CULTURE + ENTERTAINMENT
Anyone in the community is welcome to partake in the conference. Discounted tickets are available to the youth. “We want everybody interested in their small community to come. If there are young people in the community who want to come, if they think being in local government is going to be for them, or want to hear about what's going on in other small towns, they are welcome and encouraged to come,” said Harders. Keynote speakers are chosen to educate attendees on various topics beneficial to communal problem solving and ways to improve their way of life. “The overall goal is to have people leave with tangible, actionable things to change,” explained Harders. “You want them to leave feeling better about your community and their position in the community.” The conference takes place for two full days with various breakout sessions led by multiple speakers covering different applicable topics. Along with evening activities, there are many opportunities to network with other individuals in the community, Harders explains. Last year’s event was May 22 and 23 in Hot Springs. “ There ' s joys and challenges living in a small town . The more people you know , the more people to build community with , the stronger it makes us all . Hopefully it ' s a lot of community
building people walk away with .” kara harders
12 | 605MAGAZINE.COM
Made with FlippingBook - Share PDF online