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Sunday, April 15, 2012
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Page designed by: Violet Hassler
Enid News & Eagle
THIS YEAR IS ONE OF EXPECTATION FOR ENID AND NORTHWEST OKLAHOMA. IT IS A TIME OF CHANGE AS THE AREA EMERGES FROM RECESSION AND LOOKS TOWARD PROGRESSION. THE ECONOMIC DRIVERS THAT HAVE BUILT AND SUSTAINED OUR WAY OF LIFE ARE CHANGING, AND THE PEOPLE ARE TASKED WITH CREATING A DIVERSE, NEW ECONOMIC MODEL THAT PUTS THE AREA ON THE HORIZON TOWARD A BETTER WAY OF LIFE. TUCKED IN THESE PROGRESS EDITIONS ARE A FEW OF THE STORIES OF THOSE WHO ARE SHAPING THE FUTURE FOR 2012 AND BEYOND.
We do more than just write about our community, advertise its strengths, print and deliver a newspaper, promote our websites, market local businesses, publish magazines and create special events.
I
Brad Nulph, circulation director, Greybeards cook, AMBUCS officer and Miracle League volunteer
We help make our
a positive
NTERACTION
Hospitals’ helpers find their rewards in assisting others By Jeff Mullin Senior Writer
Work often is something people do simply because they have to make a living. But volunteering is strictly a labor of love. Such is the case for Karen Vanover and A.Z. Callicoat. Both are past volunteers of the year at their respective hospitals, Vanover at Integris Bass Baptist Health Center and Callicoat at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center.
‘It’s just rewarding’ Callicoat has volunteered at St. Mary’s since 2002. Besides being one of 18 drivers for the SaintMobile golf carts that transport patients and visitors to and from the hospital, the 2010 volunteer of the year is in charge of the hospital’s Response Link program. Response Link is a medical alert program provided through St. Mary’s, Callicoat said. At present, around 120 units are in service throughout the area. “As long as there’s a landline telephone and an electrical outlet, that’s about all we need,” he said. Participants have a button they can push in event of an emergency, he said. Pushing the button alerts the Response Link call center, which then contacts a friend, neighbor or family member and asks them to check on the patient. “Somebody that the customer feels comfortable allowing in their home,” he said. Callicoat, who retired after a 37-year career with OG&E Electric Services, said he began volunteering because “I felt like giving back to the community,” he said. “I just thought that was an important thing to do. You’re a citizen here, support your community.” Volunteering, he said, is “very rewarding.” Callicoat said he gets most of his satisfaction from volunteering as the result of his interaction
Karen Vanover (top) and A.Z. Callicoat (above) enjoy the interaction with people volunteering at Enid hospitals offers. Vanover is a volunteer at Integris Bass Baptist Health Center, and Callicoat works at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center. Both were named volunteers of the year. (Staff Photos by BONNIE VCULEK and BILLY HEFTON)
with the people he serves. “Almost all the people you transport back and forth from the parking lot up here, you interact with them,” he said. “I just like that.” Callicoat said he encourages people to give it a try. “I’d say it’s just rewarding,” he said.
‘I just listen ...’ Vanover is somewhat unusual in that she is not retired. She has a full-time job in local purchasing at Vance Air Force Base, besides her volunteer job in the Integris Bass gift shop. She works 5-8 p.m. Thursdays and noon to 4 p.m. Saturdays at the hospital’s gift shop. During the Christmas season, in November and December, she works 5-7 a.m. as part of the Wakeup Wednesday program designed to allow people who work nights to patronize the gift shop. “They are at a disadvantage because most everything is closed during their working hours,” said Vanover, the 2011 volunteer of the year at Integris Bass. Proceeds from the gift shop go back into remodeling public areas or buying furniture or equipment that make the experience of patients or visitors better. But, said Vanover, her job involves far more than that. “Sometimes it has nothing to do with buying or selling,” she said. “It is a place for someone to get out of a room and get away from stress. Sometimes they just look like they need to be left alone.
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Sometimes they just want to visit. I just listen when they don’t have any other place to vent.” Besides visitors and patients’ family members, the gift shop’s customers also include nurses, Vanover said. “Sometimes nurses will come down and buy something for a certain patient,” she said. “They don’t want the patient to know it came from them. It can be something silly, like hand lotion or something. It says a lot for nurses that they think of that person as a human being, think of their needs. There are a lot of good people who work here.” Vanover, who also serves as a buyer for the gift shop, calls her volunteer work “just so fun.” “It is kind of relaxing to me,” she said. “It is different from what I do in my job.” She doesn’t like the recognition that goes along with being volunteer of the year, she said. She will be glad to hand the title off to someone else. “Sometimes I don’t put down all my hours,” she said. “That isn’t so important to me. I just do it because it is fun.” Her goal in volunteering, she said, “is to just make somebody happy when they find something they really want for a loved one, to give pleasure to somebody else.” Callicoat is one of 130 active volunteers at St. Mary’s, while Vanover is one of between 140 and 150 people who volunteer at Integris Bass.
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community – Enid and northwest Oklahoma – a Violet Hassler, online editor, Sunday school teacher, better place. We PTA volunteer and Hedges Speech and Hearing board member are the 98 employees of the Enid News & Eagle and Eagle Marketing, and we are proud to volunteer our time and talents to help our neighbors and improve this place we call home. News & Eagle employees serve in roles such as: deliver meals to shut-ins, assistant coach, volunteer firefighter and EMT, young adult group leader, reserve sheriff's deputy, blood donor, mission team leader, van driver, board member, youth ministry leader, financial contributor, Sunday School teacher, church deacon, school classroom volunteer, maintain church website, volunteer emergency management director, serve funeral dinners, fundraiser, collect food for food pantry, children's church teacher, plasma donor, youth drama director, guardian for developmentally disabled, help with emergency food distribution, produce church newsletter, team leader, board president, organized town hall meetings on youth substance abuse issues, choir member, administrative council secretary, organized benefit golf tournament, head of women's ministry, tutor, call for volunteers, Vacation Bible School leader, mission trip participant, PTA parent volunteer. We serve organizations such as: 4-R Kids; AMBUCS; Backpacks for Kids; Boy Scouts; CDSA; Chamber Ambassadors; Chautauqua; Cherokee Strip Community Foundation; Christmas in Action; Denny Price Family YMCA; Enid Public School Foundation; Enid Rotary Club; Enid Running Club; Enid Symphony Orchestra; Fairview Backpacks for Kids; Fairview Lions Club; Feed the Neighborhood Back to School Bash; Food for Kids; Garfield County Public Safety Association; Garfield County Sheriff's Office; Gaslight Theatre; Greater Enid Chamber of Commerce; Hedges Speech and Hearing; Hope Outreach; Hospice Circle of Love; Junior Welfare League; Leonardo's; Love Without Boundaries; Main Street Enid; Major County Sheriff's Office; Major County Youth Task Force; March of Dimes Walk for Babies; Meals on Wheels; Miracle League; Oklahoma Blood Institute; Oklahoma Regional Food Bank; Park Avenue Thrift; PEGASYS; Plainsman Booster Club; Red Cross; Red Hat Ladies; Salvation Army; Shepherd’s Cupboard food pantry; SPCA animal shelter; Toys for Tots; United Way of Enid and Northwest Oklahoma and numerous churches and school PTAs.
