FORT DODGE ALL-AMERICA CITY PRESENTATION
Live Broadcast from Atlanta, Georgia
June 2001
KVFD AM 1400 / KUEL 92.1 FM
Hosts: Jay Alexander and Jeremy Borash

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OPENING - PRE-PRESENTATION

JAY ALEXANDER:
Good morning, Jay Alexander here with Jeremy Borash. We are ten minutes away from the start of Fort Dodge's presentation here in Atlanta, Georgia for the 2001 All-America City. And I got to tell you, we had a chance to just sneak in there, talk with the audio video people running the show. We got a chance to look at the live link, Jeremy and I. And just one word comes to mind: amazing.

JEREMY BORASH:
Yeah, absolutely. Live to all the folks listening at the library, you look great. We can see on the video screen it's coming through crystal clear and certainly it's kind of a complicated setup. Obviously doing a live link like this and we are the only city doing this or anything like it. And certainly to have the support back home, I think, I don't want to say nervous, but I think anxious the delegates are here. But to know the fact that there are 500 plus people back in the library, brought high fives to everybody here in Atlanta, representing Fort Dodge. And just to know that there's a good support, a good backbone waiting for us back home and knowing you're all rooting for the delegates here that are going to make the presentation. I think really set them at ease.

JAY ALEXANDER:
And not only that, the delegates are rooting for everybody there back at the library. I'm going to tell you, we took a look, we saw the cheerleaders from all the high schools. We saw everybody out there. It looks like it's just a fantastic party is what it looks like. Everybody here was excited. Once we told them that you guys hit the 500 mark, it was almost a sigh of relief because they were a little nervous about the attendance because it is a work day. But just to see 500 people there and the cheerleaders and everybody being represented, Fort Dodge, all ages, all ethnicities being represented there today. That warms the heart and it makes the folks here feel a lot better. It makes them feel a lot more confident.

JEREMY BORASH:
Sure, certainly. And Jay, as we bring you this exclusive broadcast here live from Atlanta, want to remind you coming up in less than 10 minutes now, we're going to be bringing you the presentation live as it happens over the air, here on KUEL 92 and KVFD. I'll kind of explain to you what the presentation is going to be like. Obviously the interaction is going to be there with the library, but the first 10 minutes is going to be the presentation itself, which several of the delegates are going to be speaking. And you're going to hear that here and then you're going to obviously hear the interaction with the library. And then from there it's going to be about 10 minutes of questions and answers from the judges. And that is certainly, I guess, almost in the tradition of a beauty pageant, they're going to throw questions at these delegates. And it's going to be, I think, a pretty tense couple of moments for them, but I certainly looking at the faces of everyone here, it's like we're going into a prize fight here. And the intensity and the dedication, the hard work that everybody's put in and the miles traveled. I mean, this has been a big journey getting here to Atlanta. This has been certainly not only from a distance standpoint, but also it's been a long road to be named one of the top 30 cities.

JAY ALEXANDER:
Definitely, definitely. And of course, Fort Dodge has come a long way. But the beauty part is, is that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Because, of course, we talked to Randy Kuhlman earlier in the week. And he was talking about how the application said we could only put three of our, you know, put like the top three endeavors that Fort Dodge has undertaken within the past three to five years. And he was mentioning some of the other ones that are coming around, the Staley plant, the future Staley plant. Of course, the ethanol corn mill plant, the riverfront renovation. John Hale has been big talking about that down here getting everybody's attention. It's just been a great, it's just been so many things going on in Fort Dodge. We just kind of wish that the application was just a little bit bigger so that we could encompass all of it.

JEREMY BORASH:
Yeah, and unfortunately they only let us put so much in, but certainly the content was there. And there was enough to fill that application and then some certainly. As we get closer and closer to this presentation, we're looking at the Fort Dodge delegates. A lot of them are kind of pacing back and forth. They're real nervous. I think they're anxious. The anticipation, it all kind of boils down to this. This is what we've been waiting for. And certainly, the representation is there. And I think going into this and talking with some of the other people and seeing some of the other presentations that have been made, I think Fort Dodge is in a real good position right now. And certainly the uniqueness and the support being shown by not only the delegates here, but by the hundreds and hundreds of people, the citizens of Fort Dodge that have gathered at the library to show their support. Really, I think, lends an air of credibility to this because certainly it's one thing to have the delegates here, but to have the support back home and to see the amount of people that have come out for this. I think really speaks volumes for what Fort Dodge has been able to do.

