A PLACE FOR THE YOUTH

    I entered the air-conditioned Quonset hut used by the Wesleyan Youth Center, which was run by Ronda Rhoads and her husband Nick. Rhoads is a long-time resident and AmeriCorps worker. The center has comfortable old chairs and couches, some aging computers and televisions with video games, a new MIRA workstation that is connected to the Internet through the library, and some games like foosball and pool. Anti-drug pamphlets are featured prominently near the entrance "Meth is my neighbor." Rhoads tells me that alcohol is the main substance abused by young and old. However, the county statistics show a rather low rate of crime in all categories. Rhoads said that people here are very independent and don't want to be told what to do, but as head of the MIRA team she saw what teamwork could achieve. Many thought the plans for a tech center were unrealistic but have since been converted by the success of the team. When there was disagreement about the use of the MIRA money, one of the team members, Vicki Jorgenson, used her skills as a U.S. Forestry Service mediator, to help work out the disagreements. Rhoads said her epiphany was to relate their group difficulties to the stages of group development that she had learned about in the training. Seeing it as a learning experience helped her to be more dispassionate about the friction. As we spoke the youth kept entertained-or busy-without fighting or demanding constant attention from Rhoads or her husband.

On that hot day there were about fifteen kids inside, and even if many were playing video games it seemed to be a much better place than having nothing to do on the street. Inside the computer room boys consulted game websites for hints on solving video game obstacles and spoke about life in the town. One boy's father was helping to tear down the closed plant. Others were looking for work, and none of them seemed particularly attached to the place in the same way as the adults were. Rhoads and her husband have been involved in civic projects since their arrival twenty-five years before. They helped organize a clean-up day where Nick Rhoads took away four dump truck loads of old cars and junk. In the 1990s Ronda Rhoads served on a committee to make Weippe a GEM community, a designation awarded to Idaho towns that meet certain state requirements.

At present Rhoads is involved in an e-business group that is working with Mary Emery. It includes others in town who are selling products or services over the Internet. "We want the whole enchilada, QuickBooks pro class, and to learn about marketing and try to support each other." They are also applying for a grant for further support for the youth center. After my visit I saw more clearly than any other town, how a small group of dedicated individuals could grow into a team and energize others in town to participate. While it is not enough to offset a massive financial and social shock of a plant closing, the training and MIRA project experiences could be seen as a source of energy and creativity to counteract the depression felt by those whose future is uncertain.