Document text
CLOUDY Temp: 45 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Wednesday, February 19, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend January 23, 2003 With no place for teens to go in Butte Falls, high school students Derek Burns, left, Chris Copeland, Asia Million, James Grieve, Josh Wetzel, Dusty Hayes and Brandon Zartman, right, hope that a $300,000 grant will help buy the building in the background Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli A place for the kids? Butte Falls hopes to claim $300,000 grant from Ford Foundation By JILL BRISKEY Mail Tribune BUTTE FALLS — High school senior Josh Wetzel says it comes down to a choice between the store, the bar or the tavern. "That’s all there is. That’s Butte Falls," said the 18-year-old student body president at the high school. "There’s nothing here for students." "There’s a lot of kids in Butte Falls that have nothing to do," said junior Stephanie Hewitt. "They wander the streets, and usually that’s when they get in trouble." A group of city and school leaders hope to use a $300,000 grant from the Ford Family Foundation to build a teen center as well as create programs that would bolster the economy and promote community spirit. Butte Falls — population 439 — is one of 66 Oregon cities to apply for funds from the foundation’s Rural Community School Program. The town is a semifinalist for the grant. "The goal here is to get kids out into the community and the community into the schools," Ford Family Foundation President Norm Smith said of the program. If Butte Falls gets the grant, plans call for a preschool, adult literacy classes, a community garden and theater and allowing residents to use the high school shop and computer lab. The money would help build a nonprofit water bottling plant. Once dependent on the timber industry, nearly 65 percent of Butte Falls residents live at or below poverty level. The median household income is $30,132, according to census figures. "There aren’t those jobs in the woods that keep families going," said Alan Buchta of the Bureau of Land Management, a member of the team that drafted the proposed improvements. "This has truly become a commuting community." Seventeen applicants will be awarded funding in April. Butte Falls is one of 25 semifinalists. Smith said winners will be named in February. The funding would be allotted over three years. District Superintendent and Principal Steve Pine said the team is hopeful that the water-bottling plant will be running when the grant expires to keep money coming in for projects. Reach reporter Jill Briskey at 776-4485, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy webmaster feedback A D V E R T I S E R S