MOST SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS FOR NASHVILLE: The most significant accomplishment in our community was utilizing volunteers to donate a great deal of their time to help begin implementing some of our goals. We continued with our benchmarks without waiting for funding. We were successful in utilizing the private sector in our benchmark for Continuing Strong Opposition to Projects that Can Negatively Impact the Environment to seek funds. The town helped to create a club for senior citizens that would keep them informed on issues that pertain to them as well as providing a network of volunteers that helped with minor home repairs and transportation to doctors, pharmacies, grocery stores, etc. This was in line with our Services for Elderly and Disabled benchmark. Attendance at the meetings has grown each month. Two websites were created to help with tourism and funding. One site was created to help with our benchmark of Establishing Internet Marketing & Entrepreneurialism Projects. Both have shown positive results. The town was successful in obtaining a small grant that will help with future plans for hiring a grant writer to better assist us in implementing benchmarks.

COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION - NASHVILLE: The Town of Nashville held six public meetings during 1999 concerning the Empowerment Initiative. 1/19/99, 5/18/99, and 7/17/99 were informational meetings. 4/7/99 and 5/4/99 were informational and workshop meetings for Nashville and Mole Lake residents to prioritize benchmarks. 12/1/99 was a meeting with governmental agencies to help seek funds for our fire and rescue protection benchmark. Additionally, Town Chairman, Chuck Sleeter, appeared at four meetings held by the local senior citizen club and provided information and updates.

The public participation has remained about the same since our strategy planning sessions, averaging approximately 23 participants at each meeting. The town advertised two of the meetings in the local media and has posted meeting notices and agendas in three places within the township to encourage attendance. In mid December the town mailed out 1,100 surveys to help identify the needs of low income and elderly residents as well as the number of residents that fell within those two categories. The survey questions were aimed at what specific type of assistance was needed. Surveys were mailed with the tax bills. Nashville provided a copy of the survey to the Mole Lake Tribal Council to circulate within their community to try and reach non-taxpayer residents.

PARTNERSHIPS AND ALLIANCES - NASHVILLE: NASHVILLE: The Town wrote a Wisconsin Road Improvement grant for 50% funding of the Sand Lake Road portion of the Upgrade Roads for the Town of Nashville benchmark. Notification of the grant awards will be later in the year 2000. The town concentrated considerable effort in the Continue Strong Opposition to Projects that can Negatively Impact the Environment benchmark. The metallic sulfide mining proposal in our township threatens to destroy our environment and existing economics.

In 1998 the Nashville Town Board voided out a Local Agreement that a former board had signed with Exxon and Rio Algorn, LTD. against the wishes of the community'. The mining company sued the town as a result. The Town Chairman and Town Clerk attended a annual conference of the 'Wisconsin Stewardship Network' meeting in January 1999 to seek the financial assistance and support of statewide environmental groups. A group named 'Earth Wins' donated a web site "www.nashvillewiundersiege.com" to the town to help seek funds for a Legal Defense Fund established by the town. Partnerships with the private sector continued with two other groups, 'Protect our Wolf River' and 'Northwoods Alliance' holding fund raiser events for the town. Overall, $17,623.66 was raised through these efforts and individual donations.

In December, three town residents set up a trust fund with the town's Legal Defense Fund as the beneficiary. Funds will be raised through profits earned from customers who sign up under the trust's name for 'Excel Communication's' Long Distance service. The town negotiated a contract with attorneys Garvey & Stoddard, S.C., representing the town on mining issues, for legal fees that would limit monthly maximums on billing. The remainder would be donated (pro bono) by the legal firm. The firm donated a total of $13,500.00 during 1999. The town was also able to recoup $11,434.50 from the town's insurance carrier. The town spent a total of $40,315.83 on mining related matters to protect the township and the environment.

The town appointed a new town resident, Kathie Ulik, as a liaison between Forest County and the town to aid elderly and low-income residents with assistance that is currently available but not easily accessible or known to them. Ms. Ulik volunteered her 25 years experience of working with low income and elderly programs after she retired from the Milwaukee area. It was the Empowerment Initiative that inspired Ms Ulik to volunteer and she will be assisting in the Services For Elderly, Disabled and Low Income benchmark.

The Town Chairman helped to organize and create the first senior citizen club in the township. He serves on the Board of Directors for the club and on their steering committee. The club has organized volunteers from the area to help with transportation and minor home repairs. The clubs monthly meetings also have guest speakers whose topics include giving information about local services and help to seniors.

