Students put signs in harbor

Crystal, Justin and Junior Rodriguez of Reno, Nev., study the before-and-after photos of the March 11 tsunami at Crescent City Harbor recently. Del Norte Triplicate/Rick Postal

Twenty-eight students from the  Crescent City and Brookings Harbor areas came together this month as part of the Ford Institute Leadership Program, which works to enhance the vitality of rural communities.

Through a series of videos, lectures and educational classes, the students became one team with one goal, to beautify the ports of Brookings-Harbor and Crescent City.

Ford Institute Leadership Class members, front row from left, Tina Thao, Brenda Jacques, Judy May-Lopez, Sharyn Loughry, back row from left, Fernando Herrera, Melody Cannon and Melodee Waggener. Del Norte Triplicate/Rick Postal

The Ford Institute Leadership Class was part of the Ford Family Foundation, a private nonprofit organization based in Roseburg.

This program is unique in the nation in its three-level building design: the individual leader, the effective community organization and collaborations within and across communities.

The foundation makes grants to public charities, particularly those benefiting rural areas. For more information on the Leadership Program or The Ford Family Foundation, go to the nonprofit’s website at www.tfff.org.