JAY ALEXANDER:
Definitely. I also want to remind you, you are listening to KUEL 92 Fort Dodge as well as the voice of Fort Dodge, KVFD Fort Dodge. One of the things that we were talking about, there's only 52 people here. Some of the delegations have as many as 200. I know that South Miami has a large delegation, but of course a larger community. But that is completely irrelevant because we've got the live link. We have got now, what is it, over 552 delegates that are good that the jurors are going to see. Thanks to those folks at the library showing their enthusiasm, coming out, having a great time. I took a look at that and I almost wish that I'd stayed home for that because that looks like it's just a fantastic party. But, of course, this is definitely big. This is going to be huge. They're going to nail it. Right now, the folks are panning for the local camera. It's just going to be excitement here.

JEREMY BORASH:
Yeah, really is. And take a look at the faces that are here representing this fine community, certainly. And there's so many reasons that Fort Dodge has been named one of the 30 finalists. And hopefully, not going to cross our fingers, in the top 10 awarded cities. You take a look at everything that a lot of cities have done a lot of great things to earn their spot here. But I really have a good feeling about this going in, certainly. The support is there. The story of Fort Dodge, a comeback city for so many reasons and so many different ways that the people have shown that and the community has bonded together when it needed to come together. And really go that extra effort and show that extra support and be there for each other when we needed it most. And certainly that is what this is all about. And that's why we're here in Atlanta with the delegates and why there are so many people right now piling into the library to show their support as well. It is really a national award. It's the All-America City Award. It really is an opportunity for Fort Dodge to really show not only Iowa, but the nation really what it's made of and why it deserves to be here.

JAY ALEXANDER:
Right, definitely. And, of course, one of the things we want to mention is some thank yous for some of those organizations that have linked the volunteers and the businesses and the other private organizations, government organizations. Of course, the Chamber of Commerce has been very huge in revitalizing Fort Dodge, bringing in those businesses as well as the Community Action Network. That has been a fantastic effort initiative that has brought together volunteers to make a difference in this community. I don't think things like the new library would have been possible without the efforts of both of those organizations because they are representing numerous businesses, private organizations, government organizations throughout the community. And they've been helping everyone get together, get the right people for the right job, and, of course, they are well represented here today.

JEREMY BORASH:
Well, certainly no one can do it alone. And the collaborative efforts that have really been shown here, I think, have really benefited Fort Dodge for so many different reasons and so many different ways. As you look at the people here, the delegates that have gathered and the people at the library, really a cross-section, a real diverse group of folks that have come together for one cause. Really, I think that goes to show what unity is all about. Now, as we get closer to the presentation point, we're coming up on it just a couple minutes away. What we're going to do is we're going to take you literally up on the stage. We're going to hear everything that's going on in the presentation. We're going to have live links to the microphones. You're going to hear it just as the judges are hearing it on stage. And you'll be able to hear for yourself what the judges are hearing as it happens live from Atlanta, exclusively here on KUEL 92 and KVFD.

We're so happy to have you with us on this broadcast, certainly a historic day for Fort Dodge for so many reasons. First time we're here represented in this great award. Certainly, I would venture to guess probably not to last we're going to be here, but certainly, I think this is a special event for so many reasons. Now, Fort Dodge is getting ready to, we're going to go to the stage in just a couple of moments. The previous group wrapping up their presentation now, and I have a good bird's eye view right now. Fort Dodge, dressed for success in their black, white, and yellow. Those are the colors?

JAY ALEXANDER:
Yes, those are brought to them by Theresa Jackson, the head of the theater department over at ICCC. And Theresa said, you want to make an impression? Because the theme color is yellow, in conjunction with the lights are on in Fort Dodge. She says, you want to make an impression? Do nice clothing, black and white, with a splash of yellow, but nobody wears the same thing.