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to be in service to Enid and northwest Oklahoma.
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Enid News & Eagle
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s m e l b o r p l a f o r e v l the so
F O S T E R G R A N D PA R E N T S
Enid woman sees sense of purpose in the classroom By Phyllis Zorn Staff Writer
Taking on the role of foster grandmother at Sandbox Learning Center was a natural transition for Ella Loggins. Loggins grew up in Enid before she moved to Colorado Springs, Colo., where she was a transit bus driver for many years. She raised two daughters and a son and is now grandmother of 10. It was the call to help her family that brought her back to Enid at 58. “When my mother got sick, I came back to Enid to take care of my mother,” Loggins said. In addition, she cared for an ailing aunt. Five years later, it was time for Loggins to find something else to fill her time. In the spring of 2006, she signed up for the Foster Grandparents program. “I always had a house full of kids, so this took up that space,” Loggins said. At Sandbox, she works with 14 to 16 kids, ages 3 to 6, helping them with art projects, teaching them to write their names and birth dates, boosting their social skills and in other ways helping get them ready to go to school. As Loggins spoke on a recent day at Sandbox, a 3-
Ella Mae Loggins reads to Logan and Lucas Dillard, Nikolai Grimes-Speight and Markell Jackson at Sandbox Learning Center, 411 E. Illinois. (Staff Photos by BONNIE VCULEK)
year-old who only recently started coming to the day care center and preschool came over to her for a spot of comfort because he was missing his mommy. “I solve all problems,” Loggins said, wisely. The tots sit in her lap, hug her, give her reports on their accomplishments and show off their new knowledge. “Grandma, I went potty,” one tells her. “Grandma, I’m wearing blue,” another said. Loggins gave a
moment’s personal attention to each of them in turn. Seeing the children and being involved in their lives gives Loggins a sense of purpose, she said. “It’s something to get up for in the morning,” Loggins said. “Something to be on your mind to do. It really keeps you from getting old.” Loggins said she encourages other people to get involved in the Foster Grandparent program. “Foster Grandparents is a wonderful place to work,” Loggins said. “I’ll probably be here another 20 years.”
Meeting children’s needs Susie Daniels, program director for the Area 1 Foster Grandparent program, said volunteers work with youths through fifth grade in Enid and regional schools. “We are assisting children by meeting their academic needs in the schools and helping prepare 4-year-olds to get them ready for kindergarten,” Daniels said. Daniels said children’s reading skills improve when a grandparent works with them, and their confidence and pride
in going to school is boosted. In the elementary schools, the foster grandparents often work on the students’ reading comprehension, according to Daniels. It’s an arrangement that offers benefits for everyone involved, she said. “The volunteers love being in the classroom, the children benefit from that extra assistance and the teachers are very appreciative of having extra hands,” Daniels said. “I have so much pride in our senior population and how they can meet community needs.”
Area I Foster Grandparent Program requires participants to be 55 or older, enjoy working with children, be in reasonably good health and able to serve a minimum of 15 hours per week. Benefits include a tax-free $2.65 per hour stipend if income eligible, paid leave and holidays, a free annual physical, transportation assistance and a free daily meal. For information about Foster Grandparents, contact the program at 5488900 or toll free at (800) 522-1064.
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We believe that trust is built on a relationship of openness and honesty. That is our pledge to you. We are committed to helping you create a service that celebrates the life and accomplishments of your family member. We will rely upon your openness in sharing the special qualities of a unique life in order for us to recommend the appropriate services, various ceremonies and products for a personalized tribute. Everything that we do should assist in remembering his or her life in a beautiful and meaningful way.
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Sunday, April 15, 2012
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Page designed by: Violet Hassler
Enid News & Eagle
Hear this Hedges, a United Way agency, is changing lives ... young and old
By Cass Rains
worked on (pronouncing) the words.” Those with hearing or speech problems are less likely to communicate and be involved with their environments. Ball said it is tremendously important for children to be able to hear and speak. “In every portion of a child’s life they’re expected to communicate” she said. “If they have issues hearing, or with speech, it may mean they don’t speak up in class as much or with their family. They lose a valuable part of the human experience.”
Staff Writer
For more than 50 years Hedges Regional Speech and Hearing Center has helped adults and children from throughout northwest Oklahoma with speech and hearing issues. Its mission is to provide speech, language and hearing therapy. By working with community professionals, Hedges is committed to improving communications skills for those in need in northwest Oklahoma. Executive Director Carmen Ball said Hedges is the only full-service speech and hearing center in northwest Oklahoma. “The other day I had someone tell me we only serve children,” Ball said. “Probably half our clients are children. The other 50 percent is split evenly between the 21- to 61-year-olds and the senior group.” She said the youngest client fitted with hearing aids was 3 years old and the oldest client was 105 years old. Clients often are referred by a doctor, or a school, and are cared for by one of the center’s five speech/language pathologists. “If we have a child referred by doctor or parent for speech, the very first thing we do is check their hearing,” Ball said. “If there’s no hearing issue then we continue on with what might be the problem.”
Making lives richer Children with speech and hearing issues also may lose out on values and skills that impact their everyday lives if they do not receive treatment, not to mention self-confidence. “It’s going to make their life easier and richer, as well as their family’s lives,” Ball said. “What we do with a 4-year-old, or for any age, makes an impact on what they are doing.” The earlier a problem can be diagnosed, the better, Ball said. Newborn babies undergo hearing tests and sometimes fail. If they do, Hedges is one of the places recommended for testing because of up-to-date equipment. “We have some less intrusive forms of testing,” Ball said. “A child may be fussing and moving and not paying attention, and we still can get an accurate read on their hearing. Our youngest client we’ve ever tested is 2 weeks old. Our audiologist is wonderful.”
