The original idea for the Richland Area Community Center was sparked by a 1991 study by a Western Michigan University graduate student in public administration, done at the request of Richland Village President Jack Gray. That report indicated the area’s need for a gathering place for adults and youth. Later, an asset-building study at Gull Lake Community Schools concluded that the youth felt displaced and undervalued in the community. This spurred a few concerned citizens to investigate the possibility of creating an inclusive, relationship-building gathering place for youth and adults, a facility that would support the effort to build a healthier community. In 2001, through the generosity of an anonymous donor, the creation of the Hope Full Community Center was set in motion.
Originally conceptualized as a faith-based but nondenominational organization, the group pursued 501(c)3, non-profit status and a director was hired. The site of the community center would be the former Gull Lake Christian School. The re-design and modernization of the building offered a fully accessible, multi-purposed facility that could host classes, activities, meals, games, dances, and informal gatherings.
The original goal was to offer an inclusive, multi-generational environment with a special mission to serve seniors and youth. From the start, the Center provided a Richland location for the Portage-based Covenant Senior Day Program. The Center has provided a space for youth dances, bands and poetry readings but has faced difficulty in attracting a teen population to use the center on a consistent basis.
Since 2001, the Center has gone through some transitional growing pains. It functioned as a faith-based youth center and a location for adult day care for the first two years. After that time the original executive director left and, without a staff person to oversee the daily operations, it became very difficult for the board of directors to maintain activities effectively.
In 2004 the board sought the administrative assistance of the Sherman Lake YMCA to provide the Hope Full Community Center with the management and program director to operate the center. It was also during this period that the board moved away from the faith-based focus and renamed the center the Richland Area Community Center. The board recognized the need to return to the goals of diversity, inclusiveness and relationship building and believed that the new name better expressed those aims.
In March 2007, the board of directors made a major decision to pursue operating the Center independent of the Sherman Lake YMCA. After careful preparation, in October 2007 the Richland Area Community Center returned to its original status as an independent non-profit organization. The board’s current desire is to set its own program agenda and revisit its mission and goal for the community. It is an important time for the board to draw on its history of service and activities, to discuss its philosophy and vision, and to prepare for the future through strategic planning.