Where a Can-do Attitude Engages — and Enchants
Don’t be fooled by the quiet appearance of this small North Dakota town. The townpeople’s “can-do” attitude is as enchanting as the gigantic metal sculptures that tower over the countryside and guide the way to Regent. With population at 211, Regent’s rugged but friendly townspeople have set sail on waves of flowing grasslands with ambitious visions of what the future holds. “The vision was there all along,” says one resident, “it’s just a matter of bringing it out.” And quite an outpouring it has been. Where a few residents once led the charge for change, now about 15 percent of its residents lead. Inspired and jump-started by Horizons, a community leadership development program sponsored by the Northwest Area Foundation, Regent is blazing a new trail with a focus on serving the community as well as building a tourist trade around what is unique and world-famous in and near the community.
Big ideas are nothing new to Regent. The enormous metal sculptures created by native folk artist Gary Greff have long earned the community a reputation for fantastic art and innovative community collaboration. Seven magnificent structures, on a 32-mile stretch of highway from Interstate 94 to Regent, greet a swelling number of travelers eager to view the folk artist’s renditions of flying geese, the tin family and five other creations that make up the Enchanted Highway. Area farmers and townspeople have donated much of the materials, land and financial support for the sculptures. High school shop classes and Boy Scouts regularly lend assistance and have helped build benches and bulletin boards near each of the sculptures. The big attractions draw more than 10,000 visitors annually. And smaller birds also draw visitors — droves of pheasant hunters from across the country arrive in Regent every October and November.
Continuing in the spirit of big visions, an upscale lodging facility, following in the vein of the metal sculptures, is in the conception stage. The facility is to be called the “Castle on the Prairie,” its design influenced by the German and Norwegian heritage of the area. “The Enchanted Highway is unique to the nation and unique to the world,” says one resident. The Enchanted Highway committee hopes that the lodge and other future projects also reflect the community’s unique identity. “The Castle on the Prairie should be a five-star place with a two-star price and an ‘out of this world’ feel,” comments one committee member.
Regent residents realized that to make progress on some projects and ideas, the community needed the involvement of more members inside their community and that they needed to partner with nearby towns. “When you don’t have a lot of people,” says one resident, “everyone is important.” With more people involved on a regular basis, the workload is spread around so no one person gets burned. At the same time, more people means more diversity, which provides a climate where new ideas can flourish.
With this newfound understanding that everyone is important, many retirees now jump on board to volunteer and share their perspectives on what the community can become. As it turns out, when everyone started talking and sharing, the townspeople discovered that they, in fact, shared similar dreams and visions. “The Horizons leadership training program engaged some of our elderly residents who now are involved in numerous projects,” explains one resident, who felt that retirees were among the greatest untapped community assets. “It showed them that they still have a great deal to offer our community. We all have a special talent to offer others, regardless of our age, education or income level.” Adds one of the enthusiastic new elderly leaders who regularly volunteers at the Enchanted Highway Gift Shop, “It’s so much fun to talk with people visiting Regent, arriving from all over the country. Many thought that there was not much in North Dakota and they are surprised how much there is to see.”
Wheels of activity are rolling forward throughout the town, moving retirees to partner with nearby towns like Mott to secure a weekly bus service to a larger town to go shopping. A regular bus service operated by Southwest Transportation and in partnership with the Roosevelt-Custer Regional Council, now plies the roads among Regent, Mott and Dickinson. Plans are underway to establish a small library in the Regent Senior Center, collaborating with the Mott Library to supply a revolving loan of 100 books so the small community doesn’t go without fresh reading material.
Realizing that poverty can be experienced in many forms — financial, emotional or social — Regent’s residents have sought ways to help foster a greater sense of companionship and assistance, from lending a hand to wash a window to providing free computers at City Hall for community members needing access to the Internet. “Our community has learned that poverty is not just about being financially strapped,” shares one resident. To help in the community cleanup efforts, residents are reaching out to the city to share the dump truck, sponsor community-wide spring cleanup days, and help in the disposal of items that individual landowners might not be able to get rid of by themselves.
To engage residents who have children, new activities are in the works that might include a miniature golf course and a youth center for teens and young adults. In the meantime, regular family gatherings provide a way for all the families in town to get together and share in the activities lined up for kids.
Using the metal sculptures as a calling card, plans are even in the works to establish a bicycle recreational trail stretching 15 miles along the Cannonball River to Mott, helping create a regional tourism hub for active travelers. Situated adjacent to a gravel road between Regent and Mott with spurs off the main trail looping to the river and back again, the trail would appeal to some of the same bicyclists who declared Regent as the “2005 Best Host Site” when they had passed through town on the CANDISE North Dakota bike tour. The CANDISE bike tour resulted in an outpouring of local help and pride, featuring a hearty supper, a variety show and other entertainment provided by area residents.
The bike trail, it’s hoped, will garner the support of ranch and farm landowners who might not only grant easement for the trail, but also possibly offer land for a campground next to the trail. “It was a natural progression that Mott would be a part of this new trail development,” says one resident working to get the project going. “It’s a matter of pooling our resources and working toward mutually beneficial goals of economic development.”
For residents in Regent, thinking big takes on a whole new meaning. Young and old, returning residents or lifelong inhabitants, pheasant hunters and artists, Regent’s emerging new leaders are choosing to build an enchanting future, one metal sculpture at a time.