Building Vibrant Futures for Rosebud and Treasure Counties

Published: 2020
By Jennifer Anderson

Montana’s rural communities are facing uncertain futures, especially in Rosebud County. Locally, MSU Extension has engaged in a variety of programming efforts designed to assist in increasing community capacity. Leadership 29, a local, community-based leadership program, launched in 2019-2020 to great reviews. Through this program participants are gaining leadership skills while also developing a greater understanding of the larger county. “It’s amazing to see what this community has worked so hard to achieve, things we’ve (different community) just taken for granted,” noted one participant after touring a rural community in the county. The local leadership program has provided participants the opportunity to develop a new perspective on their own community as well as the other communities in the county. It’s also building relationships and creating stronger ties between communities. Forsyth, through the work of the local community foundation and MSU Extension, joined the ReImagining Rural statewide initiative, where the focus is on supporting small-town leaders in building vibrant futures. From this effort, the community earned a $2,000 grant from Montana Community Foundation to implement a variety of capacity building activities, starting with a newcomer’s event, which will begin in 2021. Lastly, the Community Foundation of Northern Rosebud County (CFNRC), which is assisted by MSU Extension, recently announced the addition of a $25,000 anonymous donation aimed at supporting the local swimming pool. The Foundation, which rose from an Extension program around 2008, has grown a permanent endowment to over $500,000 and has reinvested over $125,000 back into the local communities through project-supporting grants.