JEREMY BORASH:
Yes, so it's a unique look. Certainly, I think you know, looking at all the people in this room that we're with, you know who's from Fort Dodge. We've got a nice, well represented group, and they are just literally moments away from going on stage and taking the stage, beginning their presentation. Now, we did get a chance to see the video link from the library. It's up and going. It looks great on this end. And we're going to be, well, the previous group that was just on stage is going to be going right by us, and they have large bass drums. So, you're going to be hearing that, too, as Fort Dodge gets ready to hit the stage. So, bear with us here for a few moments as a very large, loud group of citizens from the previous presentation runs by us.

JAY ALEXANDER:
The link is working, and Fort Dodge is getting ready to hit the stage. Boy, this is kind of crunch time right now. Certainly, the road to get here was a long road, not only from a distance standpoint, but from an emotional standpoint, from the amount of work that so many people put into this presentation.

JEREMY BORASH:
And of course, right now they're getting their final words of wisdom from Randy Kuhlman, who's the sort of captain. And Mary Ann Johnson has been spearheading this delegation, getting everything, crossing all the I's, dotting all the T's. They're getting those final words of course. What do you think he's probably telling them?

JAY ALEXANDER:
I'll tell you what, if there's anybody who can deliver a good pep talk, it's that man. I'll tell you that much. And we're being joined by the Savannah, Georgia, Marching Band, coming by a great group of folks here.

JEREMY BORASH:
Yes, indeed. Alright, Fort Dodge is heading into the stage here and now, so what we're going to do is turn the broadcast over to the stage. You're going to probably hear, we'll stay with you as long as we can, but momentarily, Fort Dodge will be taking the stage. They're heading into the ballroom right now, so what we're going to do is take you to the presentation now. Fort Dodge, live from Atlanta, literally here on KUEL 92 and KVFD. Let's go Fort Dodge!

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THE PRESENTATION

[CROWD CHANTING]:
Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go Fort Dodge! Let's go! Let's go Fort Dodge!

MODERATOR:
Thank you. For the benefit of our jury, I'm just trying to make sure we know that we're on now and not okay. We had a little mix up in our listing. This is Fort Dodge and are you ready for Fort Dodge?

CROWD:
Yes, we are!

PAUL HARVEY (RECORDED):
This is Paul Harvey, standby for news. The agricultural crisis has reached epidemic proportions in the rural Midwest. And the community of Fort Dodge Iowa has seen thousands of jobs evaporate and a mass exodus of its population. It saddens me to say, with the last person out of Fort Dodge, please turn out the lights. Good day.

ADRIAN MCMULLEN:
Good morning. I'm Adrian McMullen, a youth minister in Fort Dodge Iowa. You just heard a rendition of an actual account made by Paul Harvey in the mid 1980s about our town of Fort Dodge. Back then, there was a real feeling of despair. When the farm crisis hit in the early 1980s, Fort Dodge lost industries large and small, and over 2,000 jobs disappeared from our little town. And our population plummeted nearly 20%. But what you're looking at today is a comeback community. Fort Dodge is a town with a big heart that refused to die and we have an all-America spirit. And we're here to tell you the lights are on in Fort Dodge Iowa.

PENNY GRADY:
My name is Penny Grady. I'm with Fort Dodge housing agency. Paul Harvey's quote could have become reality. But our community wrote a new story. We used adversity as an opportunity. We came together, we rallied, and we succeeded.

ELLEN DIEHL:
Hello, I'm Ellen Diehl, executive director of the Fort Dodge area Chamber of Commerce. We've seen many successes in our community. But for today, we'll focus on only a few of our outstanding successful programs. The first being community action network.

RANDY KUHLMAN:
Hi, I'm Randy Kuhlman. I'm a vice president at Trinity Regional Hospital in Fort Dodge Iowa. Five years ago, our hospital brought Mr. Leland Kaiser to our community to lead and facilitate a town hall meeting about how we could become a healthier and more vital community. Inspired by that community dialogue, our hospital board now ties 10% of our net operating income to community health initiatives and in particular the community action network, which is a broad-based coalition focused on improving health and quality of life in our community. Since that time, I'm very proud to tell you that the community action network has initiated, led, or supported over 30 grassroots initiatives, projects like our free community health clinic.