5 heads are better than 1 She said having five pathologists is great because they work together on addressing a client’s problem and often come up with creative solutions. “I am amazed at how creative our speech pathologists are,” Ball said. “They have done things that integrate into the child’s life. “One of our speech pathologists made sure the mom brought the child’s spelling work from school. While they worked on spelling they
Catching problems early Catching a hearing problem early is essential for a child’s development. Ball said research shows children who have a problem diagnosed and receive therapy by 2 or 21⁄2 have a good chance of enter-
ing school at the same level as their peers. Ball said a child who finally can hear after having problems can witness a lifechanging experience. “All of a sudden they can hear their cat purr, they can hear their mom in the other room, they can hear their teacher when they are in the back of the classroom,” she said.
Not just for the young Ball said hearing is just as important for adults. Those who have hearing problems later in life often tend to withdraw. “You miss out on a lot of vital contact
with your family or people at your church, no matter what your age is,” she said. Ball said being fitted with a hearing aid isn’t like it was five years ago. “Hearing aids have changed so much,” she said. “As much as cell phones have changed in the last five to 10 years, so have hearing aids. “You don’t buy hearing aids in the small medium or large anymore. The advances in hearing aid technology is just incredible.” She said some people buy a hearing aid to match their hair color, and some kids put soccer balls or decals on them. “They want people to know it’s pretty cool equipment,” she said. Hedges is a non-profit entity, and is a United Way agency. Ball said funds also are generated through speech therapy and hearing aids. Grants and occasional fundraisers also help support the center. For information about Hedges, 2615 E. Randolph, call 234-3734.
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Carmen Ball (top), director of Hedges Regional Speech and Hearing Center (right), poses in front of the Enid center. (Staff Photos by BONNIE VCULEK)
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Page designed by: Violet Hassler
Enid News & Eagle
Doing their part for By Robert Barron Staff Writer
Enid is home to a number of community service organizations and almost without exception they all depend on volunteers to complete their missions. Among those volunteers is Stephanie Ezzell, who is active in the community in a number of capacities, including the popular Farmers Market, on the southeast corner of Grand and Garriott. Ezzell and husband Ben have been involved with Farmers Market almost from the beginning a few years ago. Ben overheard a planning meeting at DaVinci’s Coffee Shop while studying for law school. “He became interested and that’s how we became involved,” she said. On Saturday mornings during Farmers Market season, which
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begins this year on May 12, Stephanie and Ben, along with their daughter, Nora, can be found at Farmers Market performing a variety of tasks. From time to time they have helped direct traffic or set up canopies for vendors and toys for children, displayed merchandise, sold T-shirts or water, provided general market information, manned the co-op table and even acted as greeters. “It’s a lot of fun. There are new people who discover Farmers Market all the time, and new vendors,” Ezzell said.
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the community Behind the scenes
Farmers Market is an outlet for a lot of people for their creativity, small businesses or surplus of garden items they did not think was worth anything. Ezzell said the children’s involvement also is good. “Farmers Market has a program for children under 10 who participate with their parents who are vendors. Their application fee is waived,” she said. Volunteers sometimes are lacking on a Saturday morning, and board members man everything as much as possible, she said. There are many behind-the-scenes volunteers, people who keep merchandising organ-
Stephanie Ezzell
ized, keep trash and recycling separate and take them off-site and keep the grounds in order.
Active in their hometown The Ezzells lived in Oregon for three years where she said there were “amazing” farmers markets. The markets were well established and offered prepared food vendors, music and nursery plants, along with other items. That passion for the markets followed them when they returned to Enid, she said. Ben worked for a non-profit organic food certification company while they lived in Oregon, and they became interested in the natural lifestyle, which fits into the markets, she said. Although they liked Oregon, it didn’t feel like “home” to the couple
who grew up in Enid. They determined if they were moving back, they needed to put as much of themselves into Enid as they could, to make it a place their children would want to stay. While active with Farmers Market they also are involved in other areas. Ben will is an incoming board member of Enid Arts Council, Stephanie is president of Democratic Women’s Club and volunteers with Main Street Enid. Ben learned civic activity from his parents, David and Cheri Ezzell, who are active in the community and former members of Enid City Commission. “We learned that if you don’t like where you are, don’t complain unless you are trying to change it,” Stephanie Ezzell said.
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Sunday, April 15, 2012
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Enid News & Eagle
Sorting out
T H E S E RV I C E
Enid men providing curbside recycling for city, area By Austin Prickett Staff Writer
For one year Keepin’ Enid Green has provided recycling options and convenience of participation to local residents. The curbside recycling business began after Chris Feeney of Oklahoma Employment Securities’ Material Recovery, a recycling venture, repeatedly was asked why the option wasn’t available. The business was founded with the idea of raising awareness for and accessibility to recycling by Feeney and Josh Peters. “We are a pretty simple business, providing another option for people to recycle,” Feeney said. For $10 a month the company provides an 18-gallon green bin for customers to place recyclable materials. Keepin’ Enid Green empties the bin once a week. “Customers are able to throw all their (recyclable) trash into one container,” Feeney said. “When we pick it up we will sort it all.” The company has expanded its service area in the first year of business. Keepin’ Enid Green now serves 14 area towns as well as Enid. “We go as far east as Covington and as far west as Fairview, and everything in between,” Feeney said. There are 240 area residents who currently utilize Keepin’ Enid Green services. “We have encouraged a lot of people to recycle who were never able to do it before, such as career-minded individuals or those who can’t make it to the OES drop site,” Feeney said. The Enid collections are every Sunday, with area towns serviced during the week. OES Material Recovery employs many residents of Northern Oklahoma Resource Center of Enid who get paid to process the material received by Keepin’ Enid Green and turn that material over to vendors. “This allows them a safe environment to work,” Feeney said. Throughout the company’s first year of business, Feeney said he has only heard good things from customers. “Once people get started it becomes an addiction,” Feeney said. “I believe in what we do ... We aren’t fancy, we just encourage recycling and have been working in recycling for a long time.” The company collects recyclables including paper, cardboard, tin, steel and aluminum cans, different kinds of packaging and disposal cups. A full list of acceptable items is available at keepinenidgreen.com. The company provides its services to Enid, Lahoma, Carrier, Kremlin, Hillsdale, Garber, Covington, Helena, Goltry, Aline, Cleo Springs and Fairview. Chris Feeney and Josh Peters, from Keepin’ Enid Green LLC, pose beside a recycling trailer. The business collects recyclable materials and then delivers the items to the Enid recycling location at 730 S. 9th. (Staff Photo by BONNIE VCULEK)
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Enid News & Eagle
Sunday, April 15, 2012
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earning the language L
English classes offer benefits for students, their teachers, as well By James Neal Staff Writer
