December 2, 2009
Contact: Sally Lunsford 785-296-5708 or sally.lunsford@kslottery.net

"Rural Kansas: Come and Get It" Program Seeks to Increase Rural Tourism

One way to keep rural Kansas communities viable is to increase their potential to draw tourists. Increasingly, today’s travelers are looking for the kind of authentic experiences and hidden treasures that are found in abundance right here in Kansas. For instance:

• There’s an exceptional antique auto museum in Wetmore.
• Dexter is the site of the last successful bank robbery by the Dalton Gang.
• Wilson has the only round stone jail in the state.
• St. John is home to the only triangular courthouse in the state.
• Morland has an excellent comic book collection in its bank.
• Garnett has a livestock sale barn where many Amish come in buggies.

Thanks to a $50,000 grant from the Travel & Tourism Division of the Kansas Department of Commerce, the Kansas Sampler Foundation is leading a new initiative called “Rural Kansas: Come and Get It.” Communities that are involved in this program are learning how to recognize tourism potential and market their attractions to the traveling public.

The first step in the initiative has been the creation of a website www.getruralkansas.org, a one-stop location to find all the great things to see and do in rural Kansas. The website is still being “populated,” and is not yet being promoted, but it will be soon.

Representatives from participating communities have also attended classes organized by the Kansas Sampler Foundation which opened their eyes to some of the offerings they have right in their own backyards.

“We taught each town to assess who they are and what they have by looking for their eight rural culture elements: architecture, art, commerce, cuisine, customs, geography, history, and people,” said Marci Penner, Director of the Kansas Sampler Foundation. “If you focus on each of those categories, you’ll see things that you might have missed otherwise.”

Communities are also learning how to use “social media” to their advantage. In the classes, community representatives have learned how to use Facebook, Twitter, and Blogging to help the world “get” Kansas.

“What I love most is that some really small towns have jumped on board,” Penner said. “Of the 89 cities that ‘graduated’ from the class, 24 have less than a 600 population.”

Rural Kansas” Come and Get It. It’s unique. It’s exciting.

“And it can work,” said Penner. “It’s a system that works for rural and we’re grateful for the state’s assistance and the Lottery funds that help make this possible.”

For more information, visit www.getruralkansas.org or call (785) 585-2374.

The Kansas Lottery has a positive impact on the state’s economy by supporting activities of the Kansas Department of Commerce, including a grant to the Kansas Sampler Foundation. This grant comes from the Economic Development Initiatives Fund (EDIF), which is derived from Kansas Lottery proceeds.