DR. ED MILLER:
I'm Ed Miller, a physician of Fort Dodge. Two years ago, many of our citizens of Fort Dodge had no access to health care because of inadequate health care insurance. How did we respond in Fort Dodge? We opened up three free health care clinics, manned by 100 volunteers like myself and Barbara.

BARBARA ERICKSON:
Good morning. I'm Barbara Erickson, and I too am a volunteer at the community clinics. Since January of 2000, we have provided free medical services to over 900 patients. And since April of this year, we have provided free dental services also. Dr. Miller and I are extremely fortunate to get to experience firsthand the huge impact that the free clinics have had in our community. Thank you.

MARGIE HALVERSON COLLINS:
Hi, I'm Margie Halverson Collins with Community and Family Resources and the Chamber of Commerce Board member. We have seen a new tone and a can-do attitude that is now a part of the fabric and culture of our community. And one of our youth development initiatives is character counts in Fort Dodge.

PAM BUNDY:
I'm Pam Bundy. Does character count in Fort Dodge? You bet it does! I'm the character counts coordinator. And we work hard to build youth character values in our community. In fact, we have had an overwhelming response by our business community.

CASEY JOHNSON:
Hi, I'm Casey Johnson, a Fort Dodge Ford. The business community realizes the importance of working together to share a common goal for our youth. Our businesses have donated $200,000 to help support this initiative like character counts for our youth.

DEAN BUN:
Hi, I'm Dean Bun, I'm the recipient of Iowa's American Youth Character Award. My story is unique. When I was 10, my parents passed away and I chose to become a surrogate parent to my two younger brothers, Huy and Trong. It was a tremendous responsibility working 20 hours a week while going to school and participating in many school activities. But I wanted to keep my family together. I've recently graduated from Fort Dodge Senior High and will be attending the University of Iowa next year. I'm very grateful to Fort Dodge. This community has made a big difference in my life and the lives of my two younger brothers.

VOICE:
We are so proud of Dean.

CAPTAIN DOUG UTLEY:
Hi, I'm Captain Doug Utley of the Fort Dodge Police. We have many youth in our community that are achieving great things. However, we do have those that are struggling. Over 80% of our youth are going home after school to an empty house. And of course, we know this is a time when at-risk behavior can happen. But I'm glad to say that our second highlighted project, the after-school program, the Gateway, is helping us.

SHERRY SCHILL:
Hi, I'm Sherry Schill, Director of the Gateway, before and after-school program in Fort Dodge. By providing creative after-school learning opportunities for children, we're turning on the lights for our youth. It's so exciting to see this happen for kids like me.

TJ:
I'm TJ. Before Gateway opened, I went home to an empty house.

TANYA:
Hi, I'm Tanya, TJ's mother. As a working parent, I worried about TJ's three hours between school and when I got home.

KELLY:
Hi, I'm Kelly. Before Gateway, I had a hard time getting my homework done on time and my grades weren't very good. Now, the teachers at Gateway help me understand my homework assignments every day after school. I'm now on the honor roll.

TJ:
Now I go to Gateway every day after school and have fun with other kids while we learn about computers and other things like how to stay drug free.

TANYA:
And I feel secure in knowing that my son is in a safe and supervised place, working with wonderful teachers and volunteers like...

AJ PLATT:
Me, I'm AJ Platt. As a high school student this year, I volunteer with the Gateway program and I work with kids like TJ and Kelly. And of course, Gateway benefits the kids who are involved with the program, but I learned a lot too. It's a great way to get involved with youth and make a big difference.

MARY ANN JOHNSON:
I'm Mary Ann Johnson, the community grant writer. Over the past five years, Fort Dodge has benefited from over $10 million in grants and private donations that have come in to support things like an expanded community child care center, our new library and two new elementary schools.

KRISTEN:
Hi, I'm Kristen. My new school is going to be awesome, right mom?

