimate verification, but it's probably one of the only duck pin bowling alleys west of the Mississippi. It was a very popular thing. I wrote a story on it one of our local papers just about you know what that was. And we're lucky enough that the people here in Potter decided to sort of preserve it. It used to be in a different building, but they moved it all upstairs and kept it at least preserved. And so we were able to do that. Of course Jennifer did a beautiful job up there; really making a fabulous place and just with the midcentury artwork. And also this really makes it extremely unique.
I have a question about that the artwork really goes with it. And it's a great photo op to while you're doing the duckpin bowling. So a lot of fun for people to question about the duck pin bowling, was it the predecessor to the bowling that we do now? Do you know the history behind that?
I mean, I did look it up for the story that I wrote, I would have to you know, I would have to go research that it was just sort of a thing that came about it's a smaller scale idea. You know, it's kind of a cross between a bowling alley like we have now and you know, backyard bowling, that sort of thing. So it's like, you know, an in between sort of thing.
I had such a great time doing it. It was super fun.
Marcie was better than me.
(Laughing) Well, and I'm usually not a good bowler at all, so...
...and I usually am...
...yeah, so she didn't take that very well. We have some wonderful pictures. Wait till you guys see it was a really fun because it has just such a small ball and that makes it really nice for children. It makes it really family friendly all the way around. So what a wonderful, unique thing that you have here. We also got to go have a Tin Roof sundae. I'm gonna let Jennifer talk to us a little bit about that. Tell us about the history of that in your town.
So the Tin Roof Sundae is something that has been around since the 1914 when the building was built and then the ice cream old fashioned soda fountain came later to that building and it was invented by A man called Pinkie Thayer. And it's very delicious. It's a layered ice cream with marshmallow and penis on top. It's our claim to fame. And whenever anybody comes to Potter, we make sure they have the opportunity to try it. The fun part about it too is the building that it's in the old fashioned Soda Fountain has been renovated to look original as we can get it and it looks very nice, has the old fashioned soda bar with the back bar, the class dishes, all that kind of stuff to make you feel like you're stepping back in time when you walk in there to have your tin roof sundae. And even though you order a mini there, it's a little deceiving because they're really big. So advice to everybody, if you're a little bit hungry still go a little bit smaller, and you'll be fine because they were very big, but they're very delicious, too.
Yeah, so we had the minis and Marcie and Jennifer wimped out on me and couldn't finish theirs, but I ummm, almost licked the plate and the dish that it came in, but I restrained myself
(Whispering) We were too busy talking.
That was a lot of ice cream, and a lot of gooey deliciousness there, that's for sure. So in a small town this size, what do you think has helped you to build a community and be able to have so many volunteers to have all the different things that you have in a town this size.
I think we have a great group of volunteers and Potter. And we spend a lot of time volunteering for different things, people spend a lot of time in meetings to plan things. And we just have a really good base from youth to adults that take pride in the community. And I know not all communities have that. So I think that's a special thing that we have here. We like to treat our volunteers very nice. A lot of the organizations, museums, even the building we're sitting in right now, the antique store, A Collective Gathering, is run all solely by volunteers. So it just is a different mix of attitude that we have as a small town that helps make us stronger, and everybody pitches in and feels proud to be a volunteer in Potter.
We moved here probably about 25 years ago. And honestly, it was the example that the people who had lived here their whole lives kind of set for us, you know, there was a million committees to be on, you know, they were always asking for volunteers to help publish the coyote caller or volunteer to clean up the town, or Potter Days, one of our local celebrations. So we learned from example of seeing the example of people who had been here their whole life, and I'm sure they learned from their parents. And so we're just like, oh, I guess if you live here, you get involved and stuff, okay, then you just you keep doing it. And that's how you meet people and you make connections. And then then it's kind of just like the thing you do. And even Jennifer and I, I mean, her husband and I, he was superintendent, I was on school board and working with him. And so like he and I did a project now she was very active in the flea market as I was. And now we're doing this other project together, we already have like a history of doing various volunteer projects together. And here we are, again, and who knows what the future holds.
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I think it's just a great example of it doesn't matter the size of your community. It does matter, the heart of the community and the intent and the push behind it. And it takes all that involvement. And you guys are a great example of that.
So Jennifer, you're a retired teacher, and one of the classes you were telling me earlier about was that you taught a class on community involvement, which I would like to hear more about that, because having your youth be active in your volunteer base is really huge and them taking ownership because they are your future.