In 1999 the Town Chairman donated a tourist website "www.nashvillewis.com" to the town, for one year. This site is currently being used by area businesses and also offered at no cost to local non-profit organizations and churches. The site is used to promote tourism by marketing the local businesses and establishments. The site also promotes area events. The town worked together with the local business association and they have offered to continue the cost of the site after the donation expires. This is following in line with our Establish Internet Marketing & Entrepreneurialism Project benchmark.

Mole Lake and Nashville worked together to secure a Wisconsin Department of Transportation grant that provided 90% funding for a small bike path project that was completed in August adjacent to the reservation. The total cost of the project was $17,000.00. The grant amount was $15,300.00; this was the beginning of our Develop Recreational Trails benchmark. The town employed local people to complete the project. The Pickerel/Crane Lake Protection & Rehabilitation District worked with the town to help with the benchmark, Increase Street Lighting. Two more streetlights were installed in the district, which lies within the town. Residents for safety reasons requested the lights. The town was successful in getting the power company to install them at no cost and 50% of the monthly cost of maintenance is being paid by the Lake District.

The Town Chairman, Chuck Sleeter was named Hometown Leader by the National Center for Small Communities for his work in improved local government management, environmental preservation, and economic development. The Town Clerk wrote the Hometown Leader grant, sponsored by the WalMart Foundation and die town was awarded $5,000.00 in Mr. Sleeter's honor. On December lst, Nashville and Mole Lake met with USDA Rural Development, Congressman Mark Green's office, Indian Health Services, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and Housing and Urban Development to work on our benchmark for Fire and Rescue Services. The town and Mole Lake are currently seeking funding opportunities and were provided information and sources for grant opportunities.

PROBLEMS AND OBSTACLES - NASHVILLE: The largest problem the Town of Nashville has experienced that was not anticipated was the lack of available funds to implement the benchmarks. The town does not have a planner, grant writer, administrator, or even a computer. Our county does not have a UW Extension Agent. Because Nashville is in a poverty area we do not have the funds to hire these types of individuals to assist us. Nashville has depended entirely on the volunteer efforts of the Town Chairman, Town Clerk, Town Treasurer and area citizens to achieve what we have so far.

Other responsibilities also take up much of the time of the clerk, treasurer and chairman and while they have the initiative and the willingness to help they do not have the time, the knowledge or experience needed to implement the benchmarks. Experience and knowledge is a very key component to be missing and we feel without funding assistance Nashville will not be able to do much more than it has. Also, every expense that has had to be incurred so far such as, telephone, office expenses, travel, etc. has had to be absorbed by the individuals and the town. The Town Chairman donated a portion of his salary to help cover expenses. We were awarded designation in January of 1999 and a year has gone by without any funding available.

SOLUTIONS - NASHVILLE: Solutions created to solve this problem was seeking help from the private sector and also seeking an economic development grant to help with hiring a grant writer. In November Nashville residents also voted to have an economic development budget for the year 2000. They voted to add $13,000.00 of taxpayer money to the National Center for Small Communities $5,000.00 grant award for a total of $18,000.00. This money will be used to help with grant writing, technical assistance and cover the expenses of the volunteers. We would like to see USDA recognize that not all communities have the knowledge and experience that it takes to implement the benchmarks, nor do they have the resources available to them. USDA needs to find a way to better assist these communities in fulfilling the obstacles that prevent funding from becoming available sooner.

BEST PRACTICES - NASHVILLE: Because we have basically just begun in this process and have not received funding, the best approach we found was to involve the public, keep the residents informed, and utilize the abilities of town residents and the town board. We sought the advise of the public and have had some success in keeping them enthused about the Empowerment Initiative. Working together was a key practice. Our community has really come together this year in the sense of trying to help one another.

PLANS/PROSPECTS FOR THE FUTURE FOR NASHVILLE: The town will be seeking assistance with implementing our benchmarks through a grant writer and also by seeking additional help from residents. We currently have many volunteers but hope to find retired individuals within our elderly community who can provide some knowledge and experience in specific benchmark areas. The town will be setting up committees to work on individual benchmarks. The town will also be concentrating more on providing services for the elderly, disabled and low income families with the aid of our survey results. Improving our Fire and Rescue is also a priority for this year and the town will be continuing to oppose projects that negatively impact our environment.