From the desk of The Harvest Foundation President Kate Keller
In January, the president of the Richmond Federal Reserve Bank, Tom Barkin, visited Martinsville and Henry County. Mr. Barkin and his team make it a point to visit a locality in his five-state region every month to learn how the economy is affecting local communities. The Harvest Foundation was lucky enough to host Mr. Barkin both times he ventured through our part of the Commonwealth.
The Harvest Foundation began partnering with the Richmond Fed a few years back on their Rural Investment Collaborative. Mr. Barkin has a particular interest in rural communities and is using the Fed’s powerful research engine and economic knowledge to help rural communities understand and tackle issues unique to them. This initiative hosts an annual Rural Investment conference, which will be held this September in Asheville, NC.
The Collaborative brings together a mix of local, state, and national advocates for rural communities to help frame and address current and persistent challenges. One specific area of focus is local capacity.
Just by their nature, rural communities do not typically have the human capacity to meet all the needs of the community. It’s very common to hear that everyone wears multiple hats. The plus to this is that things can move faster, but this reality also causes burnout and gaps in the system when a person retires or moves.
The Collaborative is guiding an initiative called the Community Investment Training that is building capacity in rural communities to take a revitalization project from concept to completion. This program teaches participants all the stages and funding opportunities to renovate or build a building. The West Piedmont Planning District Commission (WPPDC) is a current participant working on a housing project in Martinsville. You can hear me talk more about this and Mr. Barkin’s visit on the Richmond Fed’s March Podcast.
Visits like this reinforce the importance of collaboration in strengthening rural communities. By connecting local leaders with the research, resources, and networks of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, initiatives like the Rural Investment Collaborative are helping communities across the region build the capacity needed to move good ideas into real projects.
The Harvest Foundation is grateful for the opportunity to showcase the work happening in Martinsville and Henry County and looks forward to continuing to partner with the Fed to ensure our community has the tools and support we need to thrive.