The Connecting Forks Conference, held October 4, 2024 at Freedom Church, gathered local business leaders, entrepreneurs, and community members to discuss fostering business-community connections. The event, which featured four sessions and concluded with networking and tours, emphasized the role of collaboration in shaping the future of Grand Forks.
The first session, “Connected Through Entrepreneurship,” was moderated by Tiffany Ford from the Small Business Development Center and featured local business owners discussing how entrepreneurship strengthens community ties.
Dani Rancourt, owner of Pivot Nutrition, said her online health and dietetics business grew largely through word-of-mouth referrals. She described how client health success stories inspire their friends and families to join her program, creating a ripple effect of healthier habits across the community.
Mackenzie Hammond, owner of Lotus Yoga Studio, credited the Downtown Development Association for supporting her business by including it in local events. She emphasized that these community connections were instrumental in her studio’s growth.
Paul Kamrud and Priscilla VonEnde, co-owners of Piggy Barbecue, said they engaged local school children to help decorate their restaurant by displaying artwork from a school project about community. They said this collaboration fostered a sense of shared ownership and involvement between their business and the younger generation.
Jim Higgins, COO and cofounder of Thread, discussed the challenges of securing funding for a tech startup in Grand Forks compared with Silicon Valley. “We were told many times that we couldn’t do a tech startup here because we don’t have access to the same capital markets,” Higgens said. However, local investors and partnerships have been crucial to Thread’s success.
Higgins said Thread prioritizes hiring local talent and collaborating with area businesses, which has helped the company grow despite access to limited capital funding.
The second session, “Connecting to Your Community,” was led by Becca Cruger, who discussed the importance of community involvement. Cruger shared her experience of moving to Grand Forks without knowing anyone and said volunteering at local events helped her build lasting relationships. Urging attendees to get involved, Cruger emphasized that simply showing up can open doors to meaningful connections.
The third and fourth sessions continued the theme of collaboration. The third session focused on military-community synergies, exploring how the local community can better support transient military families. The fourth session, centered on the relationship between the University of North Dakota and the city, discussed how university-business partnerships can drive economic development and enrich the cultural life of Grand Forks.
In the afternoon, attendees took tours highlighting local development opportunities. One tour, led by Nicole Evans of the SBDC and Curtis Regan of Dakota Commercial, focused on vacant downtown spaces with potential for revitalization. The tour emphasized how these underutilized areas could be transformed into business hubs, benefiting both the economy and the community.
The Connecting Forks Conference highlighted the vital role of community connections in business success. From entrepreneurship discussions to tours of potential business sites, the event reinforced the importance of collaboration in building a vibrant and sustainable future for Grand Forks.
Davíd Moreno is a Dakota Student General Reporter. He can be reached at daví[email protected].