When a lack of funding forced the dissolution of Enid Literacy Council in 2010, the community lost one of its main sources for English as a second language instruction. Volunteers at Emmanuel Baptist Church stepped up to fill that gap with free ESL instruction last January, and now they have hopes of expanding the program to better serve the community. ESL instruction also is available through Carver Educational Center, an Enid Public Schools facility. But, the dissolution of Enid Literacy Council ended a program that served as many as 50 students at a time with a nearly constant waiting list. “We always had a waiting list for the ESL tutoring, and there’s a lot of Zamniang and Lian Bawi (above) reach for Easter eggs during an egg hunt at Emmanuel Baptist interest and need for it in the com- Church’s English language class. Students received information about Oklahoma weather, tornado munity,” said Mona Loewen, who precautions and the Easter story as they worked with their tutors. Sharon Christie (right, at left) works served as chairwoman of the Enid with the Bawis during a session. The Bawi family moved to Enid two years ago from southeast Asia. Literacy Council board of directors Andy Wilkins (below), youth pastor for Emmanuel Baptist Church, welcomes English language class students and invites them to join him in an Easter egg hunt. (Staff Photos by BONNIE VCULEK) before its dissolution in 2010. “We weren’t able to continue with Enid Literacy Council, but the same session, without having to large group. Then, groups are dividneed for ESL tutoring was still speak the students’ native language. ed based on students’ needs and aptithere,” she said. “So, I decided since “It is a common misconception tude. I’m a member at Emmanuel, the that you need to be able to speak the “We try to match the students and church might have the resources, other language to tutor someone in their needs with the tutor, and keep and we could start tutoring English English,” said Emmanuel ESL the group sizes as small as possible, there.” course coordinator Wells. “Any- but we are flexible if a family wants After consulting the church pas- body who can speak English and to stay together,” Wells said. tors, Loewen, along with volunteers who has a heart for people can come Enrollment always is open at Brenda Wells and Linda Whipple, in and help out.” Emmanuel’s ESL tutoring program. began offering free ESL tutoring Tutors use the Oxford English Students of any skill level can join at Tuesday evenings at the church. picture dictionary and Laubach any time. The program has grown to serve teaching system, a widely-used ESL “Our students are free to come as about 20 students at a time, with 10 technique based on phonics and long as they need, and we will conto 12 volunteer tutors. visual aids. tinue to tutor them as long as they Loewen said the program preWells said pairing visual cues want to come,” Wells said. dominantly serves Spanish-speaking with written and spoken words The tutoring program has grown students but also has served students allows the students to learn English since its inception last year but still is from Brazil, India, Japan, Korea, “the same way we all learned.” limited by the number of volunteer Ethiopa, Iran, Myantutors. mar, Marshall Islands “We would love to expand and China. the program, but it’s just a mat“The need in our ter of the time and volunteers community is very that would be required to implediverse, and there are ment that,” Wells said. a lot of nationalities Loewen said members of It’s a basic need to be able to represented here,” area churches are welcome to communicate, and when you’re Loewen said. “We volunteer for the ESL tutoring helping them with language try to tailor the proprogram. For those who volunneeds you’re helping them with gram to their specific teer, Loewen said the program their other needs as well.” needs. We look at can be “very rewarding.” Mona Loewen, their level, and some “It’s almost like being able to of them speak abtravel to another country to meet English as a second language instructor solutely no English.” these people and learn about And, for the other cultures and languages,” most part, the Loewen said. tutors do not speak “I just love to do it, and I their students’ native languages. “Just like we didn’t know English really enjoy it,” she said. “It’s some“When someone talks to me when we started out, they’re able to thing you can do where you really about volunteering as a tutor, they learn English here in much the same know you’re helping someone. It’s a always ask, ‘Do I need to be able to way,” she said. basic need to be able to communiAnd, not being able to speak the cate, and when you’re helping them speak Spanish?’ I ask them, ‘How would Spanish help you if your stu- students’ language facilitates that with language needs you’re helping learning process. dent is from China?’” them with their other needs as well.” “It’s a long process, but in some Rather than speak both in English The ESL tutoring sessions are and the students’ native language, ways it’s a better learning process, 6:30-8:30 p.m. every Tuesday at the tutors rely on pictures and visual even though it’s harder,” Wells said. Emmanuel Baptist Church, 2505 W. aids paired with related written and “In some ways it actually helps to Garriott. Child care is available at have that language barrier, because the church during the tutoring sesspoken words in English. By using visual cues and immer- you’re not tempted to slip into their sions. sion teaching techniques, the tutors language.” For information or to volunteer, are able to instruct students from Each tutoring session begins with contact Wells at the Emmanuel diverse language backgrounds in the all the students and tutors in one Baptist Church office, 237-0602.
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Tutoring Program between school, church provides snacks, homework help By Phyllis Zorn Staff Writer
A partnership between Enid’s First Presbyterian Church and McKinley Elementary School is the foundation of a tutoring program that quietly has benefitted students for more than 13 years. Each Wednesday after school, church members pick up students — there are 23 in this year’s group — and take them to the church building for a snack, some fun and plenty of homework help. According to Gail Wynne, longtime volunteer and coordinator of the tutoring program, many of the 30 volunteer tutors have been at it from the first days. In addition to the adult tutors, seven volunteers prepare and serve a snack for the students, two high school students help with physical education and recreation and two other high school students — one a former McKinley student tutored in the program — help out wherever they are needed. “I just like to help out,” Jason Graham said. “I came for the school year — it’s my first year tutoring. I was tutored here for three years before this.” Jason recruited his friend, Austin Vogt, to volunteer as well. Both the high school freshmen brought their guitars along on a recent Wednesday to provide music for the younger students. The program is geared to take as many as 26 students each year. Which students participate is a decision made by the school and their parents. Jan Robinson, principal at McKinley, said the tutoring program was the best thing she inherited when she became principal 11 years ago. Most of the students selected for the program are third- to fifth-graders, Robinson said. There are other factors, such as emotional or social aspects and school needs, that might inspire the school to offer the program to individual students. “It’s lots of things,” Robinson said. “A piece could be academic struggles, but it doesn’t have to be. We’ve had children who are super academic stars in school.” Robinson takes more interest than simply designating which children are offered the tutoring program. She takes pains to ensure the students and the school grow from the experience in more ways
than academics. “Last year, I challenged them to work with us on multiplication skills,” Robinson said. They made so much progress, the school’s test scores went up. One tutor, Jerry Shipley, forged such a warm bond with a McKinley student from a couple years ago, the pair still spend time together and have lunch a couple times a month at Waller Middle School. “He’s a wrestler, and he likes to talk about his wrestling,” Shipley said. “He does well because he’s a well-built boy.” But the real estate broker and residential builder said he gets more out of the program than he puts in. “Being around youth, watching them progress and grow,” Shipley said, “it’s a joy to be around them.” You couldn’t persuade Robinson it’s the tutors who benefit most, though. “I’m so passionate about it, I feel like I don’t have adequate words for what it does for those kids,” Robinson said. “It takes my breath away to see them, children and adults, shoulder to shoulder, smiling and reading.”
