Hazelton, ND

The Horizons program has forced us to take steps we probably would not have taken. We had to come up with a strategy to improve our community. Will it work? Yes! Will it work as we had first anticipated? Probably not, but we are open to a change in strategy. If we were not, we would be doomed to failure.
Our slogan is this: Our Past is, of course, behind us. Our Present demonstrates that we have a Vision for our Future.
After going through the original Horizons program and then the LeadershipPlenty program, the following needs for Hazelton were assessed: We needed to work on
economic development, population growth, more housing, create a housing restoration project, create jobs, promote recreational economic development, concentrate on youth and the city park, and distribute welcome baskets to new members in the community on a timely basis.
Hazelton Development Corporation members were involved in the Horizons program. Horizons emphasized to them that they must follow up on what they already knew - there was much to be done.
One of the first steps towards economic development is to find clients occupy the new Prairie Mall. Tammy’s Beauty Salon and a brand new business, Shear Brilliance Salon and Day Spa, occupy one area of the mall. The following spaces are still available: grocery store-4,000 sq. ft.; manufacturing or retail-6600 sq. ft.; coffee shop-1,047 sq. ft. Yearly rent is $4.50 sq. ft. Call 782-4368 for details.
As fuel prices skyrocket, the need for a local grocery store becomes greater. HDC is contacting possible tenants for the grocery and for the remainder of the mall and is hopeful of finding an occupant soon.
The HDC, businesses, and the newspaper are encouraging residents to patronize local businesses while businesses are encouraged to advertise in their local paper so all may know what they have to offer.
We are encouraging new businesses to locate in Hazelton by advertising through the media and on billboards.
Recruiting new families to the city and area, as well as students to our school is done by promoting our school’s many assets and our small town family environment. The school board, city commission, HDC, parents, students, and other community members are all involved. To date, HMB has been fortunate to be able to maintain enrollment while many neighboring schools find their enrollment decreasing.
We are in the process of conducting a housing survey. The need for new housing is great and we hope to find a developer to build more homes. There is a definite need. Housing restoration is also in progress. An older home, which was moved into Hazelton, is being restored, and will be available soon, already has an inviting look about it. It seems to be saying ‘come, sit for a spell on my front porch and watch the world go by.’
Our younger families have expressed an interest in rebuilding the tennis court in the park and looking into the possibility of Frisbee Golf. Funds are being raised to start that process.
We delivered Welcome Baskets to 12 new families this past year. Two more baskets will be delivered soon.
It is frustrating when the wheels move so slowly but what a joy it is to see them moving forward instead of backward.
WE HAVE A VISION! WE WILL SURVIVE!

“To be or not to be; that was the question.”
The Hazelton ‘Young At Hearters,’ (Hey, that’s Senior Citizens to you young whipper-snappers) came to a crossroads. Which path to take? Dissolve the organization - or make some drastic changes?
The answer? You guessed right! You have to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative.
And that’s what they did. Elections were supposed to be held in December. No one wanted the ‘job’ and besides, there were never enough present to hold an election. But when push comes to shove, someone steps up. It was time for a change. Time for action. A letter went out stating that, like Emeril, the Hazelton Seniors Organization had decided to ‘Kick it up a Notch.’
The message was “We hope to bring new life - and ideas - back into our organization by inviting new members and bringing back and/or adding new activities.” The recipients were invited to join in and bring their friends.
Age is not a requirement, they were told.
So what happened? New people showed up at the May meeting. Elections were held. There was a speaker and plans were made for future activities.
The first big event will be held Monday, June 9. The public is invited to the Coffee Shop in the mall. The coffee pot will be on at 9:00 a.m. Soup, sandwiches and dessert will be served over the lunch hour. There will be cards and other games in the afternoon. A craft class by an excellent craftsperson will be held for anyone interested.
This promises to be the beginning of some fun activities for the Young and the Young at Heart. Everyone is invited.
The regular meeting for the group is the first Friday of each month at 2 p.m. Presently they are meeting at Big Joe’s Restaurant and Lounge.