ROXANNE:
That's right, hun. I'm Roxanne, Kristen's mom. And parents in our town are excited too because our community supports kids by investing in our schools and new technology.

DELVIN OLSTEIN:
Hi, I'm Delvin Olstein, Mayor of the City of Fort Dodge. As a lifelong resident, I'm proud to say that I have never seen the community spirit and commitment in working together brighter.

SKIP COLE:
Hi, my name's Skip Cole. I'm the Allstate agent in Fort Dodge, Iowa. We're so proud, and it's my privilege to introduce to you our third project, which is our new city library.

LAWANDA ROUDY-BUSCH:
Hi, I'm LaWanda Roudy-Busch, the proud director of the new Fort Dodge Public Library, nicknamed the living room of Fort Dodge. The library is located right in the heart of our downtown, and we promote technology, literacy, and lifelong learning.

JUDY SHEMKAT:
Good morning. I'm Judy Shemkat and I'm a library trustee. Hundreds of volunteers from across our community joined in the effort and shared in the dream. We raised over $2 million in private donations, and we passed a $2.6 million bond referendum by over 70%. We learned together we can do anything, and I am so proud to call Fort Dodge Iowa my home.

JOHN HALE:
Good morning. My name is John Hale, and I am so proud to be a city council member in Fort Dodge. For the past seven or eight minutes, we've heard just a few of the things that make Fort Dodge a wonderful place to call our home town. You know, Paul Harvey could have been right. The lights could have gone out in Fort Dodge, but that didn't happen. The question is why? Because Fort Dodge is a community with a big heart. It's a community with a never-say-die fighting spirit, and it's a community with an optimism and an enthusiasm about the future. But you know what, we don't expect you to take our word for that. Instead, we are so proud. For the first time in the 52-year history of this organization and this competition, we are going to take you live, take a look at your monitor, take a look at the screens out in the audience. We're taking you live to Fort Dodge Iowa. We're broadcasting to you live from the new Fort Dodge Public Library where over a thousand Fort Dodge area residents have gathered to show off their all-America spirit. We couldn't be more proud to be from Fort Dodge Iowa. Contrary to what Paul Harvey said a few years back, the lights are on in Fort Dodge. Let's talk to somebody in the crowd to get their perspective. Sir, can you tell me what's happening in Fort Dodge Iowa?

LIBRARY CROWD MEMBER:
The future is so bright, we gotta wear shades!

JOHN HALE:
I think that pretty much says it all. The lights are on in Fort Dodge Iowa. Back to you, Atlanta.

[CROWD CHEERING]:
Whoa! Whoa! Great job, lots of fun! You and Paul Harvey! You and Paul Harvey! Lights on Fort Dodge, lights on! Lights on Fort Dodge, lights on! Lights are on Fort Dodge, lights on!

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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS FROM THE JUDGES

MODERATOR:
Thank you. I have questions from the jury.

JUDGE ARTURO:
I was particularly, congratulations by the way and I believe you the lights are on. I was particularly interested about the community grant writer's role. I haven't seen that before in local government. Do you work for the city and what is your role in helping bring resources in and how do you coordinate that with the needs in the community?

MARY ANN JOHNSON:
Thank you. I do not work for the city, I work for the community action network which is the organization funded by Trinity Regional Hospital and my role is to facilitate nonprofit organizations in the community in their grant writing function and as part of that role I bring together people within each organization who write grants to share resources. We teach one another, we educate each other, we share tips and because of that we have brought a lot more grants into Fort Dodge than previously were there.

JUDGE GAIL:
Congratulations on a very energizing presentation. I was struck by the fact that you described in your application your challenge was creating the shared vision as a community and I was wondering if someone could connect for me that process of creating the shared vision to the projects that you have identified today that are also equally impressive but I am just wondering a little more about the process.