McKinley Elementary School and Enid’s First Presbyterian Church partner through a tutoring program. Pictured are (clockwise from top left) Gail Wynne discussing a free camp, Jerry Shipley talking to fifth-grader Aaron Wolfe and Gail Brownlee sharing a brief devotional during the after-school program. (Staff Photos by BONNIE VCULEK)
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In their own Local churches joining forces to help needy through Shepherd’s Cupboard By James Neal Staff Writer
When looking for opportunities to volunteer or donate money to feed the less fortunate, good Samaritans’ attentions often are turned to America’s urban centers or to countries in the developing world. But, locals looking for an opportunity to help the less fortunate and feed their fellow man need look no further than their own back yard, figuratively speaking. Volunteers have been gathering at 10th and Maple for more than a decade to feed the hungry at Shepherd’s Cupboard, a food pantry located at Bethany United Methodist Church.
Start small, grow from there The food pantry was started 13 years ago by then-pastor’s wife Tara Foos and a small number of church volunteers. With a small collection of donated and purchased food, the women of Bethany United Methodist began providing food weekly to about 12 people. The pantry has grown steadily throughout the years, and now provides food to more than 200 households twice a month, making it one of the largest food banks in western Oklahoma. Ed Neighbors has overseen the pantry’s growth and service for most of the last 13 years, and at 80 years old still is a steadfast volunteer. “When I retired I didn’t have anything to do, so I figured I’d help out, and I’ve enjoyed it,” Neighbors said. He said the food pantry gave him an opportunity to serve and to use his time and energy in retirement for a useful purpose. “I never did learn how to play,” Neighbors said. “I’ve worked all my life, and when I finally had time to play it wasn’t fun anymore. So, I come here and work.” He soon became director of the food pantry, and oversaw its expansion from a cupboard stocked with 1,000 food items to a multi-floor operation that moves up to 22,000 pounds of food each month.
Helping each other out Once a month a truck from Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma delivers about half of a 53-foot semi-load of food to the pantry. Volunteers move the food by hand along a makeshift system of rollers into the basement at Bethany United Methodist Church. After the food is stocked in the basement, more volunteers file through the stacks of boxes and pallets, filling plastic grocery sacks with food to be handed out to those in need. Volunteers move the sacks to the church’s ground floor, where they await the arrival of the hungry and needy. Every third and fourth Tuesday about 200 people from one of Enid’s poorest neighborhoods
arrive at the church. For two hours, from 10 a.m. to noon, volunteers work at a feverish pace to sort and pack food for those in need. Neighbors said those in need often step out of line to volunteer, helping pack bags and carry packages for others. “Most of them, they’re really good guys and women, most of them just come out of the neighborhood to help us and to help each other,” Neighbors said.
Relying on the community Citing his age, Neighbors recently stepped down as director of the pantry’s operations. “It feels very good to help people, but at 80 years old it’s time for somebody a little younger to take over,” he said. Weekly operations now are overseen by Mike Phelan and a board of directors. The board is comprised of representatives from all of Enid’s five United Methodist congregations. Judy Phelan, Lawson Broadbent and Bethany United Methodist Church pastor Kim Giles (above) prepare food packages for more than 240 households. Lead church Bethany United Methodist Church teams with other Enid and area churches to provide food every third and fourth Tuesday of the month. Ed Neighbors (left), who helped organize the food pantry at Bethany United Methodist Church, stands in one of the three food storage rooms at 10th and Maple. (Staff Photos by BONNIE VCULEK)
Phelan said food is supplied based on individuals’ levels of need and household size, but none are turned away. “Anybody who shows up and asks for food, we give them food,” Phelan said. “We figure if they didn’t need food they wouldn’t be here in the first place.” Phelan said Bethany heavily relies on other congregations and patrons to support the pantry operations. “Our church is fairly small,” Phelan said. “We usually have about 40 people in services Sundays, and most of them are elderly. Most of our funding and a lot of our volunteers come from outside sources.” In addition to volunteers from Bethany and other local churches, Phelan said about 25 volunteers travel regularly from surrounding communities to help out at the pantry. “We get volunteers come in regularly from Waukomis, Helena, Ringwood, Jet, Ames ... they just
work hard, and they have fun. We couldn’t do it without the volunteers. Those people work hard, but they have their rewards as far as being able to help people.” “The volunteers here have been phenomenal,” said Bethany United Methodist Church pastor Kim Giles. “I think it’s because they see the need, and they also see that it is a well-oiled machine and that it works. I think people see the devotion of other people, and it’s a chain reaction kind of thing.” Giles, who assumed the pastor’s post at Bethany in January, said she has been “very impressed” with the pantry and its volunteers. “I feel very blessed to be appointed to a church that has such a ministry already in progress,” Giles said. “It’s a well-oiled machine, and it runs very well.”
Supporting the ministry With an annual operating budget of approximately $35,000 and manpower requirements of about 40 people per week, it takes a lot of
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support to keep that “well-oiled machine” running. Giles said the pantry’s largest single source of support has been Willow View United Methodist Church. The congregation at Willow View dedicates six of its annual communion offerings to support the pantry, and teams of volunteers help sort and bag groceries each week. Willow View pastor Lesly Broadbent said Shepherd’s Cupboard gives his congregation an opportunity to help the less fortunate. “One of the reasons we do this is we realize we’re in a wealthy part of town in the northwest quarter of Enid, and we realized if we’re going to reach those who are in financial need we are going to have to go to them instead of just sitting here and waiting for them to come to us,” Broadbent said. Broadbent said Willow View’s individual donors give far more than the collections taken up in church. “We have a lot of people who see the Shepherd’s Cupboard as a very important part of their lives, and it’s important to them to support that ministry,” he said. “We have people in our congregation who grew up poor and hungry, and they’ve said they’ll do anything they can to prevent that from happening to anyone else, and they’re very generous in their giving.” “We’re just very proud to be connected with the ministry at Shepherd’s Cupboard,” Broadbent said. “We saw God was doing something very special through Bethany, and we wanted to be a part of that.”
