Rural Assembly is seeking 30 local partners to host a community gathering during the week of July 23-30. Held in conjunction with our annual virtual broadcast, these local in-person gatherings are an opportunity to discuss what is happening in your community, and to hear from rural people across the country. This is a chance to activate connections inside and outside of your local area.
Why become a partner?
- You and your community will be part of a national conversation which blends hyperlocal issues with opportunities and challenges facing rural communities nationwide.
- Rural Assembly will provide a $500 stipend to support your gathering, time, and effort.
- Gain access to opportunities to get to know organizers in other areas who will also host.
What you’ll do:
- Host a community gathering during the week of July 23-30 – you pick the day and time which work best.
- Show portions of the Rural Assembly Everywhere broadcast at your gathering (more details below), the broadcast will be streamed live July 23, 2026 with recordings available afterward.
What we heard from 2025 partners
It was great to work with you all and I think this type of curated content and place-based events is a great concept for promoting connections to your work and in places.
We had a great gathering! We had about ten people all together and several of them didn’t know each other. We had about an hour of amazing conversation after the [broadcast]. It generated connections, conversation, and encouragement to gather together even more around the issues facing rural communities. We shared a meal of homemade soup, salad, and to stay with the theme, PIE!
Thank you again for putting together a great event that inspired us to gather together, share a meal, and connect with neighbors!
Last year, these nine communities hosted Everywhere gatherings, and this year we are pleased to expand the number of local partners:
- The YES! House in Granite Falls, MN
- Wild Rose Center on Northern Cheyenne Territory
- Danville, VA with the Virginia Rural Health Association
- Waynesburg, PA
- Jackhorn, KY at Hemphill Community Center
- Brainerd, MN by The Sowing Room
- Columbia, MO with the University of Missouri
- Wharton, TX with Hesed House of Wharton
- Cortez, CO at the Sunflower Theatre with KSJD
We plan to support 30 gatherings during the week of Rural Assembly Everywhere.
To learn more, join us at an upcoming Site Partner Informational Session.
We are offering sessions on February 4 and February 18. Register here – or reach out to us if you’d like to find another time to talk!
Details for Organizers
What do we mean by “community gathering”?
Gathering with your community can look a lot of ways. For Everywhere partners, our goal is to bring together a national audience with hyperlocal meet ups. You’ll invite your community members to join you with our support – in connection with hundreds of rural people far and wide.
A few ways partners programmed their sites last year:
- Share a meal together and discuss the program
- Bring in local experts and leaders to talk about community issues
- Hear music from a local artist
- Partner with a local school or university to discuss these issues with students
- Generate cross-sector collaboration by bringing together unlikely allies
- Create vision boards for your local areas
We can’t wait to hear your ideas for the needs of your local community! We trust our partners to be the expert on your community’s needs.
Showing the Rural Assembly Everywhere Broadcast: Logistics & Information
Rural Assembly Everywhere is a live-streamed broadcast which is free and available to the public. At Everywhere, we meet rural leaders, community members, advocates, and allies. It is a time to virtually gather as we imagine new ways to expand opportunity, share resources, and build a more connected, thriving rural America.
We use Crowdcast to broadcast Everywhere live, and the whole recording and segments will be available online after the broadcast. The virtual broadcast will be about 90 minutes, but as an Everywhere site partner, you will get to choose from the segments within Everywhere to show all or some of the content at your in person gathering.
As the lead organizer for your site, you will choose video content from Everywhere like:
- Speakers and discussions
- Spotlight on rural communities
- Music & culture
Rural Assembly will provide you with the video links and a special introduction which will share context for this national program with your gathering.
72% of survey respondents said that Rural Assembly Everywhere 2025 achieved the goals of celebrating rural successes, inspiring action, and equipping participants with concrete tools to support their work.
Check out the broadcast from 2025!
