Acorn Enterprises, Statement of Mission

Our mission is to support healthy families and communities with a broad range of projects that focus on:
(1) youth development, with an afterschool program, teen group, and youth job training activities;
(2) family support services, with a variety of workshops, groups, and referral activities for families; and
(3) community economic development through job training, availability of GED and other computer-based educational opportunities. We are also the lead agency for a county-wide Sector Initiative project that focuses on economic development for rural residents at or below 200% of poverty.

Acorn strives to increase the knowledge base about telecommunications technology, and increase computer access within our community. Roughly a quarter of the area's residents live "off the grid," with many of these having no electricity, while others rely on generators or alternative energy sources. There are no phone lines to an even greater number of residents, and while one cellular service provider has placed a tower that offers reliable service for some area residents (our mountainous terrain makes reception a nightmare for most), many residents cannot afford the service. For those residents who can afford technology, most complain about how difficult it is to get customer service, and information about "new" technology that might someday become available in rural areas, e.g. satellite service. We are on no one's priority list; no one markets to us, and Redding isn't such a major technology center that the hills are full of high-tech telecommuters who are making a fuss. Acorn would like to begin to address the lack of access by holding three or more community forums over the course of a year, that bring information both about what is available, as well as what our resources may be for demanding more and better services. From these forums we would develop a long-range community telecommunications strategy, as appropriate. Please see the contact page if you are interested in participating in the development of these programs.

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