‘A gift from God’ Being a part of something special is a common draw for
the volunteers at Shepherd’s Cupboard. “They’re people that feel the calling or they feel the need to help people,” said Kenneth Rousselow, who has volunteered at the pantry for more than three years and now is the pantry’s volunteer director. Like many of the volunteers at Shepherd’s Cupboard, Rousselow got involved after he retired. “When I retired, after about three or four days, my wife said ‘You’ve been sitting around long enough, you can volunteer at the food bank.’” He joined his wife in volunteering at Shepherd’s Cupboard and soon discovered it was more than just a way to pass the time. “We both just feel it’s a gift from God to be able to help people,” Rousselow said. “To me, it’s a very important mission, and it’s something that needs to be done.” He said the volunteers are “very effective and very dedicated,” but more and younger volunteers are needed. “The median age of our volunteers is probably in their mid60s or 70s,” Rousselow said. “Sometimes we have to ask for help from the people who are there in line, and we always need more volunteers.” For anyone interested in helping out, Rousselow said the application process is simple: “Just show up when it’s time to do the work.” For information on Shepherd’s Cupboard contact Bethany United Methodist Church at 237-6611. Donations may be made to Shepherd’s Cupboard care of Bethany United Methodist Church, 931 E. Maple, Enid OK 73701.
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Offering visitors, patients St. Mary’s volunteers responsible for rides to and from parking lot
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By Jeff Mullin Senior Writer
Hospital visitors aren’t always in the best of moods. But at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center, 18 volunteers do their best to lighten the load, at least the burden the walk from the main parking lot places on visitors’ feet. From 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays, the 16 men and two women who drive the hospital’s SaintMobile golf carts transport hospital visitors and patients alike between their cars to the hospital and back. Two carts are in use every day, with the third in reserve, said Harold Shreve, the volunteer who coordinates the SaintMobile program. But SaintMobile drivers don’t only make runs between the main parking lot and the hospital. Doctors’ offices near the hospital, the Hospitality House and any of the hospital’s various parking lots also are possible destinations. SaintMobile drivers keep track of each run and how many passengers they carry. Just about a year ago, Shreve said, the 10-year-old service topped the 1 million passenger mark. “Our average right now is probably just a little over 400 passengers a day,” he said.
A program on the go In 2011, in fact, SaintMobile drivers provided 104,640 rides for passengers. They don’t keep track of their mileage, Shreve said, but SaintMobile drivers drive so many miles they manage to wear out a golf cart every year. They buy a new one every year, so the carts are on a three-year replacement cycle. “I assure you at the end of three years they are ready to be replaced,” he said. Comparing the SaintMobiles to carts actually used at a golf course, Shreve said, “We, in one year, get about as much use out of one of them as they do in three years at a golf course.” The electric carts are recharged daily, Shreve said. “We run ’em all day and charge ’em all night,” he said. The SaintMobiles are not strictly used for transport to and from St. Mary’s, Shreve said. The carts and drivers take part in other events around town, including March of Dimes March for Babies, Relay for Life, United Way Chili Cookoff, Cherokee Strip Parade and the Feed the Neighborhood backpack giveaway at Crosslin Park. “We do a lot of things with them rather than just transport people to and from the hospital,” Shreve said.
St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center’s SaintMobile golf carts (above and top) transport hospital visitors and patients alike between their cars in the main parking lot to the hospital and back. Volunteer drivers also provide trans-
portation to nearby doctors’ offices, the facility’s Hospitality House and any of the hospital’s various offshoot parking lots. SaintMobile drivers provided 104,640 rides for passengers in 2011. (Staff Photos by BILLY HEFTON)
‘I’ve been to hospitals everywhere and I’ve never, ever been anywhere that they would transport us,’” Shreve said. “I’ve had several say that there was only maybe one hospital in Oklahoma that had this service available,” said SaintMobile driver A.Z. Callicoat. “The vast majority don’t offer any type of transportation.” The entire program is volunteer-centered, Shreve said. St. Mary’s volunteers buy and maintain the carts with money earned from fundraisers, donations and proceeds from the hospital gift shop. “We had two fairly large donations last year,” Shreve said, “people who just appreciated the service.” SaintMobile drivers also are the recipients of occasional tips from happy passengers, Shreve said. “I had one today,” said Callicoat. “Every little bit helps,” Shreve said.
‘Always stand more drivers’
Just that one percent ... By far the majority of passengers are happy with the SaintMobile service, Shreve said, but on occasion the drivers’ reception is as cold as a windy winter day. “Occasionally some aren’t as pleasant as the vast majority,” said Callicoat. “I’ve had drivers quit because passengers would just read them the riot act,” Shreve said. “They don’t like that.” SaintMobile drivers, Shreve stressed, “can’t pick up everybody.” Occasionally people get upset about being passed up. “The last driver I had quit, he was out there by himself and he had more passengers than he could carry,” said Shreve. “He went to get them and they read him the riot act from the time he got there. Then, he took them back out there, and they chewed on him again. That was his last day.” Fortunately, however, the vast majority of passengers appreciate the SaintMobiles and their drivers. “Ninety-nine percent, I would say,” Shreve said, “more than 99 percent.”
A.Z. Callicoat
Vital transportation But making the run from the parking lot, up the hill to the hospital and back is the SaintMobile drivers’ primary duty. “There are people who regularly tell us they couldn’t visit the hospital without those (the SaintMobiles) because of the hill or their inability to walk,” Shreve said. “Some of them can make it up the hill and can’t make it down, some of them can make it down the hill and can’t make it up.” Many people are surprised when a SaintMobile pulls up near their car, Shreve said. “You can’t believe the number of people that tell us,
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Shreve said he always is looking for more drivers. “I could always stand more drivers,” he said. “Just like more volunteers, we could always stand more volunteers.” Shreve said drivers get a great deal of satisfaction out of the time spent in the SaintMobiles, which operate in all kinds of weather, as long as it is safe for them to do so. “If the drivers didn’t get satisfaction out of it, they wouldn’t be out there,” he said. “In the wintertime it’s a terrible, terrible cold job. In the summertime it’s a terrible, terrible hot job. If they didn’t enjoy doing it, they wouldn’t be out there.” SaintMobiles are neither air-conditioned nor heated, with the exception of small catalytic heaters carried aboard on the coldest winter days. “About all it does is keep your hands from freezing,” Shreve said. “ It doesn’t help your feet at all.” The carts’ capacity is supposed to be three adults and the driver, but that limit often is exceeded, Shreve said. “I’ve had seven in there beside me before,” he said, “but they weren’t all big people, there were kids. You get relatives and kids, you can cram more than that in there.” All young riders are given Tootsie Rolls, Shreve said, and some not so young, as well. “Once in awhile adults will say, ‘Can I have a Tootsie Roll?’” Shreve said. “They don’t want to be left out,” said Callicoat.
