From The Desk of The Executive Director - June 2026
The origin story of MCBT begins at the crossroads of commitment and opportunity. Ten years ago, more than 25 local leaders and grassroots champions joined forces to embark on an unprecedented journey that laid the foundation for the work we do today. These local changemakers saw the need for a responsive, locally based community and economic development organization that truly understands the strengths, realities and opportunities of the place we call home. They also recognized that for any such organization to be successful, it would need to meet local residents where they are and include them in the process of building something new.
As public forums in the summer of 2016 yielded wide resident support, the group of Mercer County changemakers formalized into a steering committee, hired a full-time staff member and began the process of formally incorporating their effort into a new organization, complete with a name which represented their shared vision - Mercer County Better Together, or MCBT. From September 2016 through March 2018, MCBT met residents of Mercer County ‘where they were’ - places as diverse as community events and public forums to cookouts and youth baseball games - to ask them why what they loved about their community, what would strengthen it and why they chose to make it their home. This work was made possible through a partnership with Community Heart & Soul, a proven community planning framework which focuses on three pillars: ‘Involve Everyone’, ‘Focus On What Matters’ and ‘Play the Long Game’. These pillars continue to guide the work of MCBT to this day.
This community planning work was a great learning experience and illustrated ten topic areas that community members cared most about. This information built the work plan for the new MCBT organization, solidifying the effort undertaken by local leaders and grassroots champions from across Mercer County. Armed with a strong understanding of local needs and opportunities, MCBT staff, volunteers and its newly minted board of directors rolled up their collective sleeves and got to work. In the years to come, MCBT would take a lead role in projects ranging from business support, jobseeker assistance and emergency housing support to grantwriting, childhood literacy and broadband mapping.
There are a variety of metrics against which community-based nonprofit organizations can be measured to determine their level of success. One key financial metric is ‘return on investment’, the ratio of dollars generated by an organization to support its mission, versus the dollars put into the organization for its operation. Since 2016, MCBT has delivered a total return on investment of 12-to-1. For every dollar invested into MCBT, we’ve brought twelve dollars in value to the Mercer County community.
Earlier this year, MCBT was recognized by Community Heart & Soul for the grassroots planning work in Mercer County from 2016 through 2018. As the Community Heart & Soul model has been used primarily in individual towns, MCBT was the first to use the model successfully on a county scale - all 542 square miles and 12 communities of Mercer County. It was an honor to be recognized for the meaningful work done here in Mercer County. By ‘involving everyone’, focusing on what matters’ and ‘playing the long game’, MCBT has made a tangible impact in the Mercer County area. We’re inspired to improve the vibrancy and vitality of our communities even more in the years to come.
