St. John to give away food
St John AME Church, 1117 W. Pullen St., will give away food May 11 from 9 a.m. until all food has been distributed.
State IDs are required to receive one box per family. Pickup will be in front of the church on Cherry Street. For safety reasons, recipients are asked to stay in their vehicles and open their trunks.
The sponsors are the church’s Soul Food for the Mind, Body, and Spirit Feeding Ministry along with community partners, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, according to a news release.
Financial donations may be sent to St. John AME Church-Feeding Ministry, 1117 W. Pullen St., Pine Bluff, Ark. 71601. or electronically through Givelify St. John AME Pine Bluff. Contact Pearl Matlock at pearl1948@sbcglobal.net to volunteer. The Rev. Chestine Sims Jr. is the pastor at St. John.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
UAM Kids’ University set July 8-11
UAM Kids’ University will be held at the University of Arkansas at Monticello from July 8-11.
The summer enrichment program is a day camp that aims to cultivate new interests, expand knowledge and spark imagination and creativity in children in a non-graded environment, according to a news release.
Students entering grades 1-3 will attend from 9 a.m. to noon. Students entering grades 4-6 will attend from 1-5 p.m. An early drop-off option is available for both sessions.
Early registration is open through May 31. For those who pay by May 31, the registration fee is $80. Between June 1-27, the registration fee is $100. After June 27, the registration fee is $125. The fee includes a T-shirt and all supplies.
Checks made payable to “UAM Kids’ University” can be mailed to Attn: Rebecca Newton, P.O. Box 3608, Monticello, AR 71656. Payments may also be made over the phone at the UAM Cashier’s Office, (870) 460-1043.
Parents should complete a separate registration form and pay registration fees for each child who will participate. Details: Rebecca Newton at kidsu@uamont.edu or call (870) 460-1596.
Low-income home repair talk at town hall
Low-income homeowners may apply for emergency repair to their properties through the city’s Emergency Rehabilitation Program. The application period is open until May 21.
The city of Pine Bluff’s Economic & Community Development Department will host a community town hall to review the Emergency Rehabilitation Program. The meeting will be held from 4-5:30 p.m. May 15 at the Pine Bluff Convention Center.
The Economic & Community Development Department administers federal grant funding through the Emergency Rehabilitation Program to provide emergency repair to properties owned and occupied as the primary residence for low-income homeowners, according to a news release.
Priority assistance will be provided to homeowners with extremely low-household income and/or who have a disability requiring home modifications.
During the town hall, attendees will:
Learn information about the program eligibility requirements for applicants and the housing conditions;
Secure assistance in creating an account and completing an application.
Interested residents should attend the town hall to learn more about the Emergency Rehabilitation Program. Details: Economic & Community Development Department, (870) 543-1820.
ADE selects agencies for program
The Arkansas Department of Education announced the 13 organizations selected for the second early childhood education local leads cohort. A local education cooperative is included in this project.
These organizations, combined with the first cohort of 12 organizations announced in November 2023, represent 65 counties and will establish a comprehensive, localized plan to ensure children and families have access to high-quality early childhood education, according to a news release.
The local agency included in the second cohort is the Arkansas River Education Service Cooperative with Jefferson, Arkansas, Cleveland, and Lincoln counties.
Details: https://dese.ade.arkansas.gov/Offices/office-of-early-childhood/local-leads.
May is Foster Care Awareness Month
Each May, since 1988, National Foster Care Month has raised awareness for millions of Americans. This month, The CALL will focus on ways people can get involved as a foster or adoptive parent or by utilizing their gifts and talents to benefit families and children.
The CALL mobilizes local churches to raise up and support families to serve local children and families by providing children and youth in foster care what they need most – a family, according to a news release.
The CALL is launching a campaign to highlight “Say Yes to foster care” focusing on the need for additional foster families and how everyone can get involved. For the Welch family-saying yes to foster care meant having “The opportunity to see God use you and your family in ways you would never imagine,” according to the release.
Currently, there are approximately 3,700 children in foster care statewide and 1,400 foster families. On average, 12 children across Arkansas are removed from their homes and placed in the foster care system daily.
More than 7,000 children spend time in foster care in Arkansas each year. Arkansas needs 2,500 more foster homes to have more than enough families waiting to care for these children and youth.
When parents cannot keep their children due to crisis, neglect, or abuse, these children enter the foster care system needing safe homes with loving arms to take them in and care for them. Since 2007, The CALL has opened more than 3,135 foster and adoptive homes serving more than 31,000 children and youth.
For details or a local affiliate, contact Jill Bobo, (501) 580-1214 or jbobo@thecallinarkansas.org or TheCALLinArkansas.org or Facebook.com/TheCALLinAR.