Harold Shreve
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One trip at a time Shreve, a former St. Mary’s volunteer of the year, also does other jobs for the hospital, working registration and escort. He has logged nearly 5,000 volunteer hours, in all. But his favorite volunteer activity is driving the SaintMobiles, said Shreve, who worked 40 years as a carpet layer and 26 as a firefighter, then worked as a maintenance man at Oakwood Christian Church before finally retiring. “I tremendously enjoy helping people,” he said. One trip at a time.
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SOMETHING WONDERFUL Park Avenue Thrift pumps thousands into the community; Hope Outreach provides programs to assist local residents By Bridget Nash Staff writer
Park Avenue Thrift is having fun helping Enid. That is what cofounder Paula Nightengale said when she recently discussed the mission of Park Avenue, a local thrift store that does more than just sell donated items. “We give away 100 percent of our profits to community endeavors,” she said.
“It takes about five years to get a business going, and here we’ve already had a profit of more than half a million to give away,” Nightengale said. Hume playfully added, “Giving away money is a tough job but someone’s got to do it.”
Park Avenue Thrift
Over half a million reasons
Remembering the faithful Nightengale and Hume said Park Avenue Thrift never would have been the success it has become without faithful people of Enid and help from God. Park Avenue thanks Enid by donating time and funds, but its founders thank God by providing a quiet chapel in the store that is open for anyone to visit. “We would love for people to come in, and when they stop by take a visit in our chapel,” she said. “It’s 350 square feet of quiet.”
In the last 41⁄2 years, Park Avenue Thrift has donated $650,063.11 to the community, and that number continues to grow. “We support what we call ‘The Big 5,’” Nightengale said. “That is the Enid Symphony, Gaslight Theatre, Leonardo’s (Discovery Warehouse), Main Street (Enid) and PEGASYS.” More than $350,000 has been donated to “The Big 5,” but Park Avenue has given other donations to organizations such as RSVP, 4RKids, CDSA and Chautauqua and has donated more than $50,000 to education. Park Avenue also provides vouchers for thrift store items to people in need. “We’ve given $180,000 in benevolence, where we’ve provided vouchers,” she said. Women shop for items at Park Avenue Thrift. (Staff Photo by BONNIE VCULEK)
Hometown support
The ultimate mission of Park Avenue is to increase the quality of life in Enid. “We think it’s the best place to live, and we want to support our hometown,” Nightengale said. “Each of us has a mandate to help those who are less fortunate.” The idea for Park Avenue Thrift came to Nightengale and David Hume of Enid in June 2007. The city of Enid was facing possible budget cuts, and Nightengale and Hume had been looking for a mission in which to participate. They decided to start their own mission, helping Enid and the residents of the Enid. Park Avenue Thrift was on the fast track from the moment the concept was formed. “We got the keys to this building on July 1 (2007), and it’s been uphill all the way,” she said. “We opened on Oct. 1, 2007.” Park Avenue Thrift had faithful volunteers help get the store ready in a few short months, she said, and now the store employs 30 people. “Not only are we giving back to the community but we are providing jobs,” Nightengale said.
Success formed on a rotating basis Part of Park Avenue’s success is its rotating system that allows new items on the floor every week. “Every week we take out the oldest stuff, and every Monday a brand new sale starts,” Nightengale said. New items are priced and a week later marked 15 percent off. The next week they are marked 30 percent off and the week after that 60 percent off. Finally they are marked as 20 cents and if they are not sold they are donated to another outlet or recycled. Cloth, paper and metal are among items donated to be recycled. “So, if someone has a shirt with a button off or a sheet with a stain on it, you can still bring it by and it will be recycled,” Nightengale said. Park Avenue Thrift also reuses plastic shopping bags and gratefully accepts donation of any plastic bags. Through monetary donations, recycling of goods and constant rotation of items, Park Avenue has been successful in its five years.
Hope Outreach in Enid
Enid boasts another thrift store that also makes contributions to the city through programs designed to assist local residents. Hope Outreach not only is a local thrift store but a local organization that spends a great deal of time and resources helping various groups of people in Enid. “We cover such a wide area of services and a wide area of need,” said Lee Langshaw, Hope Outreach community relations spokesperson. “We started out in 1991 doing community care assistance. We helped folks out who were having financial crises.” Since 1991, Hope Outreach has broadened its service and created many new programs. “We’ve evolved to where we’ve discovered other needs and some social services that were falling into the cracks,” Langshaw said.
help with the gardening. The garden is designed in a way that people do not have to get on the ground or bend over to tend to the plants. Anyone who wants to help, whether they have a disability or just want to volunteer, can call (580) 402-0636. There is another ministry of Hope Outreach that helps people who have been in trouble with the law get a good employment record.
fuel, food or other staples. People may work in exchange for any of these items. “We don’t hand out any cash,” Lohman said. Lohman said Community Care’s mission is prevent people from losing utilities or homes because it is difficult to get those things back. “(The program) is not just for the extremely downtrodden,” said Lohman. “Even people with college degrees or business owners, because of life circumstances, sometimes need help.” Hope Outreach does not have a shelter for the homeless but they do provide a Day Center where those without homes can get out of the elements during the day and have access to a shower and a washer and dryer. They also Kozy Sommers, January McCall and Dena Stratton (from left) change a clothcan work for clothing vouch- ing display at Hope Outreach Thrift Store. (Staff Photo by BONNIE VCULEK) ers. The center also can be used for the home- While they do not hire anyone dangerous, less to list for a phone number or address when Hope Outreach is willing to help some people applying for jobs. who have done jail time, paid their debt to “It’s impossible to get a job if you don’t society and are having trouble finding employhave a place where they can contact you,” ment because of their record. Lohman said. People with a criminal record can be hired He said Hope Outreach’s staff is excited to work in the thrift store warehouse. about a possible new endeavor, a new mission “We will hire people who have made some to help the homeless. mistakes,” said Lohman. “We don’t hire any“We are trying to start a 24-hour, 7-day-a- one dangerous, but we will give a good referweek, Bridge to Life program for the home- ence if they are a good worker. It is a good less,” Lohman said. “This is a discipleship pro- opportunity to get people back on their feet. gram and it will be very heavily Bible-based. They can start proving themselves again in the The purpose is to address the spiritual need.” community.” Bridge to Life will help people with whatAn annual ministry of Hope Outreach is its ever circumstance led them to the situation abstinence program for seventh-graders. Girls they are in, and especially provide help with have a tea time while the boys have a separate problems like addiction. It will be a free pro- tailgate event. Speakers are invited, Lohman gram to those who participate. said, and emphasis is placed on value of the “We are still in the planning stage,” girls and strength of character for boys. Lohman said. “While we are a Christian organization, we understand the separation of church and state,” Programs that focus on character Lohman said. “Since this is a school function, Hope Outreach’s Faith Farm is a “garden it is not a religious event.” Hope Outreach’s thrift store supplies about therapy” program run by Kate Morrison. Faith Farm not only provides fresh produce but 85 percent of Hope Outreach’s program fundallows people with handicaps to get out and ing, and donations to the store are appreciated.