Yeah, so the community involvement class started years ago was it like around 1998, I was approached by one of the museum workers and they wanted to sign painted for the museum. And I'm like, sure we can do whatever you want in our class. And after that, it was like, what else do you need? And they kept giving me a list and then another organization would give me a list of things they needed help with. So finally talked to the superintendent of the school, which I'm also married to. So it was like super easy. Can I do this with my kids? How do I get funding. Luckily, we have a very, very supportive village board. And they help with Keno funds and other grants and things like that to help support all the projects that we want to do. But basically, I would just volunteer my students to do projects around town, we painted murals, we design things for people made signs and just anything we could do in the classroom or outside of the classroom. And after years of that we have a lot of it that you can see like up in the duckpin bowling alley, the artwork there, there's murals around town, different things like that. The best part for me is now that I'm retired and I meet some of my former students on the streets, which I seem to do often now because I'm downtown where often and they'll come up to me and go Are you Mrs. T? Do you remember when we painted that mural and they'll point over here or remember when you helped me we painted the duckpin bowling alley and can I show my girlfriend that let's take them upstairs. So they've always formed that kind of ownership and taken pride in their community. And I like teaching that class because it got me out of the classroom and we went and painted things. So it was just really fun for me to teach and the kids liked it. And we made it fun. And volunteers in the community would support us. One time we were painting a mural down here on Front Street. That's the red, white and blue mural. And I remember Marianne Casta driving by, pulled up and goes, Are you going to be here tomorrow? And I'm like, oh, yeah, same time. Yep. Same time, she showed up the next day with treats and drinks. And the kids were tickled pink that somebody noticed what they were doing in the communities. So it's just people like that, that made my job easier.
Well, you know, you're raising up that next generation and making it so there you have an investment in this community, too. And so that is just fantastic. So we're talking about all the great things, and there are so many fantastic things here with the Creative District, you know, we know you probably did face some challenges. Do you want to talk about some of those and how you overcame some of those challenges?
Well, the main challenge that I overcame, or haven't overcome yet, but had to deal with is I do not like paperwork. So whenever you work with a grant or anything like that, you have to fill out tons of paperwork. I'd rather spend my time working, painting a building or making something instead of compiling information for paperwork. So the biggest struggle I had, and everybody on the committee hears me every meeting that we have is like, are we ever going to be done with the paperwork, but we aren't yet. But we are getting very, very, very close. So I'm excited to see that we're almost to the point where we can start doing projects, and we have a long list of projects that we can really make an impact and show people in Potter, all the hard work we've done on the paperwork, and now turn that into actual progress and completing projects.
There are always challenges when you're working with any kind of group, you know, trying to get everybody on the same page and get a coherent, you know, group of ideas together, I think we just take our time and work through it. And yes, if we had to have a bunch of meetings where we just talked about paperwork, and it can become like, oh, my gosh, are we ever gonna see the end, but you just keep pressing on. And we always make at least a little bit of progress every time. So we know we'll get there.
And in Potter too we have a lot of volunteers that work on our paperwork and things like that. So we do not have a full time staff member that works on this, some of the larger cities do have that opportunity to have staff that works on it. We are all volunteers, we all work jobs, or have other adventures to do during the day and then volunteer our time to do this. So it's seems like it's taking us a little bit longer, just because it's not our full time job. But we are going to get there and we're going to get this done.
So with the Creative District, do you have certain projects that you're like most excited to be able to do once the funding comes in and you have that designation?
We are not short of ideas on projects, we dream big. So we have a million projects I'm especially excited about we read about these ghost murals that other towns have done where they like do a replica of like old time ad like painted on the side of the buildings like they used to be. And it's done in such a way that it looks like it's old, it doesn't look new. I thought that was really interesting. And I thought that would add to the overall ambiance of our Creative District. And I think it fits in well with our emphasis on all of our historic buildings and that type of thing. And I'm excited about that. And then Jennifer knows somebody who makes sort of these stencils to use in these painting projects. So it's kind of it's exciting that, you know, we can see the pieces Oh, this could this could actually happen as you have the idea. And hey, we kind of know somebody who might be able to help us do it. And so that makes it exciting.