RANDY KUHLMAN:
Thank you. I am Randy Kuhlman with the Trinity Regional Hospital, I also serve as director of the community action network. One of the things that we have learned thanks to people like Leland Kaiser who came to our community and Tyler Norris who also came and has helped us with this process is that we had to open our community to community dialogue and we have done that on three or four occasions in the last three years and we have learned a lot about that and from that we have developed a lot of shared goals and common visions and some of those goals include that we learned from our community in this open dialogue that they wanted progressive leadership, that they wanted the community to be safe from drugs and alcohol abuse and crime, that they wanted to be a connected community where we were working together with schools and churches and hospitals and nonprofits and our city government are all coming together and working together in partnership rather than working in silos. They also wanted to be a community that was really focused on quality of life. We have more city parks in Fort Dodge than probably any community in America for our size. We have 26,000 people, we have 25 to 27 city parks in our community. We are focused on quality of life and so by pulling our community together through open dialogue and working together and providing that progressive leadership we're making positive things happen. Thank you.

JUDGE TOM:
Although it's not one of your projects you clearly turned your life back on economically and I want to hear a little bit about how you went about doing that and particularly in terms of diversifying your economy away from the farm base.

ELLEN DIEHL:
Back in the late 80s this community had the misfortune of losing their beef packing plants. We were devastated, we lost over 2,000 jobs and we realized one of the biggest problems was that we had not diversified our economy. So our strategy became to find diverse industry to bring to town. We have seen that happen and we've seen great progress because of that and we've rallied behind a plant, our Frisky plant back in the mid 1990s, 1995 it was and we luckily and with a whole lot of hard work from the grassroots effort all the way up to city government, we were able for the first time in the nation in the United States to overturn a federal trade ruling that was forcing this plant to be shut down and it has made significant difference and caused the spark to be lit.

ADRIAN MCMULLEN:
One story that we talked about yesterday, Ellen and I, we got together as a group and we were kind of having a heart to heart community, heart to heart it was great and we were speaking about six years ago she was heading a chamber effort to send letters to the trade commission in order to keep the Frisky's plant in Fort Dodge and through the schools they handed out these postcards and so I made it a point to fill one out and send it to the trade commission and then I promoted it amongst my peers and I made sure each one of my family members filled one out too and it was great that we changed their mind about that.

JUDGE BARBARA:
Two pieces in your application struck me as an interesting combination. One all the years you'd gone without being able to pass a bond issue and then the other piece that talked about your aging population and how, what a large percentage of people were over 75, sometimes those don't work very well together. Will you tell me how you passed your bond finally and will you tell me how you got your senior citizens to support it because they obviously did?

JUDY SHEMKAT:
They did. We had two people from the senior community that chaired a letter writing campaign to let the other seniors know that this was something that they felt that they needed to provide, someone had provided for them and they felt they needed to provide for our future also. One of the other things we did, we did a community survey because we needed to go back and find out why the first initial referendum failed and from that we drew the fact that the people wanted, not only did they want a new facility instead of an addition, they wanted private donations to be a part of it and so we combined together and we did private donations, we did a $2.6 million bond referendum and we involved everywhere from fourth graders all the way through our seniors in working the campaign to pass it and we gave the community ownership of the project and I think that's why it passed.

JUDGE LENEAL:
Outstanding presentation, I wanted to follow up on Tom Flynn's question about economic development. One of the subtleties in your three projects, the youth initiatives, the healthy communities initiatives, the library and then also the third project is you've turned the economic lights back on by creating something that looks like a civic industry. Can you speak a little bit to what employment has been generated as a result of these three projects and what training you've been able to extend to your youth as a result of these three projects?

JOHN HALE:
My name is John Hale, I'm on the city council. I think as Ellen had indicated this whole spark and this whole turnaround came from the process of the community coming together with Friskies. I mean that was the point where we said to ourselves, we're waiting around for somebody else to solve all of our problems, we might as well just turn out the lights and leave. We came together, we realized that whether we're talking about the library, whether we're talking about Gateway, whether we're talking about the riverfront, any project of the community action network, building our future economy, we've got to do it together and we've got to be willing to invest in the community. We're investing in the community and we're building jobs in the future through a variety of efforts to expand existing industry, attract new industry. We're working with these kids at the Gateway Center to build job skills for them that they may not necessarily have. We recognize that if Fort Dodge is going to be prospering in the future, it's going to be because of these kids in the community, we want to educate them and we want to keep them there. We want them to have a community that they are proud to stay in, if they go away, we want them to have a community that they're proud to come back to.