Taking on a challenge One of Hope Outreach’s ministries is its parenting ministries, a program to help young mothers, fathers and even grandparents. “Ann Price took on that challenge about 10 years ago,” Langshaw said. Price started the program with a trip to Colorado Springs, Colo., to study the implementation of Earn While You Learn, a parenting class for mothers to earn points at Hope Outreach’s Mommy Store for items — from clothes to furniture — needed for their babies. The program now offers “re-parenting” classes for grandparents, as well. “Many people may think (the parenting ministry) is only for people who are economically challenged or come from bad home situations,” said Matt Lohman, Hope Outreach executive director. “But it’s for anyone. We have a Bible study and offer a financial component for helping create a budget.”
A shelter for those in need Hope Outreach also offers Community Care Program, which helps those in need of
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Enid News & Eagle
Sunday, April 15, 2012
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Ct h Oe Uc o Rm mT u I n Ni t Gy Longtime park board member still has finger on the pulse of the city By Robert Barron Staff Writer
Carolyn Nicholas’ time on the Enid Park Board has ended for now, but she still is interested in the community. Nicholas served on Enid Park Board for about nine years, part of the time as chairwoman. During that time, she was one of those instrumental in building several new tennis courts in Enid. “You might say that was my pet project while I was there,” she said. The city of Enid donated $80,000, and the park board raised an additional $320,000 to build the new courts, which Enid tennis players said were needed badly. Nicholas and fellow board member Coni Blankenship led the way on the drive. Nicholas also was active during the initial stages of the development of the Enid trail system. Fellow board member Kelly Champlin brought up the idea, then left the board, so Nicholas followed up, again, she said, with assistance from other board members. When Andrie Winters, the city’s grant coordinator, started her job, she immediately obtained a $700,000 grant from Oklahoma Department of Transportation. The grant is paid out as specific trail requirements are met. “It’s a slow process,” Nicholas said. “The idea is to have 3.2 miles (of trails) in the center of town and a spur that will go to Walmart, a spur that will go to the Northern Oklahoma College and Northwestern Oklahoma State University, a spur going to Crosslin Park and one south going to Vance Air Force Base. That way it will be accessible to all quadrants of the city.”
The initial project began in 1995. Nicholas said Jerry Allen also has been involved in the trail project. She complimented City Manager Eric Benson for his assistance. “I was excited to see the city commission return from their (recent) brainstorming session and say they were focusing on quality of life issues,” she said.
During the first five years Nicholas was a member of the Park Board, there were several different city managers. It is hard to maintain consistent planning that way, she said. But tennis courts, parks and trails are
only a few of Nicholas’ “pet projects.” Since she works in environmental consulting, Nicholas was among the first to push an Enid lake. The city recently created a water master plan that warned of a water shortage within 20 years if steps are not taken. Since that time, the city has b e g u n work on developing a number of new water wells and ways to deliver the water to Enid. She still believes a lake is another option to that plan. “Nitrates tend to accumulate in ground water, and a lake would eliminate that, plus we would have the other benefits of a lake,” Nicholas said. One of the major problems involved in building a lake is the flatness of Garfield County. Nicholas said a lake requires a natural canyon and also a river running through the area. That type of water source is somewhat rare in Garfield County, she said. However there are options. Her original plan was a 10,000-acre lake, but she has pared that idea down to a smaller lake. Lake Hefner in Oklahoma City is 2,500 acres and is one of the busiest recreation areas in Oklahoma City. “I’d be happy with a 2,500-acre lake,” she said. In addition to her community work, she is mother to three teenage boys, and she and husband Jay are helping charter Cimarron Presbyterian Church in Enid.
Carolyn Nicholas (left top) was a longtime volunteer member of Enid Park Board and was instrumental in raising money for the Crosslin Park Tennis Complex (above) and other tennis court facilities in Enid. Chisholm High School tennis team members practice at Crosslin Park Tennis Complex (left bottom). (Staff Photos by BONNIE VCULEK)
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Sunday, April 15, 2012
Enid News & Eagle
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Enid News & Eagle
Sunday, April 15, 2012
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Page 15
e v o m
on the By Bridget Nash Staff Writer
JWL of Enid is working to relocate its Return Engagement store downtown bake sale were divided equally between the families of the boys. Through monetary donations and donations of items, JWL of Enid has given more than $30,000 back to the community in the last year. The organization donates time and funds to many organizations each year, and league officials said they hope the new location will help them give even
Junior Welfare League of Enid currently is renovating a new location with the goal of better serving the people of Enid. JWL officials hope to be moved into its their location at 121 and 123 N. Grand by the end of 2012, but while they are renovating the members plan on continuing to provide their volunteer services to help many people in Enid. “Our mission is to promote volunteerism,” said Eva Bartley, president of Junior Welfare League of Enid. The organization raises funds year-round through the operation of its business, Return Engagement, a thrift and consignment store. Return engagement has been operating in Enid for nearly 60 years. One of the biggest missions of Junior Welfare League of Enid is to help children. “We find kids in need and give $10,000 every year” through the clothing, education and welfare program, Bartley said. Junior Welfare League works with school counselors in Garfield County to find students who need clothing, shoes, school supplies or toiletries and donates those items through the clothing, education and welfare program. The league also helps other area organizations when they need funding and donates about $7,500 each year to organizations such as Boy Scouts of America, school after-prom events and YWCA. “We get six to eight requests each month,” Bartley said. Recently, Junior Welfare League of Enid held a bake sale and raised $10,227 to help with medical expenses of two teenage boys who were injured in a grain auger accident in Kremlin last summer. The proceeds from the
Carson Combest, Logan Palmer and James Hill (above, from left) demolish a wall inside the future home of Junior Welfare League in downtown Enid. Window art (left) announces the new location at 121 and 123 N. Grand. (Staff Photos by BILLY HEFTON)
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more back to the community. Once moved, JWL will be able to accept more and larger items for Return Engagement, have a more organized receiving area and create better procedures for prepping and pricing items for the store. They also hope to have a better shopping atmosphere and have more storage. By the end of the year, Junior Welfare League of Enid plans to create a new and detailed marketing plan, host a grand opening of the new location, have promotional incentives, offer military and senior discounts and more. JWL also offers its locally famous cookbook, which makes a perfect gift, Bartley said, and is available at Return Engagement, now at 201 W. Garriott.
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Sunday, April 15, 2012
Enid News & Eagle
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