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An very cool Ambassador named Nicole Peske shared this totally North Dakotan story with us the other day and since we love ND stories so much, we just had to share.
A friend of Nicole’s parents loves golfing and is lucky enough to own a home on a golf course in Idaho. When he sets out to play 18 holes of golf, he always packs a sandwich, just in case he gets hungry.
One day while eating his sandwich, just watching the golfers go by, a guy walks up to him and asks if he is from North Dakota. As it turns out, he was originally from North Dakota but moved when he was five, needless to say he was shocked that the golfer had guessed such an odd thing.
He tells the golfer his tale and asks how he would have guessed he was from North Dakota. The golfer shares that he also used to live in North Dakota and recognized the Tangy Cloverdale Summer Sausage piled on his sandwich bread! So, after a good laugh the two get to talking and realize they are distant cousins.
So the moral of this tale is you can always judge a man by his summer sausage, but don’t judge to harshly as he may be your cousin.
In case this has spurred your need for the tasty North Dakota treat, order yourself a stick at the Cloverdale Country Store.
You only have to spend a few moments in the presence of teens and twenty-something to feel charged up when they are excited about something. The energy and passion they have to offer things they believe in is contagious. North Dakota, from the state to local community and civic organizations, is putting more and more emphasis on the resource our youth represents. For years, we’ve heard about how young people are leaving North Dakota, but that is simply becoming less true. We’re growing in North Dakota (check out the article 20 Counties Experience Growth in North Dakota) and some of the growth is simply young people choosing to make their homes and professional careers right here.
Movements like YouthForward and the Governor’s Youth Council and the tremendous amount of local Young Professional (YP) chapters (find a chapter near you at NDYP.net) around the state are helping youth be heard. It is giving them greater information earlier about what there is for them in the state, the impacts they can make, and the opportunities available to them.
Events like the upcoming Great Plains Young Professionals Summit taking place June 3-5, 2010 in Bismarck are giving youth places to connect, network and grow their professional influence in our state. The three day event is geared towards 21-39 year olds and will focus on personal and professional development, enhancing leadership skills and the importance of supporting our communities.
Getting youth to understand that North Dakota is a place worth staying takes all of us thinking differently. We need to come together to promote our youth, promote North Dakota and in the end, only great stuff can happen.
I can’t even begin to tell you how often I’ve heard the phrase: “What do you do for fun in North Dakota?” Apparently, people think that because we don’t have a huge population base, we simply must count mosquitos for entertainment. Thankfully, that is not the case, as the state has a thriving entertainment segment. To highlight some of the cool arts and entertainment the state has to offer, the North Dakota Department of Commerce has put together a series of Arts & Music in North Dakota podcasts. It’s amazing how many things there really are to do in the state when you simply stop and start to look at the opportunities available!
Check out the 3 podcast series on YouTube! Arts and Entertainment in North Dakota