JUDGE BRUCE:
I'd like to go back to the aging issue that I think Barbara raised and you cite in your community challenge that the issue of the aging population and the lack of backfill and that's not, I know just not unique to Fort Dodge, it's a statewide problem in your state and I think your governor's had a number of initiatives to try to deal with that. The question is, you haven't spent a lot of time in your presentation on other programs or other issues to deal with that, if there are any, certainly you've made it very clear that you're investing in the youth that are in your community and providing leadership to them, that's commendable. But to the extent that you perceive this as a community problem larger than just speaking to the youth in your community, how are you addressing it then?

PHIL WERMZLEY:
I'm Phil Wermzley, I'm principal at Feelhaver Middle School where the Gateway Program is. I've been a principal for 30 years and we have made a certified effort to include grandparents in our program as mentors. Sherry, the director of our program, and I attended a workshop, half a day workshop where we had 50 or 60 grandparents teaching them how to work with our students because they want to be a part of our community. I think it's fundamental that once they see they're a part of the community, then they start supporting the library, they start supporting, and they saw that these kids were being successful if they read with them, if they read to them, and they helped them in the library project. So I think it all tied together in a network. Thank you.

JUDGE:
Are you, the new plant that you talked about, is there any problem populating those jobs with the appropriate demographics of workers?

RANDY KUHLMAN:
Yes, we are very concerned about that because we do have a very elderly population in Iowa, and I'm proud to tell you that our governor has selected Fort Dodge as a model pilot community in our state, and we call it Workforce 2010, and we're focused on five committees. Our first committee is how do we become more welcoming to immigrants, because we know that they're a key part of our future labor force, so we're focusing on that. We're also focusing on how we can become more accommodating and welcoming to people with disabilities and bringing them back into the workforce. And then we're also focused on bringing former residents back. How do we retain our youth, and then also our senior citizens and how we can bring them back into our community as well. Thank you.

MODERATOR:
Thank you so much for a wonderful presentation and some good answers to some hard questions. You obviously as a community had a wake-up call, but you went beyond just responding to that call and have moved ahead to make sure that those wake-up calls don't come again to Fort Dodge.

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POST-PRESENTATION WRAP-UP

JAY ALEXANDER:
You are having a good day in Fort Dodge, or as Paul Harvey would say, good day. Good morning. We are back here at the Hyatt Regency in beautiful downtown Atlanta, Georgia, and I'll tell you, what a morning. I have never been more proud to be a Fort Dodger in my life. Jeremy, any thoughts?

JEREMY BORASH:
Yeah, you know what? What an honor to be part of this. And certainly as time has rolled on, Fort Dodge has only become stronger and stronger and stronger, and it was mentioned during the presentation, I can only agree. It started, I think, the ball really started rolling with the Frisky situation and the overturning of the Federal Trade Commission ruling. It certainly hasn't slowed down since, and I think as Bill Grady said earlier, possibly one of the most important broadcasts KVFD and KUEL 92 has brought you today and certainly a big day for Fort Dodge, but a great thing to be part of.

JAY ALEXANDER:
Definitely, definitely. And what a proud day for the entire city. I got to tell you, like I said, that live link was just a thing of beauty, and of course, we're joined by the folks that are from Nampa, Idaho. Yes, the good folks of Nampa, Idaho, they just wrapped up their presentation. They're joining us out here, but they got to see the live link. Over 1,000 people coming all the way down to the library, showing their community spirit and the young people. They were talking about the young people. I think Fort Dodge definitely has some good security going in its future.

JEREMY BORASH:
Yeah, we were blown away when we heard 500 people, 600 people, but then to hear later on in the broadcast, we got them to 1,000. That blew people's minds, and certainly here in Atlanta to know that that support system was there back home. Really, I think, you have no idea how much that meant to the delegates here from Fort Dodge. There were literally people from other cities with tears in their eyes sitting watching this presentation. So, boy, I guess it could only be described as a home run, a grand slam hit today, not only the delegates here in Atlanta, but also all the fine citizens that came out, 1,000 plus, to the public library in support of this effort.