And one thing we have done on this process is ask the community for their input, we had a town hall meeting. And we also had a survey at an event called Night Out in Potter, which was last June. And basically that event is we invite people to come to Potter for the evening and show off what we have to offer. And during both of those events, we did a survey and several of things that appeared in both of those comments from the surveys were curb appeal, downtown appearance, and things like that. So those are some of the things that are driving some of our project ideas first so that we can show people that you know, we're all in with this Creative District when we get certified, which hopefully will be soon and we do some of these projects and show people that hey, we have new plants downtown or look, we repainted this or hey, there's a new mural or whatever and that way they can see the suggestions that they put in and then know that we're going to continue keep asking them for ideas and then once we get those ideas actually follow through on them.
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When Sheila and I drove into town, both of us are really impressed with the look of your town downtown. It's very charming. It's very well put together, we see a lot of towns and some towns really struggle with that. But you guys already have such a fantastic foundation to be able to go on with the Creative District. So really excited about having the chance to come back and see all that you guys get to do with it. When we were touring the town Jennifer took us to your golf course, which is very unique. And I would like you to chat a little bit about the golf course in the process of growing in a small town, even your own golf course.
So the golf course in Potter is a seven hole golf course. It's very unique because it's only seven holes. It's not nine, it's not 18. But it did start out as five that and we added two more. So now we have seven. So we're super proud of that. It is a golf course that has grass greens, where you tee off. And I'm not much of a golfer, so if I don't get all of my verbage right, I'm sorry, but the fairways are the prairie. You just go out and have fun. It's a great place for anybody that's learning how to golf. It's great for families, we use it in Potter here a lot for fundraisers, and different events where family reunions can come and have the whole tournament type of thing out of the golf course or a fundraiser for the daycare or for the golf course itself. It's just a fun little unique place. And anybody can learn to golf there. And you don't have to be a good golfer to go. And you can still have a lot of fun.
We've enjoyed talking about this today. And we do always have one final question. So Jennifer, we'll start with you. What do you love about living in small town, Nebraska.
I love living in small town, Nebraska because it's a great place to raise your kids. My husband and I moved back here. I actually grew up here and went away for college and taught somewhere else and then came back here and we were like, oh, we'll just stay a couple years. And then we'll get some experience. And then we'll move on. We are still here. Our kids have graduated. They got through college med school, classes after that. And they all have their jobs. And they've been out of school for a very long time now and it's just a fun place to raise your kids. And this last weekend, we had Potter Days here in Potter, and the store was busy here in the flea market. I volunteered to work that day with two other girls. And I had a young man mob too. And they asked me he was just excited to be here. He just thought this was a coolest little place ever. And he looked at me. He goes, Do you live here? And I said, Yeah. And he's like, What do you do here? And I said, Well, depends on what you like. And he's just looked at me. He goes, No, seriously, what do you do? And I said, I live here and I have fun. It's quiet. But if you want to go somewhere, or you have to just drive a little bit, and he just looked at me like, hey, that's cool. So he liked it. He came for Potter Days. And he will just hopefully come back and see why we like living here. But it is quiet. You can get anywhere you want. You just have to drive a little bit.
And Claire, how about you? What do you love about living in small town, Nebraska?
What do I love living in small town, Nebraska? That is a great question. And my husband and I came from Colorado many years ago. And at first it was a big adjustment. I didn't love it so much. I was a little bit shocked. And first, you know, missed all my conveniences and my malls. But over the years now when I'm gone and I come back to Potter, I just love it. I'm so happy. Mostly because of the people and the relationships you're able to make in big cities, you know, yeah, you might have some friends, where you, you know, do work or whatever. But in Potter, it's small enough, you can be friends with everybody in town, when you walk down the street, you know, most people who are going by. When you drive around, you know who you know, everybody looks at you in waves because they know you and you know them. So that is really it's a little bit it's kind of like almost like living in a movie or, you know, in sort of a little bit of a fantasy and certainly in larger cities and that kind of thing that you wouldn't have the same experience. So it seems a little bit like it's like a fantasy town. And it is sort of like a little step back, you know in time a little bit to things when they were a little bit simpler. I mean we all still have you know streaming internet and everything at home, you can still go around downtown or get your mail and see five people that you know and say hi, which is nice.
Well thank you ladies so much for being on the podcast today. And we are just looking so forward to seeing all the things that you're going to be doing in this town.
Well we will be happy have you back and you know, next time you'll be going down the street and you will be waving at everyone.
And unfortunately, some of those streets are dirt streets. So with your question of what I love living in a small town, the question would be what I don't like, the main thing would be dirt streets, but hey, if someone has grant money, send it our way.
Thanks, ladies. That's awesome.
We look forward to our return.
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