The “Returner” phenomenon is a very real thing: people leave their small towns as young people and come back later when they’re ready to settle down, and there is a huge opportunity for both the returners and the small towns they’re coming back to–but we’re not always open to these boomerangs. This episode is about inviting people back, creating spaces, and growing as communities so they everyone is thriving. We think you’ll love it! About Jessica: Originally from Winner, SD (pop. 2,852), Jessica Meyers was raised in Winner and Vermillion, SD, and earned her bachelor’s degree at South Dakota State University in Brookings. Jessica and her husband Matt followed the flight pattern of many young adults and left the small towns of SD for bigger cities. After 10 years of living in some of the largest cities in America, she now lives in Sioux Falls with her family. Pairing over 20 years of sales and recruiting experience, Jessica discovered a unique opportunity for the Midwest. She is co-founder and CEO of PorchLight, a talent recruitment firm that partners with rural communities to prepare for the 21st-century workforce and connect rural workers to employment opportunities.

Jessica created the first-of-its-kind PorchLight Certification and created the platform where rural development and job opportunities connect. Personally, Jessica has been married for over 20 years to her high school sweetheart Matt, and they have three daughters, Eve, Grace, and Juliet, who live in Sioux Falls, SD.

In this episode, we cover:

• What is a returner?

• A different approach to thinking about housing (hint: it’s not just workforce housing we need to consider)

• Why “People don’t want to work anymore” is a myth

• Why remote work *works* for small communities

• What every single one of us can do to support our community’s small businesses

Links + Resources Mentioned: PorchLight’s Website: https://porchlight-services.com/   Small-Town Shout-Out! This shout-out was blatantly stolen from the webinar with Saveyour.town, and in the chat, Jamie Shanks from Glendive shared an idea inspired by a Reimaginig Rural Event: They’ve recently formed a group focused on action vs meetings, and they call themselves the “VigiPlantes.” Their efforts are centered around planting new ideas, community beautification, planting actual trees and plants, and sometimes doing things in the wee hours so people in their community wake up to a surprise. Can you even?! Snaps to Jamie, Glendive, and the VigiPlanties for this very stealable, very amazing idea. New Segment Alert! We think some of the best parts about radio shows and podcasts are listener call-ins, so we’ve decided to make those a part of the Growing Small Towns Podcast. We really, really want to hear from you! We’re introducing two new parts to the show: 

1. “Small town humblebrags”: Call in and tell us about something amazing you did in your small town so we can celebrate with you. No win is too small—we want to hear it all, and we will be excessively enthusiastic about whatever it is! You can call in for your friends, too, because giving shout-outs is one of our favorite things. 

2. “Solving Your Small-Town People Challenges”: Have a tough issue in your community? We want to help. Call in and tell us about your problem, and we’ll solve it on an episode of the podcast. Want to remain anonymous? Totally cool, we can be all secretive and stuff. We’re suave like that. 

If you’ve got a humblebrag or a tricky people problem, call 701-203-3337 and leave a message with the deets. We really can’t wait to hear from you! 

Get In Touch Have an idea for a future episode/guest, have feedback or a question, or just want to chat? Email us at [email protected]

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