Investing in Your Community’s Future through Attending Conference Backed by Partnerships
June 14, 2024 | Logan Breer
Sending community representatives to Missouri’s Premier Downtown Revitalization Conference can be a big investment no matter the size of an organization’s budget when considering the hotel, travel, and conference registration costs, especially when sending multiple people. While the cost of this investment may look big upfront, there is a huge return on investment for communities of all sizes through the ideas that volunteers and staff bring back from conversations inside and outside of the session rooms. Additionally, connections between local Main Street stakeholders are essential to more fruitful efforts. For Missouri’s Premier Downtown Revitalization Conference hosted in Kansas City in 2024, communities have many potential opportunities available to them to help reduce the price of attending the conference.
Receiving assistance for attending Missouri’s Premier Downtown Revitalization Conference can come from inside your community. There are partners in your community you can tap into for funding to cover conference registration costs that are sometimes in surprising places. Organizations and companies that have supported local Main Streets in the past include local service clubs such as Rotary Clubs, Lions Clubs, and Kiwanis Clubs; local banks; utility companies; and your Chamber of Commerce. Each of these entities has its reasons for providing funds to other organizations, but most of the time it comes down to supporting leadership development and advancing economic development. Reaching out to make that initial connection is sometimes all it takes, though it is the simplest but often most intimidating step. We hope the words of MMSC’s State Director Gayla Roten, who was the local director of the Branson Main Street program before becoming the State Director of MMSC, always says, “We don’t have because we don’t ask” can inspire you. Take these words of encouragement and start a conversation by setting aside the fear of potential rejections.
Another MMSC staff member who has experience in securing funding during their time as a local director is Keith Winge, currently MMSC’s State Community Development Director. When Keith was on staff as the Executive Director of Downtown Excelsior Partnership (DEP) roughly a decade ago, he partnered with the Rotary Club of Excelsior Springs to help send himself to the state conference. Keith Winge recalled,
“MMSC shared a list of places where Main Street programs could potentially find money and the Rotary was on the list which would have never crossed my mind in the first place. I reached out to a Rotarian with information about how attending the Conference would help me develop as a Main Street professional and grow DEP’s positive impact on our community and they were in.”
Missouri Main Street Connection (MMSC) provides annual scholarships to Missouri’s Premier Downtown Revitalization Conference that enable communities to invest in their community stakeholders by sending them to the conference for less money. This is made possible through our work with outstanding partners who share our mission to cultivate thriving communities in Missouri by offering scholarships to select communities. These scholarships are extended to Missouri communities that have an agreement with MMSC.
There are many options open to your local Main Street program to discover funding that can assist in helping community members attend conference, you just have to know where to look and not be afraid to ask. Missouri Main Street Connection has created a sample letter and flyer that you can use to start these conversations with potential partners in your community.
One last tip we have for you. Planning in advance lets you look for discounts. Luckily our Early Bird conference rates don’t expire until July 1st so you have time to take advantage of our discount!
Download these resources to assist in securing funding for your organization to attend Missouri's Premier Downtown Revitalization Conference.
