Humeston, IA

Horizons members are providing their time and ideas to the development of a Wayne County Housing Trust Fund.  Sarah Lovett is helping to organize a media campaign to help citizens of the county learn more about the organization and build financial support.  Jeannie Teno is working with the bylaw and housing assistance plan committees to create the legal documents needed to meet Iowa Finance Authority approval.  This a collaborative effort by all of the Horizons communities in Wayne County to address the housing needs of the county. 

Humeston’s Horizons group agreed to provide $500 to the local pool.  The funds are to be used to provide passes for families, support the cost of swiming lessons, and create open pool activites for community residents at no cost.  Additional support for the pool has been an indirect result of the Horizon meetings in the community.   

Several participants at the Humeston Horizon’s Vision Meeting expressed the need for a community daycare, to make daycare more affordable and convenient for working parents.
Rene Gwinn, Leslie Shanks and Dale O’Connell worked researching the possibility of a childcare center in Humeston. They spoke with Sarah Brown, the director of Magical Beginnings Daycare in Corydon, with the Department of Human Services, who are in charge of licensing a new center, and researched online at Child Care Centers and Preschools Licensing Standards and Procedures. They also talked with a current home childcare provider in Humeston about the possibility of moving from home daycare to a center-based daycare. She was not optimistic about the idea but did not rule it out completely. This committee is still actively working to research the possiblilities of a community daycare center.

In Humeston’s Horizons Study Circles, the topic seemed often to return to the same theme–How can we help our youth escape the cycle of poverty?

A few of the many suggestions were–

• Help them develop life skills
• Show them we care
• Let them see their own self-worth 
• Be a consistent role model
• Listen when they talk

 During discussions that followed the Study Circles program, several members joined to form a mentoring team. Horizons mentoring team members participated in a day-long training session, and are working to develop mentoring relationships with students in the school district.

“Any child can benefit from having another caring adult in their life,” said one mentor. “I wish this had been available when my children were in school.”

Janice Downen had a dream. She wanted to help others, who in turn would be encouraged to do whatever they could pass along to the next person.

She purchased a former convenience store on Highway 65 in Humeston, where she opened His General Store. The store accepts donations of used clothing and household items, which Downen sells or gives away to anyone in need. Prices are very affordable, but sometimes even a little is more than a person can afford to pay.

If someone has a service to volunteer, such as shoveling snow, Downen makes a note and refers them to someone who is unable to shovel their own snow.

Many of the store’s customers also volunteer to sort clothing and wait on customers. Although Downen was working on His General Store before Horizons came to town, several volunteers in the store are also Horizons participants. Everyone at His General Store understands the need to help those who have to stretch every dollar.

His General Store has met many needs, whether it be for a young mother who needs clothing for her children, a family looking for affordable Christmas toys, or a single mother without a refrigerator.

At His General Store, the coffee pot is always on and the volunteers are always friendly. 

Nearly every household in Humeston and the nearby towns of Garden Grove, Derby and LeRoy, along with the accompanying rural area, now have a directory listing businesses, services and organizations in the Mormon Trail School District, thanks to a group of Humeston Horizons participants.

This group of volunteers, working on the premise that dollars spent locally will improve the economic status of local citizens, boost local businesses and entreprenuers and possibly retain or create more local jobs, created, printed, assembled and distributed the directories. Those on the directory committee represented various income levels, and they worked to include not only local businesses but also individuals who work from their homes or have a skill or service to offer.

Businesses include everything from agri-services and products to walnut buying, welding and woodworking, and much more. Need bookkeeping, a bucket truck, remodeling, dance lessons, homebaked pies, flower bulbs and perennials, farm fresh eggs or a photographer? You will find it and more in the Mormon Trail Community Directory.

The directory also includes contact information for volunteer services, so that someone who needs a ride to a doctor appointment, emergency family care or other assistance can be matched with a volunteer who wants to help.

Local churches and contact information for organizations such as 4-H Clubs and TOPS are also listed.

Committee members were surprised to discover some local youth who offer a car cleaning service. A woman who listed seamstress services had her first directory-related order for a brides-maid dress before the directory was even printed!

 With the Mormon Trail Community Directory in hand (so named because it encompasses the entire school district), residents and visitors have the contact information for products and services they can find locally, saving the travel time and expense of going elsewhere.

The directory information is saved in a format that can be quickly updated. Since the first 500 were quickly distributed and requests still come in, an updated second printing is soon to be in the works.

Humeston has a Cinder Path suitable for walking and bike riding.  During the Vision meeting a group was formed to investigate ways to make improvements in this free public recreation area.  The group would like to find ways to expand it’s current use.  In 2007 the community renovated a playground area in the public park.  

A working group in Humeston is looking at ways to help community residents take care of the limbs and other damage that resulted from the December ice storm.  The group has also identified several locations through out the town where clean up is needed.  The Senior Citizen’s Housing units, city park and other public areas are in need of additional beautification.

Horizons conversations have led to more volunteer efforts in the Humeston Community.  Humeston is currently building a new public library and volunteers have been giving of their time to help with the construction and assisting the staff at the old library as they make plans to move into their new facility.   ” His Place” is a local used clothing and household items store located in the community.  Anyone can receive items for free or at a nominal fee.  The group of volunteers who help with this effort has grown. 

Jill Teuth and Amy Horton, Horizons participants, carried out an Angel Tree project for the community at Christmas time.  The needs of low income children were placed on a community tree so that area residents could fill the requests.  Donations were made and delivered by many in the community.