Chatting with Cathy Archives

April 17th, 2008

We have an untapped resource in western Kansas - WIND! Have you thought about wind energy to operate your farm, the school or your business?

I (and another 150+ people) attended a Wind Energy Summit in Colby on Monday. I had to learn a lot about dairy operations when working on recruiting a dairy to Bird City, now I am on to learning about wind energy. I have a lot to learn, and if any of you would like to learn with me, please let me know!

Did you know that Kansas is the 3rd best wind resource state in the United States but we only produced 3% of our electricity from wind in 2007? Quoting Kansas Lieutenant Governor, Mark Parkinson, "Wind power has the opportunity to be a great economic force for our state".

When looking at the Kansas Wind Resource Map, western Kansas has the greatest wind for wind energy production. So, what do we need to do? Push our legislators to create state policies for community wind. Kansas is currently behind in policies for wind. There are no loan programs, no grants, no state sales tax exemptions, no tax credits, no rebate programs, and no net metering. Policies are needed to assist our counties and county commissioners.

In the meantime, while our legislators are working in Topeka, we can begin to lay some groundwork here. Give me a call (785-734-2556), or stop by the office at 107 West Bressler, if you are interested in helping me research wind energy opportunities for our area.

~Cathy

April 3rd, 2008

Did you know?

Did you know that the largest mass of wealth in history will transfer from one generation to another in the next 50 years? Community Foundations such as the Bird City Century II Development Foundation are ready to be a conduit for keeping a portion of this wealth in our community. Why should we worry about keeping a portion of the wealth here?

As older generations pass away, their savings, investments and spending power pass on to their children, who might not live in our community. This transfer of wealth creates an immediate loss for our banks and businesses. This trickle-down effect of money leaving the area also means that we lose people and community organizations that add to our small town living.

The Bird City Century II Development Foundation can help reverse this trend. Anyone connected to the community can set up a fund during their lifetime or direct a gift after their death to leave a permanent gift to their hometown.

I will be attending a conference this month to review the data for the Transfer of Wealth in Kansas and I look forward to sharing this information with you!

~Cathy

March 27th, 2008

In preparing for an upcoming committee meeting, it came to me that the information I was gathering would be great information in my column. I’ll title this one and the next few weeks’ column, “Did you know?”.

Did you know that there are over 500 community foundations in the United States, and that the Bird City Century II Development Foundation is one of those?

Did you know that the Bird City Century II Development Foundation was founded in 1985 by Edgar Robertson, Robert Brubaker, Floyd Jensen, Robert L. Jones, and Floyd Wright? What foresight and positive contributions to the community these gentlemen have made!

Did you know that you too can give to the Foundation to one of their existing funds? Or better yet, start your own?

Did you know that you receive tax benefits when donating to the Bird City Century II Development Foundation?

Did you know that the Foundation prints an annual report each year, and you have access to this report? You can find it at www.birdcity.com or stop by the office to pick up a color copy! The annual report gives you access to information such as grants made, board of directors & staff, statement of financial position and scholarship recipients.

I continue to educate myself on community foundations and charities by reading publications through the Council on Foundations, by reading the Chronicle of Philanthropy, and by becoming involved as a board member with organizations such as the Kansas Associations of Community Foundations. My hope is to pass on as much information to you as possible so we can all grow together with the changing times, for the betterment of the Bird City community, and the Bird City Century II Development Foundation.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to stop by and visit!

~Cathy
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