A bit of history and looking ahead:
The past: We (actually meaning our school district) started as one. If memory serves correctly, Hazelton school district was once identified as Williamsport School District #6. When our neighboring Moffit School closed due to declining enrollment, the Hazelton-Moffit School District was formed. Later, the Braddock School also closed. A portion of that district was added to H-M School District and it became Hazelton-Moffit-Braddock - or as we prefer to call it - H-M-B.
With the end of any era -in this case, the Moffit and Braddock school districts - is a deep feeling of loss and a great deal of sadness. Those feelings all have to be worked through. Not always easy but always necessary.
Jump ahead to the present. Our individual communities are still here. We take pride in what we have. We all keep working to make each of our communities better but something has happened through the years. Where once we were three separate communities - now we are one in many ways, all because of reorganizing school districts.
What brings all this to mind? Our June issue of the Hazelton Newsletter (our own monthly “newspaper” which had its beginning in 1991) was mailed out this week. The paper is mailed free of charge to all H-M-B postal patrons. This month we put out a special edition and also mailed it to postal patrons in Sterling/Mckenzie, Driscoll and Menoken. The purpose of the paper from the beginning was to promote not only the Hazelton community and businesses but also those of Moffit and Braddock - what we prefer to call our tri-community.
Let me explain why we have this special feeling about H-M-B (the communities, not just the school). We have expanded our horizons by getting to know the people better - yes, because of the school - and as we have become better acquainted, there is a closer bond. Now we don’t all go our separate ways. We celebrated each town’s Centennials. We’re excited about Braddock’s 125th celebration in 2009; we’re excited about Moffit’s plans to upgrade their Community Center and renovate their ball diamond; we’re excited about the possibility of reopening the Hazelton grocery store and finding occupants for our Prairie Mall.
We have become more aware of what it takes to keep our tri-communities alive by incorporating what we have; and we are learning that we must take action to make changes that will improve all of our lives.
If we sit back and wait for something to happen, it definitely will. It already has. I don’t know the population of Moffit and Braddock in their heyday. Hazelton once had a population of close to 600 back in the 1950s. For some reason we didn’t hear the alarm go off until we had dropped to 240.
What a wakeup call! How thankful we should be (and are) that the great majority of those living in the community support efforts to rebuild the town instead of having a ‘this is a dying town’ attitude. A lot of people have put in a lot of effort since 1991, always searching for new ways to help revitalize the town. For that we are grateful. They have a vision of what can be - not what could be. Most recently, the Horizons program gave us a boost by reminding us that together we can.
So, back to our tri-community. What I am trying to say in my own fumbling way (hey, that rhymes!) is that “three is better than one, but only because we are now three-in-one.”

How would you like to voice your opinions? Bismarck Tribune editor John Irby will be at the Hazelton Coffee Shop on Friday, June 13, from 9-11 a.m. John says everyone is invited to come in, ask questions, make suggestions. Talk about whatever your heart desires - well, up to a point!!! Ahem!
For those of you from out of town, here’s a bit of info about the coffee shop. Mel’s Diner in Hazelton’s Prairie Mall closed about a month ago so the owner could pursue other interests. That left Main Street without a place to stop for coffee and some chit-chat. So what do we do now? The space (about 1,047 sq. ft.) is available for rent. Since the Diner closed, volunteers set up a couple tables and some chairs. They bring in cookies and other baked goods and put on the coffee pot from 9-11 a.m., Monday through Friday. (As was stated in the Newsletter:”Let’s say that, with most of the tables removed, there’s more room for some of the ‘hot air’ that floats around at coffee time”). A free will donation helps pay for heat and lights.
A special thank you to all those who have brought in baked goods. Ellen Fransen and Arlene Davis also deserve thanks for taking on the responsibility of opening the coffee shop each day.
Repeat: Come to the Hazelton Coffee Shop on Friday, the 13th, for some good conversation.