“A rising tide lifts all boats.”

Former U.S. President John F. Kennedy used such an expression when referring to the tides of the American economy.

If that statement still holds true, residents in Cherokee County and around the nation are overwhelmingly ready to see the tides begin to rise.

U.S. Census estimates from 2007 show Cherokee County is one of the most impoverished counties in both Oklahoma and the nation. Leaders of various entities say they want to see that change – that it must change so everyone might have the basic needs, like food and shelter.

But how can a community attack poverty and turn the tables? Over the past few days, locals polled at random by the Daily Press have given myriad answers: give more tax breaks to low-income families; create more government jobs; cut salaries of government officials and spend more money on federal assistance programs; and find ways to send more students to college who might not otherwise afford it.

“I want to know my children can graduate high school and get a real, solid, rewarding education so they are able to make more money than me or their father have ever made,” said CarolJean Perkins, who added that she, like most in her family, live below the poverty line.

She’s not embarrassed about it, and believes she does her best. Perkins says she’s raised her children to understand higher levels of education can help push them into a higher salary range in the job world. “It’s scary for all of us in today’s times,” said Perkins. “We get by, but we sure don’t got no room for leisurely things.”

She has had a few sleepless nights worried about her kids’ futures, but overall, she now feels confident they can make it in today’s “unstable world.”

U.S. Rep. Dan Boren, D-Okla., last year praised support of a continuing plan to increase minimum wage, saying an increase to $7.25 an hour in Oklahoma would mean an additional $4,400 per year for a minimum-wage worker’s family. Boren also supported legislation that would aid workers who lost their jobs by providing up to 13 weeks of extended unemployment benefits.

“Hard-working Oklahomans who have lost their jobs need help supporting their families and making ends meet,” Boren said in a press release. “We are beginning to see how the national economy, financial sectors, and housing market can be affected by national and international factors.”

Other local leaders, including Sen. Jim Wilson and Rep. Mike Brown, have spent countless hours in Oklahoma City trying to get the state to focus on issues like poverty instead of “wedge issues” – for instance, immigration laws or laws targeted at making English the only language of the state, which are meant to upset the public.

Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chad Smith, in his “Declaration of Designed Purpose: A Hundred Year Plan,” addresses issues of poverty.

“It is part of the vision for the next 100 years to achieve what we had 100 years ago: no poverty, every family having a home... ,” Smith said.

Tom Lewis, founder and CEO of the local Project O Si Yo, says it’s about helping neighbors and improving the quality of life for them.

“This needs to be the discussion point of every congregation, every Sunday school class, and every board with the leaders of their congregation in Cherokee County,” said Lewis.