Alta, IA

Alta Horizons has recently become aware of the need for clothing assistance for families in need in Alta.

Dialogue has begun this month (June, 2008) for the use of an existing building on Main Street which would be an ideal location for the clothing depot.

The concept of the clothing depot is to receive new or used clothing to be distributed “free” or at a greatly reduced price on a weekly basis. The clothing depot would also include basic household items and necessities for purchase. This depot would be staffed by volunteers on a regular weekly schedule, thereby being self-funded with little overhead expense.

Stay tuned as Alta Horizons pursues this exciting new “business” adventure to address needs within our community!

The May meeting of the Alta Horizons Steering Committee was an insightful and exciting meeting as committee members listened to a United Community Health Center speaker shared information about the local (Storm Lake) access to health services for the insured and uninsured.

Several ideas to make affordable health care accessible to Alta residents who need it were discussed in dialogue with the representative from UCHC: (1) making a nurse available in an Alta facility starting with 1 morning a month; (2) utilizing a Spanish-speaking advocate from the west side trailer home park in Alta for those within in the Hispanic community who need to be made aware of what is available; (3) in June, sports physicals and kindergarten physicals are going to be made available at a set fee of $30 without immunizations. Bus transportation to UCHC is being considered. Alta is considering “scholarships for those who cannot afford the $30; (4) the committee received information about other services including dental care and 340B discount drug prescription assistance.

Horizons will promote the UCHC health services in the Alta community and will continue to dialogue with the UCHC to provide this option of medical care for the Alta Community.

UCHC information brochures were distributed to committee members. Alta Horizons is going to be distributing these brochures from the new CRC this fall as well as making them available through the local food pantry in Alta - the Lord’s Cupboard. These brochures are available in Spanish and English.

Alta Horizons will also be promoting locally the new Iowa Tobacco Cessation program, which has no income pre-qualications - a 12-week program which includes prescription medicines and counseling.

Alta Horizons will continue to look for ways to encourage the UCHC to bring the health services TO the community of Alta or make it easier for people in Alta to utilize the services.

Recruitment is now under way for the resources for the CRC, such as furniture, equipment and supplies.  Some existing  items in the facility being leased on Main Street for the CRC are being made available to Alta Horizons by the building leasor. Presently a copier/printer/fax and computer is being pursued as well as some additional furniture to help make the CRC a nice “meeting place” for those who seek assistance and resources in the community of Alta.

The Alta Horizons Community Resource Center (CRC) is soon to become a reality!  The CRC will serve as a “one-stop shop” that will assist the residents of Alta, whether newcomers or current residents in the community. The CRC is designed to refer Alta residents to appropriate resources to meet their needs. And it is also designed to serve as a community outreach mechanism, supporting efforts by local businesses, school and the city to improve the quality of life in Alta.

In May 2008, a good-faith lease arrangement was made to secure the availability of an office space in a building that fronts Main Street in Alta. This location is a high visibility place and is easily accessible to those who wish to utilize the CRC. The first payments have been made toward the affordable lease - and now the excitement is building and preparation for opening has begun.
Work is now under way to ready the facility for a projected fall opening. Details are being worked out for volunteer staffing, building preparation, and other like items to celebrate a grand opening after Labor Day in September 2008.

Horizon in Alta is working to address the need for poverty reduction. A plan of action has been taken to better reach people who are in the  lower income bracket. The local food pantry, The Lord’s Cupboard, on Main Street in Alta, has agreed to make available the “new resident” information cards to clients who visit the pantry on a weekly basis for food needs.  Some of the clientle who seek food assistance are from the Hispanic community in Alta and speak Spanish only and are accompanied by someone in the family who speaks English. Volunteers who work  at the food pantry each Friday will assist “new residents” in getting the cards completed. The next edition of the cards supplied to the Lord’s Cupboard food pantry will also include a comment line asking if someone could be present in the home who speaks Spanish when an ABC volunteer contacts them. It’s another demonstration of Horizons at work in Alta.

Recent editions of the Storm Lake Times and Storm Lake Pilot-Tribune (Alta section) have featured the new ABC (Alta Building Connections) program that is working well under the Horizons Banner. The local media traveled to Alta met with the Horizons work group responsible for the ABC program and took pictures of the presentation of the “welcome resource packets” being given to new residents of Alta. This program has prompted media inquiry and received some good initial coverage introducing the surrounding community to what Alta continues to do to respond to the needs of people in Alta.  Thanks to the diligent efforts of the steering committee members who are doing a fabulous job of following up on a weekly basis with this program.

The Horizon steering committee members that form the work group for Alta Building Connections (ABC) are excited about their first contacts and welcome opportunities in the Alta community.  Since March, 2008,  three visits have been made to homes (at the requests of the new residents in Alta) to stop by and get acquainted and present these new residents of Alta with the packet that provides information about the resources available within the Alta community - things like utilities, cable, health, faith communities, schools, daycare, Chamber of Commerce businesses, county assistance agencies, etc. It’s good to know that ABC is at work in Alta - thanks to Horizons!

Alta Building Connections (ABC), a program formed out of Horizons, is now at work! ABC seeks to welcome new residents into the town of Alta, and also provide them with a packet of information  that introduces them to the resources available in the community.  ABC has received tremendous support from the local businesses (through the Chamber of Commerce) as the community has worked at linking resources and networking information to provide an opportunity for people new to the community to “find their way around.” This is one more evidence that Alta is working to make a difference!

In the February meeting of the steering committee, an exciting proposal was received for  a new community resource center in Alta. This proposal comes as a result of the visioning and action teams that have taken place in Alta since 2006 with the Horizons program. A building in downtown Alta has been made available for use with adequate office space to provide for the needs of the resource center.

The proposal presently before the committee is to have full techonology capabilities with office machines and volunteer staffing at least one day per week at the onset.

The comprehensive benefit of the Community Resource Center is to give visibility to Alta Horizons in the community, provide information and resources for needs within the Alta community. Each work group on the steering committee can be based in and/or work from this center. The Alta Chamber of Commerce has also been approached about jointly using the facility with Alta Horizons.

It is the feeling of the members of the committee that having a highly visible location in downtown Alta will prove beneficial to meet with business  leaders or prospective builders as Alta continues to make progress. It will also provide an ongoing reminder in the community that Alta is taking seriously the plan to address the needs within the community and provide a valuable resource to see that the needs are met.

It is anticipated that having this resource center will also make it possible for us to obtain future grants and funding opportunities that will help address the needs and heighten awareness of community concerns relating to poverty and other issues.

No final decision has been reached on this proposal, but good progress is being made as the excitement continues to grow in Alta for the “grand opening” of the new Community Resource Center.

Alta city officials are lending not only verbal approval but active participation in the ongoing Alta Horizons program, sending a strong message that the city wants to see the mission of Horizons carried on within the community. Two current city council members serve as active members of the Alta Horizons Steering Committee. Along with this involvement, the Alta city manager/clerk has provided ongoing, regular and invaluable information and support to Alta Horizons by providing information and attending the meetings when needed as well as helping get questions answered that have arisen by the committee members. In recent weeks, the city has agreed to serve as the fiscal agent for funds that Alta Horizons will use to continue to address poverty issues within the community, with the city clerk serving as the primary contact person for fiscal needs.

It’s another sign that the city of Alta continues to give its fantastic support to what is being worked on through Horizons within the community.