JAY ALEXANDER:
Yes, definitely. And the folks from Fort Dodge, of course, the 52 men, women and children out here, they are anxious to get home and see all your shining faces in person, but of course they're going to feel much better if they have one of those All-America City flags being brought with them. I want to remind you of a couple of things that are still coming up. I'm going to be calling in later this afternoon because they have the booth ceremony. It is what I'll try and remember what I want to call this civic action fair and cultural entertainment showcase. That is coming up. That starts at 5:30 Central time. I'm going to be calling in during the afternoon shows around 3:30 and 4:30 talking with Connie and Pam Bundy, who are going to be setting up our booth. Now, this isn't part of the competition. This is just another way that Fort Dodge can show off its community. Also I want to remind you, starting at 5 o'clock on Saturday, tune in to KVFD KUEL 92 because sometime during that the award ceremony up here starts off at 5 o'clock Central time, Fort Dodge time, that starts then, and I'm going to be calling in any time after that with the news of whether or not Fort Dodge won, but I'll tell you after today it's hard to say whether or not, just looking at that presentation, it's almost like Fort Dodge will win.

JEREMY BORASH:
Yeah, it seems like a lot of people are confident, but whether or not it happens, I guess it's almost irrelevant. The big picture is a big victory for Fort Dodge and the people that participated and the delegates here and the 1,000 plus at the Fort Dodge library. What a great day, what a neat experience and what an honor it was to be back at KUEL 92 and KVFD. Had a great time and certainly I told this a great week ago, you might not be the last time you hear me on this radio station. So, big thanks to Jay as well and everybody involved, what a great day for Fort Dodge, yes.

JAY ALEXANDER:
I definitely want to thank you for coming out. It was an honor working with you, someone who has been, someone who is, when I talk to the folks from the delegation, I say Jeremy Borash is coming, you hear the gasps. Oh, what has he been up to? Oh, he owes me money. Yeah, that's a whole thing. I understand. So, it has been definitely an honor to put a face to the name and I certainly hope I get to see you and work with you again, absolutely, thanks Jay, thank you.

JEREMY BORASH:
Thank you.

JAY ALEXANDER:
From the Hyatt Regency here in beautiful downtown Atlanta, Jeremy Borash, I'm Jay Alexander with KVFD KUEL 92, site of the 2001 All-America City. Go Fort Dodge.

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AWARD CEREMONY EXCERPT (Later broadcast)

ANNOUNCER:
This community cooperates to become healthier and stronger. This community ensures children's well-being through innovative programs. And this community built a new library to create a stronger community. This city is Fort Dodge, Iowa!

[Celebration sounds]

RANDY KUHLMAN (FORT DODGE DELEGATE):
I can't believe it. I just got three things to say very quickly. First of all, when we came here from Fort Dodge, Iowa, and we saw everybody else's presentations, we were humbled to be a part of this great event. You're all winners. Thank you very much. You're all winners. 

Secondly, I want to thank the National Civic League and Allstate for sponsoring this and for recognizing all the wonderful work that not only us on the stage did, but our whole community has been doing to make us a comeback community. Thank you, National Civic League, thank you.

And the last thing I want to say, which I think summarizes what our community of Fort Dodge is all about: we're a community in northwest Iowa with 26,000 citizens. And when we, Friday morning, when we did our presentation, we did a live downlink to our new library and we were hoping 250 people would come on a work day down to our library and cheer us on and be a part of our whole process. And when that thing came on, there were 1,200 people in our library in Fort Dodge, Iowa out of a community of 26,000. 

And I want to tell you one thing that we heard about. We didn't get to see because we weren't there, but this summarizes our community. We had three and four-year-olds. We had high school cheerleaders and we had people, businessmen in suits, and we had retired citizens, 85 years old, all in our library listening to the YMCA song, doing this, "YMCA" together, and that's what we're all about. Our community is united. Thank you so much.

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END OF TRANSCRIPT